WATERLOO, Ont. - With just under two minutes left in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game, Brock's Javon Brown hit what should have been the dagger. The fifth-year guard sank a layup to give him 29 points on the night and put his Badgers up 75-64.
It was a deflating moment for the Golden Hawks, who after keeping pace with Badgers in the first half had seen the game slowly slip from their grasp since the break.
When Taye Donald went to the line trailing by 11 points, the energy at the Athletic Complex was low. But he made one free throw. Then another. Then another. The lead was now cut to eight.
A Brock turnover put the ball back in Donald's hands, and he sank a three-pointer that got the crowd roaring. When DeAndrae Pierre stripped the ball and won a race to the basket to sink the layup and make it a one-score game, the AC might never have been louder.
Another costly turnover landed the ball right in the hands of Pierre at the three-point line, and the veteran guard made no mistake, tying the game. Then it was Donald's turn again, as he sank two more free throws to give Laurier the lead with four seconds left. The defence, which was flawless in the final 90 seconds, did the rest.
It goes down as a 13-0 run and a 77-75 victory for the Golden Hawks. It's not all that surprising to see Donald and Pierre leading the team to their most impressive win so far this season, as it's been the backcourt duo powering their squad since the beginning.
"I had a shaky first half, my shot wasn't really dropping, but I know my capabilities and I know I'm able to make shots," said Pierre. "I just stayed solid on defence, and then my confidence was still at an all-time high on offence, and I made the shots when I really needed to."
Pierre wasn't alone in his shooting struggles in the first half. Both teams found points hard to come by, with Benhur Gebrekidan opening the scoring a full three minutes into the game.
The Golden Hawks shot just 24% from the field as a team in the first two quarters, including 16% from three-point range. It was their defence that kept them in it; they held the Badgers to just 29% shooting, and went into halftime tied 28-28.
The third quarter saw Brock flex their muscles a little, as they were able to consistently get to the rim, putting together some big runs. They outscored Laurier 27-18 in the frame, with 14 of those points coming in the paint.
The Golden Hawks trailed 55-46 heading into the final frame. With his team looking for a response, Serresse turned to his veterans to take the lead.
"The leaders got to do what they do," he said. "I can't be more mad at the situation than them. That's their team, that's their career, that's their season. [Vladimir Lukomski] stood up and spoke up, and then went out there, made a nice little layup and give us a little bit of energy."
"Maybe that was the talk they needed to hear."
It was, according to Donald. "It was time to lock in. You need to hear that cause it's the truth. Here, we don't sugarcoat stuff. So, we just have to say it how it is and as you can see, that's kind of what got us in the right mentality."
It started with the defence. "When you get those stops, it energizes you, and it's deflating for other teams," he said. "Honestly, the defense is what won the game. We did hit some big shots. but if we don't get those stops, we're not even talking about the chance to win."
The win is Laurier's first win over Brock since February 2014, snapping a 14-game losing streak against the Badgers. They improve to 8-2 on the season and head into the holiday break in first place in the OUA West division and second place overall in the conference.
Brock, meanwhile, falls to 4-5, marking the first time they've sported a record under .500 since 2020.
BY THE NUMBERS
8
With eight wins in their first ten games, the Golden Hawks are off to their best start since the 2011-2012 season, when they were 9-1. And Serresse believes this team hasn't reached their full potential just yet.
"They know they have still room for improvement," he said. "I meet with many of our players daily and they always say, 'we're winning, but we know we can play better.' They're in a good mindset, we got a big win today, it was good, but they want to get better."
24.6
Taye Donald sits at the top of the OUA leaderboard in scoring at the mid-season pause. His 24.6 points per game currently stand as the sixth-highest single-season average in program history. He scored a game-high 29 points and added six rebounds and three assists against the Badgers.
UP NEXT
The Golden Hawks will resume their season on the road when they face the Western Mustangs on Friday, January 5, 2024. Their first home game of the new year will be Saturday, January 13 against Waterloo. Tickets are on sale now.
