The Brock Badgers closed out the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 17 at Bob Davis Gymnasium with a commanding 95-67 victory over the visiting Nipissing Lakers.
It was an all-around team effort for the Badgers, as Michael Okeke, Nils Gesmann and Anthony Heyes all finished with double-digit scoring, while fifth-year guard Jevon Brown contributed a huge 17 point, nine rebound and three assist effort in the win.
The Badgers came to play on Saturday night, getting out to an early 17-4 lead on the back of three-pointers from Brown, Okeke and Jordan Tchuente. A run of offence from the Lakers forced a Badgers timeout, but Thierry Tshibola had an answer for Brock following the stoppage, knocking down a deep three to extend their lead. Okeke was able to grab an offensive board, draw the shooting foul and knock down both free-throws to beat the buzzer and close out the quarter with a score of 26-12 in favour of the Badgers.
Nipissing was the first team to get on the board in the second, getting to the free throw line and nailing back-to-back three's to bring the game within seven points; the closest since tip-off. Once again, Brock's efficiency from beyond the arc proved to be game-changing, as Michael Matas' second three-ball of the night put the Badgers back into a comfortable lead, resulting in a Lakers' timeout. The Badgers continued to build onto their lead through first-year big man Gesmann, who commanded the paint scoring six points in the frame. Davanté Hackett put the finishing touch on the half, draining a late three-pointer to give the Badgers a 44-32 lead at the break.
Tchuente continued to be efficient from behind the arc, draining his second of the night for the first basket of the half. Xavier Fearon followed it up by getting to the baseline and finishing over the defender, creating some momentum for the Badgers. Nipissing continued to struggle from the field as a result of the Brock defensive presence, and the Badgers continued to exploit this with the three-ball, as back-to-back jumpers from Heyes and Okeke extended their lead to 64-48 at the end of the quarter.
The Badgers continued to use the three-ball to set the tone early on in the fourth courtesy of back-to-back jumpers from Heyes and one from Isaiah Bujdoso. Brown got into the three-point party himself, draining back-to-back three's to give Brock a 86-59 lead; their largest of the night. Nipissing proved they wouldn't go down without a fight forcing a late Brock timeout. Following the stoppage, Okeke worked his way inside for his second and-one play of the night, which just about sealed the deal as the Badgers saw out the game for a comfortable 95-67 victory.
Next up, the Badgers (11-11) will play in the first round of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) playoffs on Wednesday, Feb. 21 in Ottawa as they take on the No. 7 seeded Carleton Ravens (13-9). You can watch the game on OUA.tv.
