Comeback falls short for Men's Basketball

By: Stefan Gerardi
Humber Athletics Communications

ETOBICOKE – Humber men's basketball (8-6, 5^th West) dropped a tightly contested clash with the Niagara Knights (8-6, 6^th West), 67-64. The Hawks trailed for most of the game as the Knights took advantage of a slow start from Humber. The Hawks were down but not out, and they managed to leap ahead of the Knights late in the fourth. Humber couldn't hold their lead, and the scoreboard favoured the Knights as the final buzzer sounded. 

Dwayne Lambert-Cadore finished with a team-high 13 points and six assists. Rahsaan Chambers led the way with 12 rebounds, while Raheem Dennis' two three-pointers topped the Hawks. Kyle Brown-Fazekas was red-hot from the floor as he shot an outstanding 83.3 per cent and finished with 11 points.

Match Recap

After a sluggish start to the new year, the Hawks eventually found their tempo and closed January on a two-game win streak. With a winning attitude in Humber's locker room, the Hawks were focused on securing their ninth win of the season against the Niagara Knights. Their opponents also finished January with a 2-2 record; however, a one-point loss to Sheridan left the Knights infuriated, which set the stage for great basketball at North Campus Gym. 

Niagara drained the first points of the game over a minute which sparked an 8-0 run. The Hawks couldn't score for more than three minutes; however, Dwyane Lambert-Cadore drilled two quick buckets to stop the Knights from taking an early double-digit lead. Humber's momentum was short-lived as the Hawks ran into trouble on both ends of the court after cutting Niagara's lead to two. The Knights took complete control and closed the first quarter on a 12-2 run. The Hawks could only score eight points in the opening frame. 

Humber's top three-point shooter, Romeo Osas Joshua, drained a long ball to start the second quarter and put hopes of a comeback in the hearts of the Hawks. Humber went on a 7-0 run to trim Niagara's lead to four, including a three-ball from Kyle Brown-Fazekas. Much like the first quarter, the Hawks failed to maintain their offensive pressure. Niagara joined the three-point party and hurdled ahead to a double-digit lead. Ethan Alino-DelaCruz led the way for the Knights with 11 points in the first half, and the Hawks trailed by ten going into half-time. 

At the half, the Hawks were shooting 12-of-29 (41.4 per cent) from the floor and drained only two of their seven (28.6 per cent) attempts from beyond the arc. Although Niagara drilled five shots from three-point territory, Humber was better in tight as they outscored their opponents 8-2 in points in the paint. Brown-Fazekas was Humber's leading scorer at halftime with seven points. 

As the second half got underway, the Hawks hit two quicks threes to pull within two possessions of tying the game. Unfortunately for Humber, the Knights seemed to have an answer to everything the Hawks threw at them. Niagara matched with two threes of their own and added one more to take another commanding lead. After back-and-forth play, the Hawks woke up and forced three Niagara turnovers to cut their lead to seven to end the third quarter. The final moments of the frame were the Hawks' only bright spot; however, the momentum was on their side going to the final quarter. 

The Hawks could smell a comeback as the final frame began. The fans at the Hawks' Nest were electric as a quick bucket put the Hawks to within five. Rahsaan Chambers then had a highlight-reel block to pump up his team and tilt the court in favour of Humber. Chambers wasn't done there as he finished a routine layup to knot the game at 58. Lambert-Cadore then scored in transition to give the Hawks their first lead of the game, which capped off a 9-0 run; however, the Knights weren't going away. They quickly answered as they did all game, and Niagara regained the lead with under 30 seconds left in the game. It was too little, too late from Humber, and they dropped their sixth game of the season.

The Hawks shot a modest 24-of-65 (36.9 per cent) from the floor and hit 5-of-17 (29.4 per cent) three-point attempts. The team finished with 49 rebounds and ten assists.  

Game Notes

• Niagara picked up its second win at North Campus since 1983.
• Dwayne Lambert-Cadore has led the Hawks in points for four straight games.
• The Hawks have only lost six games in a season twice since 1983.
• Rashaan Chambers' three steals against Niagara is a new season high.
• The Hawks' all-time record against Niagara is now 48-14. 

What's Next?

Humber men's basketball will be back at the Hawks' Nest on Feb. 3 for a matinee matchup with the Canadore Panthers (0-14, 10^th West). Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m. and will be streamed live on the Hawks Sports Network.