OSHAWA, Ont. - Mohawk College has ascended the belairdirect OCAA Men's Basketball Championship mountain.
The Mountaineers never trailed at any point in the gold medal game, defeating the Humber Hawks 84-74 at Durham College's Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre for their first OCAA championship since 2012, when they also went on to win national gold.
Both the Mountaineers and the Hawks will compete at the CCAA Men's Basketball National Championship in Hamilton, Ont., in two weeks time.
OCAA player of the year Matt Fennell (London, Ont.) turned in a performance worthy of being named the tournament's most valuable player with 26 points, 11 rebounds and three assists.
Fifth-year guard Matt Savel (Hamilton, Ont.) added 21 points and six assists, while Andrew Cicuttini (Dundas, Ont.) contributed 14 points and eight boards while also being named to the championship all-star team.
Rookie Lamar Barr (Hamilton, Ont.) turned in a 10 point, nine rebound performance that had the Mountaineers and their fans alike calling for him to be named player of the game despite the honour going to Fennell.
On the other side, Kenny Ejim (Brampton, Ont.) paced the Hawks with 22 points and four rebounds, while Junior Davis (Scarborough, Ont.) was once again a spark off the bench with 20 points en route to being named a championship all-star.
Tyrone Dickson (Scarborough, Ont.) was his usual dominant self on the glass with 14 rebounds, as the OCAA west defensive player of the year was also named a championship all-star.
Humber won both regular season meetings between the two teams, but Mohawk came out flying, putting on a clinic worthy of the CCAA's best offence. The Mountaineers jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the opening 2:25 of the game, and they eventually extended their edge to 15-4 with 4:24 to play in the frame. Savel was the offensive catalyst for the Mountaineers with nine points in the opening frame, while Fennell added four points and six rebounds.
However, the Hawks showed why they're also one of Canada's best teams, as they came back to cut Mohawk's edge to 19-14 through 10 minutes, and it was captain Chad Bewley (Newmarket, Ont.) who led them back, scoring six of his 11 points in the frame.
Humber carried that momentum through to the early part of the second quarter, as they cut Mohawk's lead to one early in the frame. However, shortly after a timeout from head coach Brian Jonker, the Mountaineers got hot, closing on a 13-3 run to take a 44-31 lead through 20 minutes.
Once again, Savel provided the spark Mohawk needed, connecting on consecutive attempts to finish the first half with 14 points and four assists.
The second half started out very evenly on both sides, as the Hawks and Mountaineers traded baskets. However, Humber couldn't get a long run going without Mohawk having an answer to keep the gap at double digits. The Mountaineers got hot late in the quarter, in particular Fennell, who put up a pair of threes in the last 1:42 to help stretch Mohawk's lead to 65-46.
With a comeback win over Lambton under their belts already in the tournament, the Hawks couldn't be counted out, and they responded in the fourth quarter with a 16-2 run spanning to close the gap to 70-62 with 3:46 remaining.
However, the Mountaineers withstood Humber's late pressure, and if this game is any indication, both sides are in serious contention in Hamilton in a fortnight.
Source: Durham College