Queen’s Golden Gaels have popped out of the Ontario University Athletics RPI formula with as the seventh-seeded team for the men’s basketball tournament, and as such, they will host the Toronto Blues in a first-round game Wednesday at the Athletics and Recreation Centre.

Game time is 8 p.m.

The game will be a rematch of the Gaels’ final regular season game, which they won at home Saturday night 81-73. During the regular year, Queen’s, 11-8, second-place team in the East division, split its season series with the Varsity Blues, losing 85-84 in Toronto Jan. 15.

The Blues ended the season third in the East division, at 5-14.

In case that makes you wonder who exactly didn’t qualify for the playoffs, 12 of the league’s 17 teams do get invitations. The top four teams according to the league’s statistics-crunching formula are seeded 1-4, and get direct entry to the quarter-finals. The next eight teams are seeded 5-12.

Ryerson, Ottawa, East division runner-up Carleton and McMaster, in that order, are the top seeds. West-division champion Windsor (14-6), Brock (13-6), Queen’s, Western (11-9), Lakehead (10-9), Toronto, Laurier (9-11) and Laurentian (6-13) complete the playoff draw.

They must certainly be stinging in Guelph, whose Gryphons finished last in the Central division, but whose record, 9-10, was superior to three teams who did get invited to the dance. York (2-17), Nipissing (4-15), Algoma (5-15) and Waterloo (1-19) were the other teams whose season ended early.

Queen’s was 6-7 this year against teams that made the playoffs.

The winner of the Queen’s-Toronto game will advance to face the Ottawa Gee-Gees in a quarter-final game Saturday night in Ottawa.