Story by Niagara College Sports Communication Student Nicholas Helps
Dec 2, 2022...WELLAND - The Niagara Knights men's basketball team suffered their second straight loss Thursday night to the Humber Hawks 80-73. The loss puts the Knights at 5-4 on the season, while the Hawks move to 6-3 before the Christmas break.
Niagara came out flying to start the first quarter with point guard Reggie Williams knocking down three 3 pointers to put the Knights up 9-0 before Humber was able to get on the board at the foul line.
The Knights sharp shooting had them leading after the first quarter 20-15.
Humber began to chip away at the Knights lead, with both teams fighting to stay on top through the second quarter. The Hawks would eventually come away from the halftime buzzer with a 38-37 lead heading into the dressing room.
The third quarter saw the Knights begin to fall behind with the Hawks taking a sizeable lead for the first time in the game, ending the third with a 57-46 lead.
Niagara had a quick start to the fourth, going on an eight point run early on to cut the deficit to get within three of the Hawks 57-54 lead. The effort was short lived as the Hawks regained control and led 74-61 with just two minutes to go in the fourth. Refusing to go down without a fight, the Knights found their way back within five points of the Hawks lead, but it wouldn't be enough at Humber secured the 80-73 win.
"We had flashes where we played very well," said head coach Phil Mosley. "We tried multiple defenses and they shot very well, but we needed to finish possession down the stretch, and find out ways to close out on their outside shooter" stated Mosley.
On top of his hot shooting to start the first, Williams finished the game with 27 points, shooting 60 percent from the field.
The Knights will return to action January 14th, when they visit the Mohawk Mountaineers.
