Brock men's basketball advances to OUA west semi-finals with 81-75 over Laurier

WATERLOO, Ont. - The Brock University men's basketball team (8-13 OUA West, 1-0 postseason) came from behind in the fourth quarter to defeat the Laurier Golden Hawks by the score of 81-75 to advance to the OUA West semi-finals.

"This was a great team win tonight," said Brock men's basketball head coach Brad Rootes. "We showed a lot of toughness and determination when they went up by double digits in the third quarter to comeback and win on the road."

Four minutes into the opening quarter, Laurier led 9-4, before the Badgers went on a 12-0 run leading 16-9 with 2:31 left in the first. Brock led 39-32 at the half.

In the third quarter, Laurier went on a 16-3 run and led by eight after 30 minutes 60-52. 

Brock would answer back in the fourth quarter, putting together a 5-0 run in the opening minute to cut the lead to three, 60-57. 

The Badgers led 72-71 with 3:21 remaining in regulation before the CIS leading scorer Max Allin knocked down back-to-back field goals for Laurier to take a 75-72 lead with 1:37 left in regulation. 

Brock answered with field goals from seniors Mark Gibson (Toronto, Ont.) and Mike Luby (Kenora, Ont.) to regain the one goal lead 76-75 with 27 seconds remaining.

Jameson Tipping (Orangeville, Ont.) knocked down 5-of-6 free throws in the final 15 seconds to secure the victory.

The Badgers had four players in double figures led by Gibson who recorded 20 points and seven rebounds. Tipping and Tshing Kasamba contributed with 14 points each while combining for 20 rebounds. Luby chipped in with 10 points and five boards. Senior Didi Mukendi (St. Catharines, Ont.) rounded out the Brock leaders finishing with nine points and four assists. 

For the Golden Hawks, Maxwell Allin led all scorers with 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists. William Coulthard, Aiddian Walters and Nathan Thompson contributed with 18, 14 and 12 points respectively.

For the game, Brock shot 38.7% (29-for-75) from the field, 32.0% (8-for-25) from downtown and 71.4% (15-for-21) from the free throw line. The Golden Hawks shot 37.5% (27-for-72) from the field, 44.4% (8-for-18) from beyond the arc and 92.9% (13-for-14) from the charity stripe.

The Badgers will travel to Windsor on Saturday, February 23rd for the OUA West Semi-finals against the No. 6 ranked Windsor Lancers.