HAWKS UPSET BADGERS 54-49
March 2, 2006
ST. CATHARINES - The Laurier Golden Hawks men's basketball team played giant killers for the second straight game knocking off the No. 2 seeded Brock Badgers 54-49 in front of a sold-out crowd at the Bob Davis Gymnasium Wednesday night. The Badgers end their season with a 22-12 overall record, while Laurier (15-20 overall) clinches a berth to the CIS Final 10 in Halifax and will battle the McMaster Marauders in the OUA West Final. The Golden Hawks who went in the playoffs as the No. 6 seed, have now knocked off the No. 3 Guelph Gryphons, No. 2 Brock Badgers and will take on the No. 1 seeded McMaster Marauders.
It was the tale of two halves all season long. On this night, the Badgers led 31-24 at the half while keeping the Golden Hawks to just 27.8 per cent (10-for-36) from the field. In the second half it was the Badgers scoring just 18 points shooting just 26.9 per cent (7-for-26) including a season low 26.7 per cent (4-for-15) from the charity stripe. With the score 39-38, the Badgers had a chance to extend their lead to six, but poor free throw shooting midway through the second half was costly as they missed five straight including four by OUA West Player of the Year Kevin Stienstra (Vineland, ON), despite finishing with a game high 17 points and 15 rebounds.
With 2:30 remaining, Brock led 47-42 before Laurier's bench players, who outscored the Brock bench 34-2, decided to take it into their own hands. Brandon Gorman connected on three of four shots including a clutch three to put the Golden Hawks up by two 49-47 with 1:19 left in regulation. Jesse MacDonald added two steals and went hard to the basket a third time which resulted in three Brock fouls and six free throws which he connected on 5-of-6 for the victory. Bert Riviere also stepped up his game for the Golden Hawks scoring 10 points and pulling down 11 boards for the double-double.
In the low scoring affair, both teams shot season lows from beyond the arc as Brock was just 2-for-16 (12.5 per cent) and the Golden Hawks were 2-for-15 (13.3 per cent).
(Source: Shawn Whiteley, Brock Sports Information.)
(Photo: West Player of the Year Kevin Stienstra in action against Laurier. The Hawks pulled off a major upset with a 54-49 road win, earning a berth in the West Final and a spot in Halifax later this month. Photo by Shawn Whiteley.)
It was the tale of two halves all season long. On this night, the Badgers led 31-24 at the half while keeping the Golden Hawks to just 27.8 per cent (10-for-36) from the field. In the second half it was the Badgers scoring just 18 points shooting just 26.9 per cent (7-for-26) including a season low 26.7 per cent (4-for-15) from the charity stripe. With the score 39-38, the Badgers had a chance to extend their lead to six, but poor free throw shooting midway through the second half was costly as they missed five straight including four by OUA West Player of the Year Kevin Stienstra (Vineland, ON), despite finishing with a game high 17 points and 15 rebounds.
With 2:30 remaining, Brock led 47-42 before Laurier's bench players, who outscored the Brock bench 34-2, decided to take it into their own hands. Brandon Gorman connected on three of four shots including a clutch three to put the Golden Hawks up by two 49-47 with 1:19 left in regulation. Jesse MacDonald added two steals and went hard to the basket a third time which resulted in three Brock fouls and six free throws which he connected on 5-of-6 for the victory. Bert Riviere also stepped up his game for the Golden Hawks scoring 10 points and pulling down 11 boards for the double-double.
In the low scoring affair, both teams shot season lows from beyond the arc as Brock was just 2-for-16 (12.5 per cent) and the Golden Hawks were 2-for-15 (13.3 per cent).
(Source: Shawn Whiteley, Brock Sports Information.)
(Photo: West Player of the Year Kevin Stienstra in action against Laurier. The Hawks pulled off a major upset with a 54-49 road win, earning a berth in the West Final and a spot in Halifax later this month. Photo by Shawn Whiteley.)