HAMILTON, Ont. – The Golden Hawks kept the ball rolling to close their weekend road trip 2-0 after beating the McMaster Marauders 73-67.
The teams last faced off recently at the Concordia Classic Tournament where the Marauders were able to ground the Hawks, handing them an 87-78 loss. However, things were very different this time around.
Laurier did not exactly "deliver the first punch" that interim manager of men's basketball operations and head coach Cavell Johnson wanted the team to do, quickly falling behind 10-2 and missing three of four shots.
"We fumbled the first play that we drew up before the game, we didn't execute well and gave up consecutive points to start," Johnson said. "During the timeout, I asked the guys if they were awake and ready to play."
The Golden Hawks took to the floor again with their punches ready and chipped away at McMaster's lead.
From inside the paint, Taye Donald kicked out to Nathan Vergin who spotted Aidan Whalen wide-open, and Whalen made no mistake draining the three-pointer.
Matei Vucenovic's screen put Donald in motion and the no-look pass found Isaiah Fisher for the hoop and harm, cutting McMaster's lead to 12-8 with five and change remaining in the first quarter.
At 5:07, Donald's drive to the low post drew three Marauders with him, leaving Jalen Levene wide-open, draining the corner triple.
After assisting on three baskets, Donald took matters into his own hands. His connection with Vucenovic troubled the Marauders where the pair confused the man-defence, and Donald's long-range jumper fell. The Golden Hawks again found themselves down by four.
Tied at 20 inside two minutes, Fisher collected his second defensive rebound to spring the Golden Hawks into transition where Donald knocked down his second three-pointer in the quarter to put the Hawks up by three.
With one second left, the inbound went into Donald's hands and he showed his range hitting the logo three.
The Golden Hawks took a 29-22 lead into the second quarter, ending the first on a 9-2 run after tying the game.
"The guys were more consistently locked in and played with a better sense of urgency from the [timeout] on," Johnson said.
Unfortunately for the Marauders, Donald's 14-point opening frame was only the beginning.
Terell Lloyd's steal, the first of the team's three in the quarter, set up Levene who made the jumper and extended Laurier's lead to 33-22 just over one minute in.
It was Chidera Ubosi and Vergin's turn to play with McMaster's man-defence as Ubosi pivoted, and faked the hand-off to Vergin, where Vergin put his defender in the spin cycle before cashing in two points.
McMaster's Mike Demagus made back-to-back layups to regain the lead at 41-40 with 1:53 remaining. But Whalen did not let that last long, using the hesitation move to make the defender bite and force the foul before hitting both free throws.
With Donald inbounding the ball from the baseline, another no-look pass stumped the Marauders and Fisher came away with the corner three.
At halftime, the Golden Hawks were on top 46-42, thanks in part to their 40% three-point shooting and 13 total rebounds, but also to McMaster's inability to find their rhythm from deep, going 3-12 beyond the arc.
McMaster's three-point shooting went from bad to worse in the third quarter, attempting six but making none. Another dark spot for the Marauders was the foul trouble with eight in the quarter and 22 at game's end.
"Rather than aggressive, I would say assertive and intentional with attacking and putting pressure on [McMaster], forcing them to play one-on-one defence, and forcing their help to make decisions," Johnson said of Laurier's foul-drawing abilities.
The Marauders evened the score again at 46 just three minutes into the penultimate quarter. For the third time, McMaster's defence faltered, this time with Vergin and Donald.
Donald split the two defenders who mismatched their defensive assignments both following Donald, leaving Vergin unguarded with enough space to step in and hit the long ball.
The Golden Hawks went on a 7-2 run midway through the quarter where all of Laurier's points came from the charity stripe.
With 1:26 to go, Vucenovic collected the defensive board, a part of his six-rebound day, to feed Donald who pulled up from downtown, putting the Hawks up 61-52.
Whalen followed up a minute later taking the long half-court pass to the rim, getting the basket to fall around two defenders. Whalen would end his day with eight points, five rebounds, and two steals.
Laurier took a 63-52 lead into the final frame. They limited McMaster to ten points and Demagus, the 12th overall pick in the 2024 CEBL draft, to four points with two turnovers.
The fourth quarter saw both teams struggle in the shooting department, combining for 25 points. But the Marauders brought the game within five, going on an 8-0 run with back-to-back made threes.
A timely timeout called by Johnson froze McMaster's momentum where the Hawks answered with four consecutive points. The Golden Hawks' pressure forced the Marauders into foul trouble yet again, and the purple and gold would close out the game on the free throw line to hand McMaster another loss.
Donald's performance left a dent in both sides of McMaster's floor, finishing with 34 points, tying his career high, three rebounds, and four assists.
"He brings a certain level of dog and leadership every game," Johnson said. "He was active on both ends of the floor, and when he's rolling on the defensive end, he has a different kind of rhythm on offence, and we were able to see that on display today."
Up Next
The Golden Hawks welcome the Ottawa Gee-Gees to the Athletic Complex to begin a two-game home-stand. Ottawa took the previous meeting a season ago 75-67. Both teams enter the contest undefeated.
"When it comes to our stuff, it's continuing to build on valuing possessions and valuing the ball, getting our turnover rates down. They went down again today for two consecutive games, so I'm liking that trend."
Tipoff is set for 8 pm on Friday. Get your tickets today.
