FAN INFORMATION 

Home Opener: Friday, November 4, 8 p.m. - vs Western – Athletic Complex 

Live Webcast: OUA.tv

Tickets: Laurier vs Western

Just over eight months ago, Laurier's men's basketball team played their final game of the 2021-2022 season, as they lost to the eventual OUA champion Brock Badgers in the West division semifinals. That was the last game in a Golden Hawks uniform for OUA all-stars Ali Sow and Romelo Taylor, the offensive catalysts for last year's high-powered squad.  

Now with a promising new backcourt duo, as well as a returning core of key veterans, Head Coach and Manager of Basketball Operations Justin Serresse will look to continue his streak of success. The purple and gold have yet to miss the playoffs during his five seasons with the team. 

Friday, November 4, Laurier will tip-off their season against the Western Mustangs, a team they eliminated in last year's playoffs. Here's all you need to know ahead of Friday's home opener. 

EXHIBITION EXCELLENCE 

Coach Serresse described the pre-season as a "roller coaster," and the box scores back him up. It started off on a high, with Laurier's first exhibition game on September 22 ending in a 103-51 blowout over Humber. They followed that up with a 93-78 defeat of Algoma before dropping two straight games to Laval and St. Francis Xavier.  

The weekend of October 13-15, the Golden Hawks made the short trip up University Avenue to defend their title as Naismith Classic Champions. They were successful, winning three of three games against Cape Breton, UQAM, and Dalhousie to win the University of Waterloo-hosted tournament for the second straight year. That Laurier performs so well at this tournament could be a good sign of things to come, according to Serresse. 

"The goal is always to find a way to get to the national championship," he explained. "It's good to put yourself in a situation where you have three games in three days, and you have to find a way to win three games [like at the national championship]... that's what I like about the Naismith." 

After the Naismith, the Golden Hawks traveled to Toronto to face the York Lions, coming away with a 68-64 victory. The next day they hosted the UPEI Panthers, who narrowly defeated Laurier in a back-and-forth, 90-88 nailbiter. 

"I'm seeing a lot of great stuff out of a few players," said Serresse. As a team, Serresse wants to see more consistency on both sides of the ball. "We haven't been able to put it together just yet, but you can see there is potential." 

SO-LONG, SENIORS 

Departures 

Adnan Begovic, F 

Kareem Elliott, G 

Jordan Kenning, F 

Ali Sow, G 

Josh Stephens, F 

Romello Taylor, G 

A quick glance at the box score from any one of last season's games is all that's needed to know that Sow and Taylor's offensive output will be hard to replace for the Golden Hawks. They averaged 25.4 and 17.1 points per game, respectively, and were often the heartbeat of the team. 

"It's hard to find a player like Ali in terms of the ability to score" said Serresse, "and then Melo's maturity in his offensive package last year was pretty special." 

Begovic and Stephens were key contributors off the bench, spreading the floor with their three-point shooting and cleaning the glass on both ends. 

Elliott, meanwhile, was one of the most important players down the stretch for Laurier last season, as he took over for an injured KJ Massela as the Golden Hawks' go-to defender, taking on tough assignments and locking down opponents' top players.  

Player turnover is the nature of university athletics, but the winning culture Sow, Taylor, and the rest of this group helped establish isn't going anywhere. 

NEW FACES FROM AFAR (AND DOWN THE ROAD) 

Rookies 

Isaiah Fisher, G 

Aman Ghebre, G 

Jaden Leven, G 

Jalen Levene, F 

Jerome Romans Muirhead, G 

Jacob Tournier, F 

Transfers 

Jahmyah Brown Jeffers, G 

Taye Donald, G 

Justin Malenrich, G 

Isaiah Fisher impressed in limited pre-season minutes, and Serresse expects all six rookies to be integral parts of future Laurier teams. The players to keep an eye on this season, however, are Brown Jeffers, Donald, and Malenrich. 

Brown Jeffers joins the Golden Hawks from North Arkansas College, and Donald from Seward County Community College in Kansas. The Montreal and Calgary natives have been lining up at the backcourt positions previously filled by Sow and Taylor, and have often looked like the offensive leaders of this year's team. 

Brown Jeffers averaged 14.7 points over the course of the pre-season, while Donald led the team with 15. Serresse was even more impressed with their play on the other end of the court. 

"Defensively, those two compliment themselves very well. They have potential to be very, very good defensively once they mature and maybe get a little bit stronger and a little bit wiser, but the effort and the willingness to play defense already is very special." 

Serresse doesn't expect Brown Jeffers and Donald to replace the offensive production of Sow and Taylor all by themselves, and says this year's team will be more versatile offensively. 

One of the other players he expects to see put up points is Malnerich, who becomes one of the rare student-athletes to play on both sides of the battle of Waterloo. Malnerich is the Warriors' all-time leader in three-pointers made, and joins Laurier this season as a graduate student. He led the team in scoring against UPEI, going five for nine from beyond the arc.  

"He gives us a veteran presence, a guy who's got his game figured out... it's always good to have a guy like that," said Serresse. 

RUNNING IT BACK 

Returning 

Ryan Benn, F 

Nana Boateng, F 

Dylan Brooks, G 

Majok Deng, F 

Gurtegh Dhaliwal, G 

Benhur Gebrekidan, G 

Vladimir Lukomski, G 

KJ Massela, G 

Ethan Passley, G 

Ismael Sow, G 

Ben Stevens, F 

Mazen Zankar, F 

Another aspect of this team's offensive versatility will be a stronger inside presence, according to Serresse. Fifth-year Ben Stevens will once again see the most minutes at centre. His offensive output increased as the season progressed in 2021-2022, and he was once again a problem for opposing teams in the pre-season, nearly averaging a double-double with 10.6 points and 9.6 rebounds. 

Fourth-year forward Majok Deng will continue to be a valuable part of the rotation thanks to his defensive versatility, and Serresse hopes to see him take another step offensively. Meanwhile, fourth-year Benhur Gebrekidan, who was mostly used as a perimeter shooter last season, will have an opportunity to showcase his improved skillset in the post. 

Other returnees to keep an eye on include second-year Ethan Passley. Passley was named the team's rookie of the year last season, but missed time due to injury. He had the highest single-game points total of any Golden Hawk in the pre-season, scoring 29 against Humber. Passley's had great chemistry with KJ Massela, whose strong two-way play will once again earn him top minutes. 

Finally, second-year Ismael Sow, Ali's younger brother, is still recovering from an injury, but hopes to make his regular season debut sometime in the Winter semester. 

TEAMS AT A GLANCE 

The OUA is back to a two-division alignment for 2022-2023, and with the end of pandemic-related travel restrictions, Laurier will face every team in the conference at least once. 
 

Western Mustangs 

• The Golden Hawks will begin and end their regular season against the Mustangs, who they defeated in last year's OUA West quarterfinals. 

• Last year's OUA scoring leader Omar Shiddo has graduated, meaning third-year guard Jerric Palma will likely take over as Western's first option on offense. 

Brock Badgers 

• The reigning OUA champions defeated Laurier in the OUA West semifinals. The Golden Hawks will have the chance to strike back in the second game of the regular season, as they play Brock on the road Saturday, November 5. 

• The 2021-2022 OUA West MVP, Tajinder Lall, will not be returning. Last season's breakout star Kascius Small-Martin is the player to watch for the Badgers. 

Waterloo Warriors 

• Laurier will take on their cross-town rivals in a home-and-home series to begin the month of February, with the first game at Laurier taking place February 1. The Justin Malenrich homecoming game is set for February 4. 

• With Malenrich as well as star forward Nedim Hodzic both gone, look for backcourt duo Kuel Thomas and Kanayo Nnadi to step up as the Warriors' go-to scorers. 

MAKE SOME NOISE 

With eleven home games on the calendar this season, there will be plenty of opportunities to come out and support the Golden Hawks throughout 2022-2023. Whether you're a first-year student looking to try something new, or a senior hoping to make up for missed opportunities of the past few years, Golden Hawks basketball is something that's best experienced in-person. Tickets are on sale now.