VANCOUVER – The University of Calgary Dinos men's basketball team will return home as national silver medallists after falling to the Victoria Vikes 82-53 in the 2025 INDOCHINO U SPORTS Men's Final 8 championship game at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.

The Final 8 turned into a war of attrition for the Dinos as injuries piles up throughout the tournament. Calgary entered Sunday afternoon's contest missing starters Noah Wharton and Declan Peterson, who were sidelined after injuries sustained in the national quarter-final and semifinal games. By the early stages of the second half, guard Aidan Smith also had to leave the game due to an injury suffered at the start of the contest.

Victoria's relentless defence stymied Calgary, holding them to just 27.3 percent shooting. It was a stark contrast to the Dinos' impressive shooting in their first two games of the tournament.

"I'm just proud of the guys. They've battled a lot of adversity, and we showed up and played hard, but we couldn't get anything to fall," stated Dinos head coach Dan Vanhooren. "We were playing a very good basketball team and down three starters, it's going to be tough. We had to play perfect today."

On the other side, the Vikes capped off an incredible national tournament run, securing their first U SPORTS championship since 1997. The victory came despite playing without 2024 U SPORTS Player of the Year Diego Maffia, who suffered a season-ending injury in January.

In Maffia's absence, Renoldo Robinson emerged as a star, earning U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian honours. The third-year guard led all scorers with 24 points in the final. U SPORTS Defensive Player of the Year Sam Maillet, a fifth-year grad transfer, was named the Jack Donahue Trophy winner as the most valuable player of the Final 8.

The Dinos opened the game with a quick basket but then struggled offensively, missing their next 11 shots. Calgary trailed by 17 at halftime, and the deficit grew to 23 by the end of the third quarter.

Without Wharton, a Canada West third-team all-star, the Vikes were able to focus on double and triple-teaming Nate Petrone, the 2025 national player of the year. Fourth-year guard Alan Spoonhunter stepped up for Calgary, scoring 20 points and earning player of the game honours for the Dinos.

"Their defensive pressure on us was really heavy, and getting the ball up the floor was difficult at times. Loosening up the floor for someone like Nate to get free was really hard – but that's how it is," said Vanhooren. "Our team showed great character over the last four weeks. We came together the way you need to as a team, and unfortunately, we had some rotten luck. But I am super proud of them. They're great character kids and represented the University of Calgary very well."

The Dinos graduate four players from their 2024-25 roster: Dylan Lutes, Javier Ramos-Yzquierdo, Spencer Roberts, and Wharton. The rest of the team is eligible to return next season when Calgary hosts the 2026 U SPORTS Final 8.

"Getting here was a huge thing and making it to this game was a massive accomplishment," said Vanhooren. "For us to host next year and have a bunch of guys who haven't experienced this tournament is really going to bode well for us going into next fall."

-UC-