HUMBER ADVANCES TO SEMI-FINALS WITH 88-60 WIN OVER GEORGIAN
SARNIA, Ont. – Humber began its quest towards the 2020 CCAA Men's Basketball National Championship with a statement win on Friday afternoon.
In the opening contest of the 2020 OCAA Men's Basketball Championship, presented by Kel-Gor, the Hawks picked up the 88-60 win over the Georgian Grizzlies inside the Lambton College Athletics & Fitness Complex in Sarnia, Ont.
With the win, the Hawks have advanced to Saturday's semifinals, where they await the winner between Seneca and St. Clair in the second game on Friday's schedule.
The loss brings an end to Georgian's season, and the career for their fifth-year seniors.
Humber came out of the gates strong, using a 7-0 run to take control early on. Georgian answered shortly thereafter with four points of its own, but the momentum that the Hawks had built early on was just the beginning.
As the first quarter moved along, Humber continued to pad its lead. At the break, the Hawks held a 29-15 lead over the Grizzlies. The second quarter was more closely contested, but the end result was still the same. Humber outscored the Grizzlies by a 17-13 margin to stretch their lead to 18 points at the break.
Georgian would not hold a lead in the game.
Much like the first half, the second half saw Humber build on their lead as time ticked away. The Hawks outscored Georgian in all four quarters, rolling to the 88-60 win as a result.
Guard Keith Laryea led all scorers on the afternoon with 21 points off the bench for the Hawks. He was named Humber's Player of the Game as a result.
Samuel Odzenma was named the Player of the Game for Georgian after his 19-point performance.
The win sends Humber into the semifinals on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks will take on either St. Clair or Seneca at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
SENECA SHOOTS ITS WAY TO SEMI-FINAL BERTH AGAINST ST. CLAIR
Behind strong shooting, especially from beyond the arc, the Seneca Sting have punched their ticket to Saturday's semi-finals at the 2020 OCAA Men's Basketball Championship, presented by Kel-Gor.
The Sting rolled to the 102-73 win over the Saints, keeping their season alive in the process. As a result, Seneca will take on the Humber Hawks on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m.
With the loss, St. Clair's 2019-20 season came to a close. Their trip to the 2020 OCAA Men's Basketball Championship was their first appearance in the tournament since 2007, a span of 13 years.
Out of the gates, Seneca's offence was on fire from the field, specifically from long range. In the first quarter, the Sting raced out to a 32-15 lead on the heels of their shooting. As a team, the Sting shot a combined 12-of-18 from the field over the first 10 minutes, including 7-of-10 from beyond the arc.
Jordan Anderson recorded 12 of his 27 points in the first quarter, all of which came from beyond the arc.
In the second quarter, Seneca's hot shooting cooled down slightly, allowing the Saints to find their rhythm at times. St. Clair's offence improved, hitting on 50 percent of their field goal attempts in the second quarter to find some fluidity with their offence. Unfortunately for the Saints, the Sting hit enough big shots to push their lead to 19 before the break was out.
Seneca's offence was led by its big three of Anderson, Isaiah Ankra, and Dakoda Lewis, the 2020 OCAA East Division Men's Basketball Player of the Year and All-Canadian. On the day, the trio combined for 81 points to lead the way.
The second half saw the Sting continue their strong shooting ways, stretching their lead as the game moved along. When the final buzzer went, the Sting came away with the 29-point win, 102-73.
Seneca got the bulk of its offence from its starting five, as just eight points came from the bench, all from the hands of Johnny Kitenge. Lewis finished with a game-high 32 points to go along with seven rebounds, earning him Player of the Game honours for the Sting as a result.
St. Clair was led by the pair of David Gomez Jr. and Glynn Willis-Paris, as both scored a team-high 12 points in the loss. Gomez Jr. was named Player of the Game for the Saints.
With the win, the Sting move onto the semifinals, and will take on Humber in what is sure to be an offensive showdown. The Hawks and Sting will take to the court on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m., with a spot in the OCAA Championship game on the line.
REDEEMER PULLS AWAY FOR NINE-POINT WIN OVER SHERIDAN
The Redeemer Royals will be playing for a medal at the 2020 OCAA Men's Basketball Championship, presented by Kel-Gor.
In thrilling fashion, the Royals knocked off the Sheridan Bruins in front of a packed house inside the Lambton College Athletics & Fitness Complex, 99-90.
With the win, the Royals have punched their ticket to the semi-finals on Saturday, where they will face either Lambton or George Brown at 6:00 p.m.
The loss brings an end to the 2019-20 season for the Sheridan Bruins, one that saw the Bruins hold the top spot in the CCAA National Rankings at one point in time.
It was a back and forth game from the outset, with both teams fighting for momentum. Redeemer came out of the gates strong, racing to a 16-7 lead early on. With all of the momentum at their backs, it looked as though the Royals could put some separation between themselves and the Bruins early.
Then, the fire alarm went off.
Reminiscent of Super Bowl XLVII back in 2013 when the power went out in Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, one that led to a massive shift in momentum, it looked as though the Bruins were the beneficiaries of the alarm. After an extended break, the Bruins started to find their rhythm, and they carried that into the second quarter.
After a back-and-forth start to the quarter, one that saw the Bruins slowly chip away at the lead of the Royals, they were rewarded for their perseverance. With 2:55 left before the break, a layup from Jemol Edwards gave Sheridan a slim one-point lead.
Redeemer would make sure that they entered the break with a boost of momentum. Redeemer scored the last five points of the quarter, made up of two free throws from forward Spencer Kerssies and a three just before the buzzer from Goran Veselinovic, to lead 44-40 at the break.
Fast forward to the fourth quarter, where Redeemer was up six to start. Sheridan opened on a 10-2 run to take a 73-71 lead to seize momentum for the time being. Willed by a slew of Redeemer fans in attendance, the Royals weren't going down quietly, and they continued to fight to hold onto their momentum.
Down the stretch, Kerssies put the Royals on his back and willed the team to victory. He scored 13 of his game-high 32 points in the final seven minutes of the game, carrying Redeemer down the stretch. On the back of their fifth-year forward, Redeemer came away with the hard-fought 99-90 win over Sheridan to keep their season alive.
Along with his 32 points, Kerssies added 11 rebounds, further proving why he was named an OCAA West Division First Team All-Star the night prior. Jacobus Vanderpol also finished with a double-double of his own, chipping in a quiet 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Kerssies was named the Player of the Game for Redeemer.
All five starters for Sheridan reached double-figures, led by Nick Campbell, the 2020 OCAA Player of the Year. He finished with a team-high 19 points and was named the Bruins' Player of the Game.
Redeemer will now play throughout the weekend, beginning with their Saturday evening semifinal contest at 6 p.m.
SECOND HALF SURGE PROPELS GEORGE BROWN PAST LAMBTON
There's a reason why you play 40 minutes in a game of basketball.
For the George Brown Huskies, they saved their best basketball of the night for the second half. They erased an eight-point deficit at halftime to come away with an 82-65 win over the host Lambton Lions in front of a standing room only crowd inside the Lambton College Athletics & Fitness Complex.
The win propels the Huskies into the semifinals of the 2020 OCAA Men's Basketball Championship, presented by Kel-Gor. George Brown will take on the Redeemer Royals on Saturday night, with tip off set for 6 p.m.
With the loss, Friday night marks the end of the 2019-20 season for the Lambton Lions on the hardwood.
Lambton came out of the gates strong, riding a wave of momentum from playing in front of a full house. With extra motivation at their backs, the Lions raced out to a 21-14 lead after the first quarter. Lambton closed the quarter on a 7-2 run to take a seven-point lead at the break.
The second quarter saw the teams go back and forth, with George Brown trying to regain momentum while the Lions were looking to put some separation between themselves and their opponents. With a five-point lead late in the second quarter, fifth-year forward Jason Watts hit a three pointer at the buzzer to stake Lambton to a 39-31 lead at the half.
While the first half didn't go their way, the Huskies came out in the second half looking to get back on track. George Brown scored the first nine points of the half, erasing their eight-point halftime deficit and seizing all of the momentum in the process. George Brown would go on to outscore the Lions by a 34-8 margin in the third quarter alone to take a commanding 65-47 lead after 30 minutes of play.
In the fourth, the Lions tried to make runs and cut into the Huskies' lead. Whenever Lambton made a run, George Brown had an answer for what the Lions threw at them. George Brown took down the host Lions in the fourth and final quarterfinal of the night, 82-65.
Christian Tabiri led all George Brown scorers with 19 points on the night off the bench. Kingslee D'Silva was named the Huskies' Player of the Game after recording 14 points and 11 rebounds.
For the Lions, Jason Watts led all scorers with 22 points to go along with 12 rebounds, en route to Player of the Game honours for the host team.
George Brown and Redeemer will take to the court on Saturday at 6:00 p.m., with a berth in the OCAA Championship Game on the line.
Source: Lambton Lions
Championship Website: www.ocaa.com/mbb
Live Webcast: www.ocaa.com/ocaalive
Friday, March 6
Quarter-Finals
Game #1: Humber def. Georgian 88-60
Game #2: Seneca def. St. Clair 102-73
Game #3: Redeemer def. Sheridan 99-90
Game #4: George Brown def. Lambton 82-65
Saturday, March 7
Semi-Finals
Game #5: Humber vs. Seneca - 4 p.m.
Game #6: Redeemer vs. George Brown - 6 p.m.
Sunday, March 8
Bronze Medal Game
Game #7: Loser Game #5 vs. Loser Game #6 - 12 p.m.
Winning team presented OCAA Bronze Medal at conclusion of game
Gold Medal Game
Game #8: Winner Game #5 vs. Winner Game #6 - 3 p.m.
OCAA Gold and Silver Medals presented at conclusion of game
- OCAA -
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