Sunday 24 February 2008

OUA: All 3 Favorites move on

OUA West: Rallying from a three point deficit with just 12 seconds remaining, the hometown Western Mustangs survived when 6'3" Alex Brzozowicz hit the second of two free throws with 3.9 seconds remaining to lift Western to an improbable late comeback and an 82-81 win over McMaster. The Marauders held a 81-78 lead until Mustangs 6'1" sharpshooter Jason Milliquet (6-9 3's for 18 points) knocked down a long 3 from at least 8 feet behind the arc with 12 seconds left to knot the score. On the ensuing Marauder possession 6'2" guard Tyrell Vernon (team-high 15 points on 5-15 shooting) drove the lane and launched a runner that came off. Off the ensuing rebound, the ball caromed into the corner where it was retrieved by Brzz who was inadvertently ploughed into by Mac's 6'7" Mouchtar Diaby and forced out bounds, illiciting a foul call that set up the final free throws. Mac's difficult attempt at a game-winning three came off and Western survived. 6'6" Andrew Wedemire was instrumental in the win for the Mustangs, scoring 13 of his 16 points in the third quarter to give the Mustangs a four point lead entering the fourth. But the Marauders came back to outscore the 'Stangs 21-14 until the final moments when it fell apart. 6'6" Brad Smith had 21 points for Western but only 2 after the intermission. The Marauders were led by 6'9" Terry Licorish who had 13 points (6-20 shooting) and 11 rebounds while 6'6" Andrew Losier, playing in his final game as a Marauder, had 13 points and 5 rebounds. Report from Western Mustangs site ... In Guelph, the Gryphons were in control most of the way, surviving a late Golden Hawks charge that cut the lead to 5 with 4 1/2 minutes remaining to allow Guelph to defeat Laurier 69-59. 6'3" Nick Pankerichan was the difference, knocking down 5 of 9 3's (the only Gryph to hit a three), part of his team-high 26 points. Pankerichan also did a splendid job in the second half defending Laurier's splendid 6'6" freshman Kale Harrison, who singlehandidly kept the Hawks in the game with 17 first-half points. Harrison finished with a game-high 29 while dealing with the solid, physical work of Pankerichan defensively. 6'9" Duncan Milne (22 points, 9 rebounds) provided the Gryphs with the required spark after the Hawks mounted their late rally from 14 down to within 5 by scoring 6 consecutive points late including a couple of key putbacks to push the lead back up to 10 and seal the win. Guelph also got a solid game out of 5'11" Michael Patrella, who for the most part was decent in his decision-making but also held fellow-Brantfordite 6'3" Jesse MacDonald to a 1-9 shooting afternoon. Guelph played the majority of the game without 6'4" Jonathan Moscatelli, who played only 2 minutes due to severe cramping; Moscatelli spent all week taking antibiotics to battle a sickness. Laurier's 6'5" Matt Walker had 15 points and 6'8" Trevor Csima had 8 points and 8 boards in the final games of their university careers.

Wednesday's semi-finals in the OUA West shape up as follows:
Western at Windsor
Guelph at Brock

OUA EAST The five-time defending national champion Carleton Ravens shook off some recent lacklustre efforts with an assertive 96-44 victory over the Queen's Golden Gaels as the Ravens went a blistering 15 for 31 from 3 point land. Carleton was up 53-29 at halftime and then held the Gaels to only 15 second-half points to come away with the dominant victory. Carleton also outrebounded Queen's 39-16. 6'2" Stuart Turnbull and 6'3" Rob Saunders each led the way with 17 points for Carleton, who will meet the winner of today's Ottawa at Toronto matchup (3 PM in Toronto) in the OUA East championship game. Wayne Kondro's piece on last night's game which the Citizen's editor's (not Wayne) have apparently pre-determined Carleton's opponent Ravens thrash Golden Gaels to gain OUA East Final against Varsity Blues

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Harrison had 23 and only 6 in the second half.

Anonymous said...

Pankerichan held Harrison to 6 second half points....he had 23 not 29.

Anonymous said...

Anyone else get the impression that Carleton was playing possum at times this season? Their performance last night certainly gives that impression. This might be the most dominant Ravens team yet, especially if last night is any indication.

IMO, the only team that has a a chance of knocking them off is the Gee Gees next week (but not at CIS).