When the 29th edition of the CIAU men's basketball nationals convened in Halifax in March of 1991, to the surprise of many, the Acadia Axemen were once again part of the field, for the 17th time since the national tournament was first held in 1963.
Acadia's regular season record had been relatively undistinguished (10 wins and 10 losses), but the unbalanced schedule, with games against some opponents worth more than others, had allowed the Axemen to translate their victories into 34 points, good for third place in the standings.
At the conference playoffs March 9-10 in Halifax, Acadia was installed as a huge underdog in their semifinal match-up against UPEI.
However, sparked by 20 points from fifth-year senior Ted Byrne who had led the team pretty much all season (and who would be named a first-team conference all-star), the Axemen rallied from a 15-point halftime deficit to shock the Panthers 74-70. Also contributing to the offense were Eric James with 19 points, Danny Eveleigh with 17 and Kevin Lee with 10.
In the final against St. F.X., which entered the game riding a 16-game winning streak, Eveleigh led Acadia to a 75-67 upset victory with 25 points. Byrne chipped in 16 points and 10 rebounds, James had 13 points and 11 assists, and Lee 13 points and 10 boards.
Acadia joined five other conference champions – UBC, Brandon, Western, Laurentian and Concordia – at the nationals at the Halifax Metro Centre. Guelph and Victoria were the wildcard choices.
Seeded seventh, the Axemen opened against #2 UBC, led by CIAU Player of the Year J.D. Jackson. At game's end, it was Acadia that advanced following an 81-73 win. Trailing 49-41 at halftime, Acadia went on an 18-4 run early in the second half to take a six-point lead.
James, in the midst of a 'storybook' post-season, earned Player of the Game honours with 18 points and nine assists. Byrne and Eveleigh each had 21 points, and Lee contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Jackson had 26 for the T-Birds, but the Axemen did a good job of containing his teammates.
Acadia's improbable run ended the next evening with an 82-59 loss to Guelph, which combined to shoot 52 per cent from the floor to Acadia's 35. Byrne, playing his final game for Acadia, finished with 19 points (and was named a tournament all-star), and Kevin Lee contributed 16.
The Western Mustangs topped Guelph 78-69 in the next day's final to capture their first national title.