Canadians playing in Men’s and Women’s March Madness Tournaments
43 Canadians are heading to The Big Dance as March Madness begins!
It’s yet again time for the Big Dance! March Madness begins today, and as Canada continues to develop world-class basketball talent, 43 Canadians are getting ready to play in the tournament.
They aren’t just suiting up either, they are making an impact. Here are the lists of Canadian players on both the men’s and women’s tournament teams:
Men’s:
- Aden Holloway (Alabama)
- Kevin Alabi (Alabama State)
- Jalen Celestine (Baylor)
- Olivier Rioux (Florida)
- Ryan Nembhard (Gonzaga)
- Simon Hildebrant (High Point)
- Liam McChesney (High Point)
- Emanuel Sharp (Houston)
- Will Riley (Illinois)
- Bryant Selebangue (McNeese State)
- Baraka Okojie (Memphis)
- Michael Nwoko (Mississippi State)
- Jeremy Founema (Mississippi State)
- Jovan Milicevic (New Mexico)
- Kobe Elvis (Oklahoma)
- Keeshawn Barthelemy (Oregon)
- Josh Omojafo (Robert Morris)
- Oliver Faubert (Saint Mary’s)
- Justin Rochelle (UC San Diego)
- Kyler Filewich (Wofford)
Women’s
- Shaunae Brown (Arkansas State)
- Emma Koabel (Duke)
- Toby Fournier (Duke)
- Cyanne Coe (Fairfield)
- Keyarah Gregory (Fairfield)
- Cearah Parchment (Illinois)
- Tanah Becker (Kentucky)
- Emily Howard (Liberty)
- Ify Nwaobi (Liberty)
- Merissah Russell (Louisville)
- Shayeann Day-Wilson (LSU)
- Sarah Te-Biasu (Maryland)
- Mila Holloway (Michigan)
- Syla Swords (Michigan)
- Isaline Alexander (Michigan State)
- Marah Dykstra (Montana State)
- Natalie Picton (Montana State)
- Bella Tehrani (Notre Dame)
- Cassandre Prosper (Notre Dame)
- Phillipina Kyei (Oregon)
- Izzy Forsyth (UC San Diego)
- Avery Howell (USC)
- Malia Lenz (Vermont)
Teams that could go far
Olivier Rioux’s Florida and Emanuel Sharp’s Houston are both listed as no.1 seeds in their region, and could both very well make a trip to the Final Four. Rioux stands at 7-foot-9 (like for real), and has been a name in Canadian basketball circles for years, though he decided to redshirt his freshman season (not play and stay with the team but keep that year of eligibility). This was in order to further develop his skills. Once Rioux begins to play for Florida, he will become the World’s tallest college basketball player.
Aden Holloway’s Alabama is a no.2 seed, but would have to face Duke in order to make it out of their region. With more parity on the Men’s side of the Tournament, middle-of-the-pack teams like Illinois and Oklahoma could go on a Cinderella run as well.
On the women’s side, Avery Howell’s USC is the only no.1 seed with Canadian talent. Cassandre Prosper and Bella Tehrani’s Notre Dame were seeded no.3 in their region, but could out-perform that ranking. Shayeann Day-Wilson and LSU have the talent to go far, but injuries have stopped them from being ranked among true contenders. Michigan’s young core including Syla Swords and Mila Holloway showed extremely powerful play in the Big-10 Tournament, upsetting Sarah Te-Biasu’s Maryland before losing a close game to Howell’s USC. Lot’s of Canadian on Canadian action could happen in the women’s bracket.
How to Watch March Madness in Canada
In Canada, TSN has the exclusive broadcast rights to March Madness on both the men’s and women’s sides. Games will be on regular TSN channels as well as TSN+ for the early rounds. Schedules can be found on TSN’s site as well as ESPN or the NCAA website itself.