Wolfville, NS- The X-men started by getting the first score on the board with hopes to repeat the results of their Wednesday night win (73-64) against Acadia. Unwilling to let that happen again, Acadia immediately picked it up on defense and started shutting them down.
The Friday night game drew a good crowd that carried palpable energy. The ever-enthusiastic "football" section of the stands did not disappoint tonight as they and other student-athletes cheered and showed their Acadia pride.
Acadia and X would trade points and end the first quarter with a 23-17 lead. This would be the closest score difference throughout the game.
The second half saw a lot better ball and player movement around the court for the Axemen as players began to free themselves and hit more open threes.
After Alex Muise hit three consecutive threes for the Axemen and had two solid plays on defense, it started to signify a momentum shift in Acadia's favour. Muise was a force to be reckoned with, finishing the game with 21 points. The crowd picked up on this quickly causing the excitement to grow after each basket.
There were quite a few players with strong performances for Acadia this evening, including Eli Kraushar's 21 points, followed by Jack Tilley with 18 and Rowan Power with 15.
Twenty-one points, three rebounds, three steals, and four assists made Alex Muise the Subway Player of the Game for Acadia.
"It was big (win) and obviously we wanted to do it for Coach (Leslie). We were close Wednesday night and couldn't close it out, but tonight we came out focused, lots of energy and got the job done," noted Muise after the game.
Justin Andrew of X-men was selected as the StFX Player of the Game. He put up an impressive game-high 30 of the StFX's 82 points.
The X-Men started to find their footing partway through the fourth quarter and started to close the gap in the final few minutes, but it wasn't enough as Acadia pulled off the win with a final score of 90-82.
The win gives the Axemen a 1-2 record, while the X-Men fall to 2-3.
The Axemen find themselves on the road next weekend for two games at UNB, while the X-Men host Saint Mary's next Wednesday.
The next Axemen home game is against the UPEI Panthers on November 19, 2021.
Provided by Michaela Haley, Acadia Athletics Communications