OUA Men's Basketball Roundup (Nov. 27)
November 24, 2017
Waterloo 83 Ryerson 88
Ammanuel “Manny” Diressa (Toronto, Ont.) made his long awaited return to the Ryerson Rams lineup Friday night as the Rams toppled the Waterloo Warriors 88-83 in overtime at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
The Warriors entered the game on a hot streak, winning the last two after starting the season 0-5. While they nearly added the Rams to that tally, some last minute overtime heroics kept Ryerson adding to the wins column as they improve to 5-2 on the season.
Throughout the game, there was a slow but certain power shift as an early Rams lead quickly began to turn in the Warriors’ favour. The early, tone-setting back-to-back dunks of Tanor Ngom (Dakar, Senegal) soon turned to clutch three-pointers by Waterloo guard Justin Hardy (Waterloo, Ont.).
Key to Waterloo’s fight was the team’s leading scorer, forward Nedim Hodzic (Waterloo, Ont.), who put up a game high 21 points complimented by 13 defensive rebounds. Ryerson’s answer was JV Mukama (Hamilton, Ont.) who continued his strong season with a team-high 17 points and a key block to keep the game overtime bound.
After falling behind early in overtime, the Rams clawed back with Myles Charvis (Mississauga, Ont.) sinking a three to put the Rams back in the lead. Ultimately, it was Mukama who sealed the deal by turning a defensive rebound into a three to put the game away.
The Rams were without head coach Roy Rana, currently coaching the Canadian national team in Halifax, leaving assistant coach Borko Popic at the helm of the team. While one leading figure was missing, Diressa’s first game since a November 3rd injury in Windsor would mark a key piece of Ryerson’s puzzle on the court.
Putting up eight points in his return to the lineup, Popic believes that Manny’s presence alone was a factor in the win.
The Rams, now on their own two-game winning streak, will look to make it three against the Laurier Golden Hawks on Saturday night at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. The event marks this year’s Pride Night as a student-run initiative. After tonight’s close call, the Rams look to come back to the court ready to play.
“We have some things to clean up from this game,” Popic said, “so we’ll watch the film and take care of all those loose ends and be ready to play tomorrow night.”
Source: ryersonrams.ca
Guelph 71 Laurentian 84
The Voyageurs men's basketball team are quickly back in the winning column after tonight's 84-71 victory over the Guelph Gryphons.
Nelson Yengue started the scoring train for the Voyageurs drawing an early foul just 30 seconds into the game and draining both foul shots to put his team up early. The teams then traded tallies for the remainder of the first, until the Voyageurs pulled ahead late in the frame, heading into the second up by six.
The Voyageurs came out of the break draining four consecutive baskets before the Gryphons got on the board and after an almost identical quarter in which they scored another 20 points to the Gryphons 16, the teams headed into the half with the Voyageurs up by ten.
The third quarter saw the Voyageurs put up another 20 points while the teams were even at 24 points each in the fourth, ultimately securing the 84-71 win over the Gryphons.
Top performer for the Voyageurs was once again second year guard Kadre Gray, with an impressive 39 points and 7 rebounds. Another notable contribution came from veteran player Nelson Yengue who came up with a double-double which consisted of 22 points and 12 rebounds.
The home team's rebounding effort as a whole was another key factor in their victory; Laurentian owning the boards with 48 rebounds compared to the Gryphons' 31.
Top contributor for Guelph came from off the bench player Taylor Boers who had 13 points in the ball game- 9 of which coming from beyond the arc.
Source: luvoyageurs.com
Laurier 74 Toronto 86
Behind career-high night's from fifth-year guard Reilly Reid and third-year forward Nikola Paradina, the University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's basketball team picked up a big 86-74 home win over the visiting Laurier Golden Hawks on Friday evening (Nov. 24) at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
A Mississauga, Ont., native, Reid led all Blues on the night with a career-high 24 points, adding seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals in 32 minutes of action. Meanwhile, the Toronto native Paradina set new career high's in both points and rebounds with 23 points and 12 rebounds in an impressive double-double performance.
The Blue and White as a team were lights out in the early goings, nailing five three pointers in the opening quarter en route to a 27-14 lead.
However, in the second the Golden Hawks went on a run of their own led by sophomore sensation Tevaun Kokko. Laurier rallied off a 14-0 in the frame with Kokko scoring seven of his game-high 25. With the strong push the Golden Hawks led by one at the half, 43-42.
In a game of runs, Toronto snatched back momentum in the third holding Laurier to just 30 percent shooting from the field, while shooting over 50 percent themselves. Outscoring the Golden Hawks 28-13, the Blues took a commanding 70-56 lead into the fourth.
With Reid and Paradina adding to their career night in the fourth, and several strong rebounds down the stretch allowing for Toronto to have control the clock, U of T was able to hold off any Laurier counter in the final stanza.
Source: varsityblues.ca
Carleton 79 Lakehead 57
THUNDER BAY, ON – The Carleton Ravens showcased their defensive fortitude on Friday night and handed the Lakehead Thunderwolves their seventh straight loss of the season, 79-57.
Recently announced OUA Male Athlete of the Week and Ravens forward Eddie Ekiyor (Ottawa, ON) showed no signs of slowing down in what has been a strong start to his sophomore campaign. Ekiyor poured in 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field while also picking up eight rebounds and blocking two shots in 22 minutes of floor time.
Carleton looks to improve on its 8-0 start to the season next Friday against the McMaster Marauders.
GAME FLOW:
The Thunderwolves entered the game with an 0-6 record and played with a chip on their shoulder from the opening tip. Two free throws and an acrobatic layup by Mor Menashe kept Lakehead close at 11-9 in the first five and a half minutes of the game. Third-year forward TJ Lall (Cambridge, ON) entered the contest and provided high energy off the bench immediately. Lall swatted a shot within seconds of arriving on the hardwood and added two layups by the end of the quarter to help Carleton wage an early 20-15 lead.
Carleton’s lead ballooned early in the second after Ekiyor dropped in a baby hook shot and point guard Munis Tutu (Windsor, ON) hit a fadeaway three to put the Ravens up 25-15. The hot start to the quarter seemed to awaken the Ravens’ offence as Carleton outscored Lakehead 23-6 in the frame en route to waging a 43-21 lead at halftime.
The Ravens’ second-quarter momentum dwindled slightly in the third. Quincy Johnson hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 20 two and a half minutes into the half and Mike Theodore followed-up two minutes later with a three of his own to keep Lakehead within 17 points at 53-36. Fifth-year center Cam Smythe (Vancouver, BC) responded by calmly hitting a layup in the post to keep Carleton ahead 60-41 entering the fourth quarter.
Lakehead chipped away at the Ravens’ lead in the fourth and came within 16 points after a three by Nick Burke and two free throws by Jack Bull trimmed the score to 66-50 at the five-minute mark of the final frame. Carleton held strong, however, thanks to five points in the last five minutes by Smythe to solidify a 79-57 victory.
Source: goravens.ca
Algoma 76 Nipissing 70
It was an intense night of basketball at the RJS Athletic Centre, as the Nipissing Lakers men's basketball team hosted the Algoma Thunderbirds.
Coming off a win on the road, the Lakers were unable to make it two in a row, as they fell in a tight contest, losing 76-70.
As the first quarter started, it seemed that these two teams would be evenly matched as baskets were falling pretty freely back and forth. The Lakers showed some speed up and down the court, but Algoma would come right back and answer.
The first quarter ended with the teams tied 13-13.
It was here Algoma would step up their game and start grabbing control of the game.
Despite Nipissing's best efforts, the Thunderbirds started making shot after shot and they quickly elevated their score finishing the second quarter up 37-29.
Algoma was hot from long range, knocking down a number of threes each trip down the court.
Nipissing managed to keep their spirits going into the third quarter as Algoma continued to climb on them, but the Lakers weren't going down without a fight.
The third quarter finished with Algoma out in front of Nipissing, 58-45.
Tension built as Nipissing started really fighting for the win in the fourth quarter.
Thanks to a fourth quarter push, the Lakers cut their deficit to just three and were down 64-61. As the game continued Nipissing's effort weren't enough, as the Thunderbirds escaped with a win, finishing the game up six, for a final score of 76-70 over the Lakers.
Marcus Lewis had 19 points, Jaaden Lewis had 16 and Justin Shaver added 13 to pace the Lakers offence Friday night against Algoma.
Source: nulakers.ca
McMaster 87 Brock 96
The No. 2 ranked Brock University men's basketball team defeated the McMaster Marauders by the score of 96-87 Friday night at the Bob Davis Gymnasium.
Brock had all five starters in double digits led by Cassidy Ryan who recorded 20 points and five rebounds. Daniel Cayer added 16 points and nine boards while Tyler Brown contributed with 15 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Rounding out the Badgers leaders was Dani Elgadi (11 points, 7 rebounds, 5 blocks) and Johneil Simpson (10 points, 11 rebounds) who chipped in with 11 and 10 points respectively.
Leading McMaster was David McCulloch who led all scorers with 26 points. Miles Seward and Karim Collins both added 14 points each while Matt Quiring chipped in with 10.
For the game, Brock shot 44.3% (31-70) from the field, 35.5% (7-20) from beyond the arc, and 81.8% (27-33) from the charity stripe. McMaster went 29-75 (38.7%) from the field, 13-34 (38.2%) from three-point range and 16-22 (72.7%) from the free throw line.
Source: gobadgers.ca
Western 70 York 63
TORONTO, Ont. - Third-year guard Erik Jenkins poured in a team-high 17 points to help lead the Western Mustangs in a 70-63 win over the York Lions on Friday evening. The win proved to be a bounce back game for the purple and white, after losing a pair of games last weekend on the road to nationally ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees and Carleton Ravens.
Jenkins, who leads the Mustangs in scoring this season with 11.1 points per game, added five rebounds and an incredible nine steals before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.
Three other Mustangs scored in double-figures for the purple and white, as Omar Shiddo and Marko Kovacput up 16 and 13 points, respectively, while forward Jedson Tavernier had his hands all over this one, as he chipped in 10 points, four rebounds, and five steals in the win.
The opening quarter proved to be back-and-forth between York and Western, as both sides traded baskets to begin the frame. York would continue to convert in their half-court motion offence midway through the first, while the Mustangs began to struggle getting past the Lions' perimeter defenders. A few consecutive turnovers for the purple and white would be enough for York to put together a short run, as the Lions went into the second quarter with a 20-13 lead.
York quickly took advantage of their size in the second frame, driving to the paint and earning easy chances at the rim. However, the Mustangs would quickly force three straight turnovers and convert on the offensive side of the ball to cut into the Lions' lead. Despite the constant effort from the purple and white, the size disadvantage was clear, as York dominated the boards and found themselves with five blocks in the half. However, the scoring of Jenkins would keep the Mustangs within reach, as the Lions held a slim 34-33 lead heading into halftime.
Western would quickly open the half with a short offensive run, retaking the lead over York to start the third quarter. Jenkins continued to carry the scoring load for the purple and white through the opening minutes of the second half behind the passing and vision of Henry Tan. Turnovers from both teams would disallow any definitive run, as the game remained back and forth throughout the frame. However, energetic play from Tavernier as well as continued production from Jenkins led to a 53-51 advantage for Western heading into the fourth.
Backdoor cuts started to wear down and expose the York defence to start the final quarter of play, as Jenkins continued his scoring with solid off-ball movement. Tan continued to control the flow of the offence for the purple and white, as the York guards proved unable to stay in front of the fifth-year guard. The defensive awareness of Tavernier kept the York defence at bay, as Shiddo carried the load on the other end of the floor for Western, hitting a clutch three to extend the Mustang lead. York would make one final run in the final minute of play, but Western would remain composed, escaping with a 70-63 win.
With the win, the Mustangs will improve to 4-4 on the season and will move to second in the OUA West division, trailing the 8-0 Brock Badgers. The Lions' loss will drop them to 2-6 on the season, as they will remain at the bottom of the competitive OUA East division.
Source: westernmustangs.ca
Windsor 94 Queen’s 96
KINGSTON, Ont. (November 24, 2017) - The Queen's Gaels (5-2) won in impressive fashion over the Windsor Lancers (2-5) coming back from an 18 point deficit in the second quarter to defeat Windsor 96-94.
GAME FLOW
Windsor scored the first points of the game to go up 3-0, but Mat Elcock (Waterdown, Ont.) returned the favour at the other end. The Gaels were giving it their all in the first, but the Lancers were shooting lights-out. Windsor shot 64% from downtown in the quarter, which led to their early advantage. A step-back triple ended the 1st quarter with Queen's trailing behind Windsor 33-17.
Jaz Bains (Brampton, Ont.) found Elcock for a three-pointer to open the second quarter as the Gaels looked to get back into the game. Windsor was able to stretch their lead to 18 points over Queen's thanks to the hot hand of Marcus Jones who had 10 points in the frame. Bains, who had six assists on the half, found Tanner Graham (Kingston, Ont.) cutting baseline for a big dunk as Queen's got momentum going. The Gaels still found themselves trailing at halftime 57-44.
Jones continued to be a spark for Windsor as he opened the second half with a pull-up jumper.
The Gaels, however, were no slouch, as they were able to find the basket pretty often in the third. The Gaels continued to hang with the Lancers, and Jesse Graham (Kingston, Ont.) cut the margin to single digits with a three-point play. Queen's went into the fourth quarter down just eight at 79-71.
The Gaels got off to a quick start in the fourth as Range knocked down a second chance bucket to cut the deficit to six. With the shot-clock winding down, Tanner Graham seemed to be stuck in a double-team but threw up a shot from deep that somehow found its way into the hoop energizing the home crowd. A layup by Range tied the game up and forced Windsor into a timeout. It was Quinton Gray who pulled up from mid-range to give Queen's their first lead of the game. Mike Rocca nailed three straight buckets for Windsor to restore their lead. It was short lived however as Bains' effort offensively put the game back at even, nailing a pull-up jumper and finding Range cutting baseline. Bains added two more free throws to give the Gaels the lead once again. Gray rose above the defence for a put-back layup to raise the Queen's lead to four with 30 seconds left. As Queen's tried to play keep-away from the Lancers, it would be Marcus Jones who would sink a clutch 3 pointer, to make it a one-point game. With Bains missing a free throw, Windsor would have the opportunity to tie the game up, with 1.2 seconds left but their shot attempt missed, and Queen's hung on for a 96-94 win.
Source: gogaelsgo.com
November 25, 2017
Windsor 65 York 61
The Windsor Lancers men's basketball team rolled into Toronto to take on the York Lions looking to get back to winning basketball after a heart wrenching loss at Queen's Friday night. The Lancers found themselves in a close one late and were determine not to relive the previous evening and came out on top 65-61.
GAME STATS
The Lancers Mike Rocca led all scorers with 23 points, Prince Kamunga led the way for the Lions dropping 18 points.
Rocca also recorded a double-double, pairing his 32 points with 14 rebounds. Josiah Riley led the effort on the glass for York, bringing in nine rebounds
The Lancers defense played extremely well allowing 27 per cent shooting on the game. York's defense played well also, giving up a more than respectable 30 per cent shooting on the night.
The battle on the boards was fierce one, with the Lions out rebounding the Lancers 49-48 for the game.
GAME FLOW
The Lancers offense came out of the gate looking nothing like the high scoring squad they were last night. The Lancers offense hit an anemic 25 per cent of their shots in the first half. Thankfully for the Lancers, their defense was there to cover for a subpar offense. The Lancers allowed a conversion rate of only 35 per cent on first half shots from the Lions. Despite Rocca leading all scorers with 10 points at halftime, the Lancers found themselves down 36-32 at the break.
In the second half the Lancers defense came out with renewed energy, stifling the Lions attack. Rocca continued his scoring run as the Lancers worked to overcome their four-point halftime deficit. The York defense played hard, holding the visiting Lancers to 35 per cent shooting through the second half, however their offense was running into trouble, hitting only 18 per cent of their second half looks. The Lancers were finally able to capitalize on the defensive effort and take the lead late in the fourth quarter. Rocca iced the game away from the free throw line and the Lancers won a close one, 65-61.
Source: golancers.ca
Guelph 78 Nipissing 84
Often the sign of a good team is to find a way to extend a winning streak and quickly halt any losing streak, no matter how long.
The Nipissing Lakers men's basketball did just that Saturday night, making sure they earned a weekend split with a gritty 84-78 victory over the Guelph Gryphons, avoiding dropping the third game in their last four.
Nipissing started very strong, building u a 13-2 lead and rode that hot start to victory, but it was far from easy.
After 10 minutes, the Lakers held a 25-24 advantage on Guelph.
The Lakers continued to show their skill into the second quarter.
Guelph was becoming frustrated, as the Lakers played solid defensively and impressive offensively. Thanks to their solid play at both ends of the court, Nipissing earned a lead of 44-29 at halftime.
Into the third and Guelph began picking up their game and managed to close the gap, cutting into the Lakers lead.
The quarter finished with Nipissing out in front 69-59.
The game was getting closer the longer it went on and the tension were growing.
A game that seemed to be in control for the Lakers was getting less and less certain as the second half progressed.
Soon enough Guelph had come within three points of Nipissing.
The game went down to the wire and with a minute left the score was 80-78 and despite a late push from Guelph, Nipissing held on for the 84-78 triumph.
The Lakers were led offensively by Marcus Lewis who had a double-double, 26 points and 11 rebounds, Ismael Kaba had 18 and Jaaden Lewis added 16 in the victory.
Source: nulakers.ca
Algoma 86 Laurentian 96
It was another nail biting match tonight at the Ben Avery where the Voyageurs men's basketball team battled back and forth with their visiting opponents; the Algoma Thunderbirds.
After the teams exchanged leads throughout the game it all came down to the final quarter, where Laurentian climatically out battled the Thunderbirds 29-17, closing out the match with a final score of 96- 86.
The Voyaguers' top performer for the night was none other than second year guard Kadre Gray who earned a triple double with 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. Another major contributor in the game was veteran guard David Aromolaran who added 19 points and 7 assists. Seasoned forward Nelson Yengue likewise had a strong showing with 6 rebounds and 18 points, with a 73% field goal percentage.
Top performer for the Thunderbirds was guard Ian Nash, who racked up 23 points.
This weekend's performance marks the second sweep weekend for Laurentian at home who is currently ranked 7th in the country with their 6-1 record.
Source: luvoyageurs.com
Laurier 70 Ryerson 80
TORONTO - While Manny Diressa (Toronto, Ont.) made his official return to the Ryerson Rams lineup last night, it was Saturday night that he really made his true comeback as he put up 24 points in a 80-70 win over the Laurier Golden Hawks at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
In his return to the Rams lineup after an injury kept him sidelined since early November, Diressa put up eight points in an overtime victory over Waterloo. Tonight, Manny was back in full force, out-scoring his return before the first half had ended and went on to put up the numbers he is known for.
The Rams, utilizing their more experienced core of Diressa and Myles Charvis (Mississauga, Ont.), the Golden Hawks relied more on quick and talented youth. This includes former Rams guard, Tevaun Kokko (Markham, Ont.), who put up 21 points against his former team complimented by four steals.
Charvis would lead the game early, coming out of the first with 17 of his eventual game-total 19 points. With 70% effectiveness from the field, Charvis showed that he could both lead the team and compliment Diressa’s play while still putting up impressive numbers. JV Mukama (Hamilton, Ont.) took a step back from the scoreboard compared to recent games, but was absolutely essential on the defensive side of the ball. With five steals and eight rebounds, six of those being defensive rebounds, Mukama still managed a 62.5% field goal average to put up 11 points.
Improving to a record of 6-2, the Rams now sit in a three-way tie for second in the OUA East with the Laurentian Voyageurs and the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Only the Brock Badgers and Carleton Ravens have more points in the OUA with 18 and 16, respectively.
The victory marked the second with Popic at the helm of the team, as head coach Roy Rana is abroad coaching the Canadian national team. After back-to-back victories at home, Rana will be back to take control when the Rams travel to University of Toronto to face cross-town rivals the Varsity Blues.
Source: ryersonrams.ca
Western 75 Queen’s 71
KINGSTON, Ont. – An 18-point performance from Marko Kovac helped lead the Western Mustangs to a 75-71 win over the Queen's Gaels on Saturday evening at the ARC Gymnasium.
The win moves Western to 5-4 on the season and gives the team sole possession of second place in the OUA West Division. Queen's falls to 5-3 on the year, goof for fifth place in the East.
Kovac's 18-point night is a season high for the forward, and came on 7-16 shooting, including going 2-8 from beyond the arc, while also adding a pair of free throws. Three other Mustangs hit double digits in the win, with Henry Tan, Omar Shiddo, and Christopher Clegg recording 10 points each. Celgg also led the Mustangs rebounding efforts with 10 boards on Saturday.
Jaz Bains led all players with 21 points and 10 assists in the loss, and was followed by Mike Soveller and Quinton Gray with 12 points each.
The opening 10 minutes proved to be a fast-paced and high scoring affair, with neither side able to build a sizable advantage. Kovac led the Mustangs with eight points in the frame, as both sides traded baskets with Western taking a 24-20 lead into the second quarter.
While the first quarter provided plenty of offence on both sides of the court, the scoring slowed down in the second frame with Western slowly pulling ahead of their opponents. The Mustangs doubled the Gaels in the second, outscoring them 16-8 to take a 40-28 lead at halftime.
After Western continued to extend their lead in the third quarter, the Gaels fired back in the fourth, with Bains and Graham scoring six points each in the first four minutes of the quarter before Quinton Gray and Harry Range began to take over the scoreboard. Queen's outscored Western 25-13 in the frame, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Mustangs early lead as the purple and white walked away with a 75-71 win.
Source: westernmustangs.ca
Waterloo 70 Toronto 81
The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's basketball team utilized an impressive shooting night to knock off the visiting Waterloo Warriors 81-70 on Saturday, November 25 at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
With the win the Blue and White improve to 5-3, while the Warriors fall to 2-7.
U of T was on fire from behind the three point arc, shooting 4-of-6 from distance in the first quarter before finishing the evening with 11 total three pointers. The Blues defence was also strong throughout the first half, holding Waterloo to just seven field goals in the opening two quarters and 27 percent shooting from the floor.
Fifth-year guard Reilly Reid tied a career-high 24 points, which he set the previous night, nailing three field goals from beyond the arc. Reid also tied a career-high in rebounds grabbing 12 boards in the double-double perfromance.
Sage Usher (15), Christopher Barrett (12), and Nikola Paradina (10) all scored double-digit's on the night, with Paradina shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from downtown.
The Warriors were paced by guard Simon Petrov's 21 points, 15 of which came in the second half.
Source: varsityblues.ca
Other Scores:
Ottawa 94 Lakehead 59