The RDC Kings didn’t receive any favours from the Alberta Colleges Men’s Basketball League playoff draw.
The Kings were hoping to play their qualifying game against the Briercrest Bible College Clippers at NAIT, so they’d have a chance to host at least one playoff game.
Instead they face the Clippers in Lethbridge tonight with the winner advancing against the Lethbridge Kodiaks in a best-of-three quarter-final series with all games in the southern Alberta city because of the distance teams have to travel.
If the Kings win they play in Lethbridge Thursday, Friday and if necessary, Saturday.
The other qualifying contest between the Keyano College Huskies and the Concordia Thunder will take place at NAIT with the winner meeting the Ooks in a best-of-three affair.
The other quarter-finals are set with the SAIT Trojans clashing with the Lakeland Rustlers in Vermilion and the Grant MacEwan Griffins taking on the Mount Royal University Cougars.
Meanwhile, the RDC Queens missed a chance to compete in a qualifying game by the slimmest of margins. The Queens, who finished with a 5-13 record (.278 winning percentage), was edged out by Lakeland, who posted a 6-14 (.300) record.
• Both RDC teams will compete in the ACAC volleyball championships, beginning Friday with the women at Mount Royal and the men at The King’s University College in Edmonton.
The two-time defending champion Queens go in ranked fourth and meet fifth-ranked King’s University College at 6 p.m. Friday with the winner advancing against the winner of the top-ranked Mount Royal University Cougars and NAIT Ooks at 8 p.m. Saturday.
On the other side No. 2 Grande Prairie takes on Medicine Hat and third-ranked Lakeland clashes with Grant MacEwan.
The final is set for 3:30 p.m. Sunday.
The RDC Kings go in ranked third and clash with sixth-ranked Grant MacEwan at 1 p.m. Friday with the winner meeting the winner of the NAIT Ooks, ranked No. 2, and Lethbridge at 6 p.m. Saturday.
The other side sees top-ranked Briercrest taking on Grande Prairie and fourth-ranked King’s facing SAIT.
The final also goes at 3:30 p.m. Sunday.
Both RDC teams need to finish in the top two to advance to the national finals March 10-12 — the men at Sherbrooke, Que., and the women at UNB in Saint John, N.B.
• Hockey Queens veteran defenceman and team captain, Kimberlee Day, received the Boston Pizza RDC female athlete of the week.
Day, who is in her final season at RDC, turned in a solid defensive performance in a 2-2 tie against the Grant MacEwan Griffins, then had both goals as the Queens lost 3-2 to the Griffins.