Burlington, Ont. - Not only did the Carleton Ravens find success during the 2021-22 campaign, they also saw two of their talented team members garner individual recognition atop the list of Ontario University Athletics (OUA) men’s basketball award winners. On Thursday afternoon, the OUA announced that Lloyd Pandi was named OUA East Most Valuable Player while Head Coach Taffe Charles was awarded the East Division Coach of the Year.
In addition to these awards, the Ravens received four All-Star nominations. Ravens rookie Wazir Latiff (Vaughn, Ont.) was named to the OUA All-Rookies team while Pandi and teammate Biniam Ghebrekidan (Gatineau, Que.) received First Team honours and veteran guard Alain Louis (Montreal, Que.) received a nomination to the Second Team.
After producing a rookie of the year campaign in 2019-20, Carleton’s Lloyd Pandi made sure there was no sophomore slump in his OUA encore, taking home his second major award in as many seasons for the Ravens.
The East Division MVP was the complete package for the black birds. A versatile ball handler, Pandi displayed his depth of talent by finishing in the top-10 in field goal percentage (54.7), free throw percentage (83.3), defensive rebounds (84), and rebounds (114). In addition to his widespread skill set, the Ottawa, Ont. native also recorded 24 steals and shot 50% from beyond the arc.
With double digit points in all but one of the Ravens’ 12 games this season, including 25 and 24, respectively, in back-to-back games this past November, Pandi’s impressive offensive contributions included five double-doubles and a stretch of eight straight games of 10+ points to open the season.
With key injuries to Ravens starters, the second-year commerce major and reigning national rookie of the year demonstrated his leadership and professionalism in his sophomore season.
In just his second season with the Carleton men’s team, the former recorded his first undefeated campaign, thanks in large part to league-leading shooting and rebounding, as well as an OUA-low 60.0 points allowed per game. Despite having only four players in their fourth year of eligibility, Charles was able to help his team manage the uncertainties of the season to get the most out of his players. The former OUA all-star on the court maximized the country’s No. 1 team’s depth to maintain a high level of play regardless of who took the court.
Charles, who wins the award for the second time in as many seasons after collecting the same honour in 2019-20, pushes his regular season record to a sparkling 35-1, and joins former Carleton bench boss Dave Smart as the lone coaches in program history to be repeat winners. Having previously gone 23-0 as the head coach of the women’s team in 2017-18, meanwhile, the Ottawa, Ont. native continues to build his legacy within the Ravens basketball program.
