WATERLOO, Ont. - Is there anything better than playoff basketball?
This Golden Hawks season has served up some wild finishes, and the postseason opener Thursday night against the Toronto Varsity Blues was no different. After taking the lead late in the third quarter, Laurier held off a last-minute Toronto surge to secure the 77-74 victory.
Very little separated these two teams statistically coming into this meeting, and the first quarter reflected what a close matchup it was. The biggest lead of the opening frame came after an outstanding sequence from Ethan Passley put the Golden Hawks up four.
The Blues came marching back to take a 21-18 lead heading into the second quarter, and from there the back-and-forth continued.
Toronto was the best rebounding team in the OUA this season, and they held the edge on the glass in the first half, pulling down 22 boards to Laurier's 17. Third-year forward Anthony Daudu was responsible for 12 of those. He'd finish with a game-high 18 rebounds.
The Varsity Blues led 41-37 at halftime. As it's been many times this season, it was the young guards leading the charge for the Golden Hawks' comeback effort. This time it was Jahmyah Brown Jeffers taking over to start the third quarter. He had eight points in just the first five minutes of the half.
Laurier took their first lead since the opening minutes on a Benhur Gebrekidan three-pointer at 3:29. This was quickly followed by two impressive and-one layups from Ethan Passley, and suddenly the purple and gold were in control.
"Those contact layups are something I was trying to focus on all season," said Passley. "It was in the heat of the moment. I'd already made one, so I was like, 'why not make another one?'"
Passley finished with a team-high 18 points, shooting a ridiculously efficient 70% from the field. The second-year guard's offensive performance is no surprise, he's been the Golden Hawks' most prolific scorer all season, but it's worth noting this all came in his first career playoff appearance.
"Coming into a playoff game, I just look at is another like another day at work," he said. "I play this game every day, so anything I do on the court, it's second nature."
He also made sure to stress that the win took a complete team effort. "Rebounding gave us a huge advantage. We were being aggressive. We were pushing the pace."
Laurier outrebounded Toronto 21-17 in the second half, which hampered the Blues' ability to gain any momentum in the final frame. They entered the fourth quarter trailing the Golden Hawks 62-57, and weren't able to threaten the lead until the final minute when they scraped their way to within two.
In the end, it was fourth-year forward Majok Deng who was the hero, sinking a clutch free throw to push the lead to three before locking up the OUA's second-leading scorer Callum Baker on a buzzer-beating three-point attempt.
In the one regular season meeting between these two teams, Toronto completely suffocated Laurier's offence with their zone defensive scheme. The Golden Hawks did a good job of pushing the pace in transition, not allowing the Blues to get settled and forcing them to play Laurier's style of basketball.
"It starts and ends with Taye [Donald] and Ethan and Jahmyah being able to penetrate that zone with their speed, and then from there making plays for everybody, and everybody looking to cut and relocate," said Laurier's manager of men's basketball operations and head coach Justin Serresse.
The improvement seen from the November game at Toronto to now offers a taste of the potential that trio of young guards and the rest of this team possesses. They'll have to be at their best for Saturday's meeting with the #1-ranked Carleton Ravens, Laurier's next stop in their quest for the Wilson Cup.
"The pressure is on them," said Serresse. "They're the number one team in the country, they have to defend their home court. They also had an extra week of rest... so now it's up to us to come in and show a whole lot of spirit. And composure."
"[We've got to] just execute the game plan at the end of the day," said Passley. "We've just got to come locked in from head to toe."
Top Performers
Laurier Golden Hawks
Also playing in his first career playoff game, Jahmyah Brown Jeffers was all over the scoresheet. He finished with 17 points, and led or co-led his team in rebounds (eight), assists (four), steals (three), and blocks (one).
Toronto Varsity Blues
Inaki Alvarez had a game-high 24 points and five steals in 37 minutes of playing time. He also led his team with four assists.
Up Next
Tip-off for Saturday's matchup with the Ravens is set for 8 p.m. in the nation's capital. Follow @WLUAthletics for live updates and catch all the action on OUA.tv.
