WINDSOR, Ont. - The St. Clair men's basketball team ended their season with an 81-71 loss to Durham College Saturday night in what will likely be the final home varsity event at the campus gym as the Saints prepare to move into its new Sportsplex next year.
The visitors from Oshawa, Ont., did not seem to have road legs as they quickly moved ahead 15-7 early in the game before St. Clair answered by tying the game at 15-15. Durham closed the first quarter with a steal and dunk for a 21-15 lead. St. Clair struggled from the field and trailed 36-25 at the half time break.
The Saints made a few small runs in the third quarter cutting the deficit to just three points but Durham had an answer each time to remain ahead. Early in the fourth quarter, St. Clair carried the play and was down just a point (52-51) before Durham responded again outscoring St. Clair 29-25 in the final frame.
Three Saints reached double figures with Matt Nuna (Windsor, Ont./Catholic Central) leading the way with 19 points including five triples and added six assists. St. Clair rookie guard Tyler Storie (Windsor, Ont./W.F. Herman) scored 13 points off the bench to go with eight rebounds and five steals while Alex Temesy (Amherstburg, Ont./General Amherst) chipped in with 10 points.
Durham's Ajahmo Clarke led his team with a game-high 25 points in the win.
Source: St. Clair College
WINDSOR, Ont. - The Durham College men's basketball team qualified for next week's OCAA championship with a 81-71 road victory over the St. Clair Saints in the qualifying round of the OCAA playoffs.
The three-day tournament is scheduled to take place at Sheridan College from Feb. 27-March 1 in Brampton, Ont. Durham will meet up against the undefeated and No. 2-ranked Algonquin Thunder in the opening round of the championship.
This year will be Durham's first appearance at the championship since 2011. It also marks the first time since 1997 that all four of the Durham College men's and women's basketball and volleyball teams qualified for their respective OCAA championships.
Durham got off to a great start in their playoff match as they outscored the hosting Saints by 11 points in the opening half. Great team defence held St. Clair to just 25 points while shooting just 32 per cent from the floor. After a Saints surge in the third quarter which shrunk Durham's lead to as low as five points, Eric Smith (Ajax, Ont.) put on a show in the fourth quarter scoring 13 of his 23 points to seal the trip to provincials.
Brandon Heath (Markham, Ont.) provided a spark for the Lords as he came up with eight rebounds, four steals and three assists while going 4-of-7 from the three-point line in a 14-point performance. Ajahmo Clarke (Ajax, Ont.) recorded a double-double as he led Durham's offence with 25 points while hauling in 14 boards, six of which were in the offensive zone.
After starting the season 1-6, it looked as if a berth in the OCAA elite eight was a pipe dream but the Lords closed out the regular season with a 9-4 run to qualify for the post-season and advance to the qualifying round.
Humber, Fanshawe and Seneca also won their qualifying games on Saturday while Mohawk, Algonquin, Sheridan and George Brown earned automatic byes into the championship.
Check www.durhamlords.com for all Durham College playoff information.
Source: Durham College