MEN'S BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Marauders are too much for Brock to handle

Wednesday, February 5

Waterloo 72 @ Guelph 80

Guelph, Ont. - The Guelph Gryphons men's basketball team defeated the Waterloo Warriors 80-72 on Wednesday night. The win improves the Gryphon's record to 7-13 on the season.
 
Zachary Angus led all Gryphon scorers with 22 points and 13 rebounds for the double-double. Michel Clark also had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Waterloo's Myles Charvis led the all scorers with 35 points and five rebounds.
 
Guelph's Andrew Grant hit both of his shots on Guelph's opening possessions, helping them jump to an early 8-4 lead. Waterloo responded with a 6-2 run of their own to tie things up at 10. Zach Angus ended the Warrior run with a nice lay in to re-establish the Gryphon's lead. Grant made another noteworthy play for the Gryphon's, this time on the defensive side of the ball. He had a massive block that showed good defensive recognition of when to roll off his defender and provide help. Unfortunately Guelph could not do anything with the ensuing possession. Waterloo's Myles Charvis nailed a three-pointer to give the Warriors their first lead of the game. After both teams exchanged baskets, the quarter ended with the Warriors on top 15-14.
 
After a back and forth start to the second quarter Waterloo's Myles Charvis nailed another three for the Warriors to go up 23-18. On Guelph's next possession Andrew Grant blew past his defender on a beautiful cross move to lay it in and cut into the Warrior lead. This sparked an 11-0 run for the Gryphon's capped off by a long Zach Angus two-pointer to give Guelph the lead, 29-23. The Gryphon's used their physicality to control the glass, outrebounding Waterloo 26-12 in the first half. They used this decisive advantage to stave off a Warrior surge at the end of the quarter to maintain their lead, 38-33, heading into the break. Michel Clark was particularly impressive for the Gryphon's, notching a double-double in the first half with 10 points and 10 boards.
 
With only a small five point lead, the Gryphon's looked to solidify their lead to start the second half. Guelph went on an early 6-2 run. After the two teams exchanged baskets, Zach Angus drilled a three-pointer to give Guelph a 10 point, 51-41 lead with 4:32 to play in the third quarter. With less than two minutes to play Adam Kemp had a beautiful block on the defensive side of the floor leading to a turnover. Guelph used this possession to find Kemp in the paint for a hook shot to further extend Guelph's lead to 58-47. Waterloo drew a foul with three seconds left in the quarter, which they went 1 for 2 on to end the quarter with the Gryphon's on top 58-48.
 
Michel Clark opened the final quarter with a long two pointer, which was quickly followed up by a Taylor Boers three ball to give the Gryphon's a 63-48 lead. The pace of the game really picked up midway through the quarter as the Warriors fought to even the scoreboard. Guelph seemed more than willing to play with an increased pace as Zach Angus nailed a turnaround jumper to increase Guelph's lead to 72-56. Sensing the game slipping, Waterloo went on a quick 8-0 run to make the score 72-64 with 3:48 left in the game. Waterloo continued to fight back, nailing a three-pointer with just over two minutes on the clock to make it a five-point game. With 1:17 left in the game Zach Angus extended Guelph's lead to seven by nailing a mid range jumper over a Warrior defender. That jumper seemed to solidify things for the Gryphon's, as the Warriors could not battle back from this deficit. Guelph would go on to defeat the Warriors 80-72.
 
This game marked the final home contest for the Gryphon's. They play again Saturday on the road against the Brock Badgers.
 
Source: Guelph Sports Info



Thursday, February 6

Brock 61 @ McMaster 106

In its first game since being named January's OUA team of the month, the McMaster men's basketball team defended homecourt and beat the Brock Badgers 106-61 on Thursday night.
 
Brock grabbed an early 12-10 lead in the first quarter, but from then on it was a blur of maroon as the McMaster transition game got into high gear. By the end of the opening period, McMaster had taken a 25-16 lead.
 
The Marauders continued to use their defense to fuel the offense and attacked the basket relentlessly. The second quarter saw McMaster double up the Badgers 36-18 midway through the period, and by halftime the Maroon advantage had swelled to 48-27. Joe Rocca had 13 points to lead McMaster while Taylor Black had already grabbed 11 rebounds by intermission.
 
With McMaster sharing the ball well, the third quarter was a similar story as the Marauders outscored Brock 31-14, making the lead 76-41 with 10 minutes remaining.
 
McMaster went deep into its bench players in the fourth quarter, as the big lead provided some playing opportunities for the entire team. The young Badgers continued to play hard for new coach Charles Kissi, resulting in McMaster winning the final quarter by seven to reach the final score of 106-61.
 
11 of 12 Marauders ended up hitting the scoresheet and the team made 10 of 31 three-point attempts, which resulted in free french fries for everyone in attendance, courtesy of McDonald's.
 
McMaster had five players in double figures, led by Black with 20 points and 12 rebounds; Trevon McNeil was next with 18, including making the final three-ball that rewarded the crowd. Rocca finished with 17, while Rohan Boney and Aaron Redpath each scored 11. Brock was led by its outstanding rookie Dani Elgadi, who scored 20.
 
McMaster is now 16-3 and holds first place in the OUA West. They travel to Windsor for a weekend clash with the second-place Lancers on Saturday afternoon.

Source: McMaster Sports Info