OSHAWA, Ont. - It's not often a team gets the chance to avenge a tournament loss in the same weekend.
The Durham Lords got that chance at the belairdirect OCAA Men's Basketball Championship, and they didn't waste it as they defeated the St. Lawrence Vikings 66-51 to win the OCAA bronze medal in front of their home fans at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre.
It's the Lords first medal in OCAA men's basketball competition since winning gold in 1997, and they also avenged a 69-65 loss to the Vikings on the opening night of the tournament.
In his final game as a Lord, fifth-year forward Eric Smith (Ajax, Ont.) was named Durham's player of the game with 16 points and five rebounds. Rookie Aaron Hayles (Pickering, Ont.) led Durham with 17 points and seven rebounds, while Darian Rowe (Maple, Ont.) added 13 points and seven boards.
OCAA east first-team all-star Ajahmo Clarke (Ajax, Ont.) had six points, seven assists and 13 rebounds, while Dylan Pelissero (Oshawa, Ont.), who earned a championship all-star selection, also had 13 points and seven rebounds.
OCAA rookie of the year Jaz Bains (London, England) led St. Lawrence with 18 points and seven rebounds, good for the Vikings player of the game honours and a championship all-star nod.
Donald Gibson (Freeport, Bahamas) produced a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrew Dawkins (Brampton, Ont.) added 14 for St. Lawrence, whose run with just eight players at the tournament came to an end without a medal.
From the opening tipoff, it was evident that, no matter how resilient the Vikings were, a repeat of Friday's quarter-final wasn't in the cards.
Durham, possibly riding the wave of support from its home fans, came out flying as they scored the game's first eight points in a 2:18 stretch. The Lords also played tough defence to open the game, holding the Vikings off the scoreboard for the first 4:05 before Dawkins connected on a three-pointer.
From there, both teams tightened up defensively and traded baskets for the rest of the quarter, after which the Lords led 14-9. It was a cold quarter for the Vikings from the field, as they made just three of 17 shots.
The defensive battle continued in the second quarter, with neither team allowing the other to get into much of a rhythm offensively. The Vikings looked like they wanted to rally on a couple of occasions as they had in the quarter-final. In each instance, a three-pointer from Hayles restored Durham's momentum and reenergized the crowd.
The Lords had a strong finish to the opening half, closing on an 8-2 run in the final three minutes to take a 30-20 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
The Vikings came out firing in the second half, quickly putting together a 9-2 run to draw back within three points. However, as was the case in the first half, it was Hayles who brought momentum back to the host Lords from beyond the arc with a pair of three-pointers.
Durham also made Pelissero a focal point of the offence, as they used the inside match-up to build a 14-4 run to close the quarter up 51-37.
The Lords kept the momentum going through the fourth quarter, as they finally wore the thin Vikings roster down before closing out the game with a 9-0 run.
Source: Durham College