Lions grab win from Manitoba and Huskies win all three tournament games
The Axemen fell short in improving to 2-1 with a loss to the undefeated Huskies, while York picked up their first win of the tournament.
Lions top Bisons for first win of the tournament
The York Lions just barely beat the Manitoba Bisons 74-73 in Sunday's afternoon matchup at the Stu Aberdeen tournament.
The first quarter slightly favoured the Lions by a score of 16-12. Neither team shot very well; the Lions shot 6/20 and the Bisons were 3/15 from the field.
It continued to be a low-scoring game for both sides throughout the second quarter. While the Bisons were successful at the line, they shot 4/22 in the second, totalling for 7/37 (18.9%) in the first half.
The York Lions weren't exactly hot themselves, but they were able to outscore the Bisons 37-28 in the first half.
By halftime, James Wagner (Winnipeg, Man.) had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Bisons. Wagner led the game with 27 points and was named a Subway Player of the Game.
The Bisons had the game all tied up after a few minutes into the second half and the pace began to pick back up. They went on to have a 28-point quarter and stole the lead from the Lions.
After three quarters the score was 56-53 Bisons.
Nicholas Russell's (Mississauga, Ont.) late-game performance helped the Lions come back and secure themselves the lead. With 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists, Russell was named his team's Subway Player of the Game.
With 40 seconds left in the game, the Lions held a 74-73 point lead and kept it until the final buzzer.
The Bisons have an exhibition game at home on October 11th, while the Lions will visit the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks on October 4th.
Huskies sweep all three games in tournament play
The Saint Mary's Huskies went a perfect 3-0 during the Stu Aberdeen tournament as they defeated the Acadia Axemen 95-89 on Sunday afternoon.
After an outstanding performance on Saturday night, the Axemen were looking to come into Sunday's game with intensity. However, the undefeated Huskies were not ready to lay down.
The score read 19-17 for the Huskies in a tight first quarter.
The scoring gap stayed at 2 by the end of the half. The Huskies had 39 and the Axemen 37.
Qyemah Gibson (Nassau, Bahamas) had 13 points in the first half to lead all players. Gibson also grabbed 5 rebounds and an assist. Gibson was one rebound shy of a double-double by the end of the game, and with 19 total points, he was SMU's Subway Player of the Game.
Just as it started to look like the Huskies were going to get the upper hand, Acadia's Eli Kraushar (Halifax, N.S.) hit three consecutive field goals and brought the score to 67-66 for the Axemen. With their energy back and a one-point lead in-hand, the Axemen were ready for a big fourth quarter.
Kraushar finished the game with a statline of 28-6-2 and was Acadia's Player of the Game.
The Huskies were able to score 10 in the fourth before Acadia got their first, putting them in a tough position.
With 15 seconds left, the Axemen were only down by 2, but they fouled Dontae Mitchell (Vaughn, Ont.), who was given three free-throws. Mitchell made all of them and locked the game up for the Huskies.
The SMU Huskies won this game 95-89 and sweep the Stu Aberdeen tournament.
The Acadia Axemen play their first exhibition game at UNB on October 5th, while the Huskies will participate in the Mickey Place Invitational starting on October 4th vs. PEI.
Provided by Theodore Giesen, Acadia Athletics Communications