TORONTO, Ont. - The Golden Hawks rode into Toronto on Wednesday with a big test ahead of them. After a bad loss to Guelph brought an end to their six-game winning streak, they needed a win to get their season back on track.
Though manager of men's basketball operations and head coach Justin Serresse would have liked to see a more consistent performance against the #7 TMU Bold, the purple and gold showed up in crunch time.
They played one of their best quarters of the regular season when it counted, as they outscored TMU 27-17 in the final frame to secure the 88-81 victory.
They looked good to start the game, too. Taye Donald got their first points on a deep three with the shot clock expiring, opening up the floodgates. The Golden Hawks shot 7-11 from three-point range in the first quarter, and led 27-23 at the end of the frame.
The Bold responded with an 8-2 run to start the second quarter. They held Laurier to just 1-15 shooting from the field in the second. Donald was able to consistently get to the line and made all eight of his free throws, keeping the game close despite TMU taking a 42-38 lead into halftime.
The Bold once again came out hot to start the quarter, opening the half with a 7-2 run. It was halted by a DeAndrae Pierre three-pointer, and then it was all Donald.
He found Chidera Ubosi on a nice lob pass. Ubosi converted the and-one to cut the lead to three. On the next play, Donald stole the ball from Gabriel Gutsmore before landing a dunk on his head at the other end.
"He told the guys, "if you guys don't want to, step up, I'm going to do it myself." And then he went off by himself in the third quarter and gave us a little bit of life," said Serresse.
Gutsmore led a solid response by TMU to maintain a 64-61 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the Golden Hawks offence was just waking up.
Donald found Ubosi again for an alley-oop slam, before making way for Terell Lloyd to take over. The transfer student from Conestoga College's nine points were his most yet as a Golden Hawk, and they all came in the fourth quarter, including a deep three to take the lead.
They were "the most important nine points of the of the game and not even close," according to Serresse.
Donald followed it up with a three of his own to ice the game a few possessions later.
Though Serresse is happy to leave Mattamy Athletic Centre with a win against a tough opponent, he expects more from his squad when facing top tier teams in the OUA. TMU shot just 12-23 from the free-throw line as a team, making this a game that could've easily gone either way.
They'll need a more convincing performance on Saturday when they face the Brock Badgers, who haven't lost to Laurier since 2014.
"We have to be better," said Serresse. "Brock is relentless with their drive to the basket and if you don't show any type of resistance, they're going to have a really good game."
"If we have a consistent offensive game and play... pretty good defence, I think we're going to have a good game on Saturday."
With the win, the Golden Hawks improve to 7-2. They lead the OUA West division and sit in second overall in the conference. TMU, meanwhile, falls to 5-4.
BY THE NUMBERS
21-26
After shooting a devastating 50% from the foul line in last week's loss to Guelph, free throws were a saving grace for Laurier in this one. They shot 21-26 from the line as a team, including 9-10 in the second quarter when the Bold were giving them nothing from the field.
Taye Donald was 14-16, with his 14 makes good for third-best in program history.
12
Chidera Ubosi set a new career-high with 12 points in this game. His impact was hardly limited to his scoring, as he also recorded eight rebounds, three blocks, and a steal.
UP NEXT
Tip-off for Saturday's meeting with Brock is set for 8 p.m. at the Athletic Complex. Tickets are on sale now.
