Cambrian College suspends men's basketball team in Sudbury

Morning North5:49Men's varsity basketball at Cambrian College benched for the next two seasons

The men's varsity basketball coach at Cambrian College has stepped down. The team will be out of play for the next two season. The college associate vice-president of student and employee development Alison De Luisa joined us in studio with more details.

The men's varsity basketball team at Cambrian College in Sudbury is going to sit out the next two seasons.

The associate vice-president of Student and Employee Development said it started with the coach, Luc Giroux, announcing this month he's stepping down for personal reasons.

"With the coach stepping down, it doesn't give the next coach this late in the recruitment cycle to recruit, build a team and be set up for a successful season next year," Alison De Luisa said.

"Therefore we decided to suspend the program, suspend the team."

De Luisa says provincial rules stipulate that a suspended team must stay out for a minimum of two years.

As for what happens after that, De Luisa says nothing is certain.

"We're taking this time to just regroup, rethink of what that looks like and what our recruitment strategies would need to be moving forward," she said.

The Golden Shield, as the team is called, has won just a single game in the past two seasons.

Women's varsity basketball and other varsity sports such as volleyball are not affected.

Fast facts from Cambrian College

• The college has advised the OCAA that Cambrian would not be hosting a team for the upcoming season, and under the OCAA regulations, the College will not be permitted to host a team for 2 seasons (until the 2018-19 season).
• For the upcoming season, Cambrian will compete in the OCAA in seven sports: women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's cross-country running, and men's and women's volleyball.
• Members of Cambrian's men's basketball team have the opportunity to try out for other varsity teams that represent Cambrian in the OCAA.