GUELPH, Ont. - Despite Laurier building a few big leads in the first half, Guelph refused to go down quietly in Friday's matchup between the division rivals, leading to a frantic finish in the fourth quarter.
In the end, it was a buzzer-beating mid-range shot from Jahmyah Brown Jeffers that made the difference, as the Golden Hawks came away unscathed with a 92-91 victory.
It was a back-and-forth game to begin, with neither side able to gain much separation before the first substitutions. Once again for Laurier, it was Ethan Passley who spurred offence coming off the bench.
Passley and Taye Donald combined for 10 straight points to cap off a 14-0 Laurier run midway through the frame. The Gryphons would claw their way back, cutting the lead to 27-22 heading into the second.
The second quarter saw more offence from Passley, who finished the first half with a team-high 18 points on an incredibly efficient six for seven shooting. Donald was right behind him with 12 points and also had a game-high five assists at the break.
The score was 58-52 at the start of the third quarter and would stay that way for a while, as neither team was able to break the ice until just over three minutes into the frame. This defensive battle continued until the end of the quarter, with the Golden Hawks able to extend their lead by just a single point. The score was 70-63 heading into the fourth.
From there, the Gryphons clawed their way back into the game, cheered on by a raucous home-opener crowd. Guelph tied it up at 72 three minutes into the frame, and traded short runs with Laurier before finally taking their first lead since the first quarter with 3:13 remaining.
They would stay ahead until KJ Massela made two free throws to tie the game at 87 with just 37 seconds to play. Down by two again on their next possession, the Golden Hawks got the ball to Donald in three-point range, who was fouled in the act of shooting leading to three pressure-laden free throws.
He made them all, but still the Gryphons didn't give up, scoring with four seconds left to go ahead 90-89. With barely any time on the clock, Laurier was unable to get an open shot off the inbound, but that was no problem for Brown Jeffers.
It was a night of career highs for the Golden Hawks. Not only did first-years Donald (18) and Brown Jeffers (10) set new markers for points scored, but so did second-year Passley (28) fourth-year Majok Deng (12).
With the win, the purple and gold move to 2-1 on the season, while Guelph falls to 0-2.
TOP PERFORMERS
Laurier Golden Hawks
Not only did Ethan Passley set a new career high just a week after his 25-point performance against Western, he did it shooting an impressive 59% from the field including four of seven from three-point range.
Guelph Gryphons
Speaking of impressive shooting performances, fourth-year forward Emmanuel Ansah scored 24 points on 56% shooting, draining six of his 10 three-point attempts.
UP NEXT
The Golden Hawks will play the second half of their back-to-back Saturday, November 12 at 8 p.m. as they travel to Toronto to take on the Varsity Blues. Follow @WLUathletics for live updates and catch all the action on OUA.tv.
