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Laurier Athletics - Waterloo Campus

Nate Vergin looks to dribble past two Windsor defenders
Alexander Binaei
69
Laurier LAURIER 8-13, 8-13
75
Winner Windsor WINDSOR 12-9, 12-9
Laurier LAURIER
8-13, 8-13
69
Final
75
Windsor WINDSOR
12-9, 12-9
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Laurier LAURIER 14 14 20 21 69
Windsor WINDSOR 22 16 14 23 75

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Natasha Giannantonio

Golden Hawks drop third straight in loss to Lancers

WINDSOR, Ont. – The Golden Hawks travelled to the Rose City to face familiar foes in the Windsor Lancers in the second last game of the regular season.

With the Lancers already clinching the West division's second spot, Laurier faced a desperate situation to get back in the win column and move a game closer to booking their playoff tickets.
 
Safe to say there was no love lost between the two teams, and also safe to say it was not the start the Golden Hawks wanted.

Their offensive struggles followed them to Windsor, Ont, and unfortunately continued. Over the past three games, the purple and gold have only shot 38.1% from the field, and occupy the ninth worst three-point percentage.
 
Despite the Lancers eight point 22-14 lead at the end of ten minutes, Aidan Whalen put his team on his shoulders and carried them throughout. At 4:29, Taye Donald pulled out the nifty spin move and dished to Whalen for three.
   
And again with under a minute remaining in the first quarter, Whalen hit another triple; the only two three-pointers the Hawks would make in the frame. He led the way with eight points, and was just getting started.
 
In the second quarter, Chidera Ubosi cleaned up the offensive board for the put-back two, bringing the Golden Hawks back within two, and less than 30 seconds later, it was Isaiah Fisher on the reverse-lay to knot things up at 24.
 
However, the Golden Hawks could not pull ahead. The Lancers went on a 9-0 run, and held Laurier without a basket for almost four minutes before Terell Lloyd ended the drought. Windsor took a commanding 38-28 lead into halftime.
 
"We didn't get the ball moving, we were too stagnant, and we didn't attack in transition well enough, either," manager of men's basketball operations and head coach Cavell Johnson said.
 
"The point of emphasis at halftime was moving the ball with pace, and having a lot more space so that guys could attack."
 
Just as fast as the Lancers separated themselves by double digits, the Golden Hawks closed the gap. Who else to lead the third quarter charge than Whalen.

Three minutes in, he took the hand-off from Donald, and the hand in his face did not bother him, nailing the three-ball. Laurier was suddenly within five.
   
Of Donald's six assists in the game, four went to Whalen, keeping him hot from distance. He would go 2-3 from three-point land and 3-3 on the charity stripe in the third quarter, racking up a team-high nine points, which marked his second highest point total in a single frame this season.
 
"We did a decent job of allowing ourselves some space to attack downhill. Got into some high ball screen actions that worked for us," Johnson said as his side outscored the Lancers 20-16 in the third.
 
The Golden Hawks would not go down without a fight, and managed to claw their way back within four points going into the final quarter.
 
Donald helped Whalen shoulder the weight in the fourth quarter with 11 points. At 9:08, Donald collected the defensive board and headed downhill, knocking down his first triple of the game. It would be a crucial one to bring the score to 55-53.
   
The Lancers, like they did all game, separated themselves again, this time going on an 8-0 run and gained another double digit lead at 63-53.
 
But Whalen would not let that go on for much longer. On a hot pass from Nathan Vergin, Whalen drained the corner three, and on the next play, the Lancers' close-out mattered nothing as he connected again from beyond the arc. The deficit was back within four.
 
"He was really, really big for us on the offensive end. He shot the hell out of the ball and played very confidently," Johnson praised Whalen.
   
He ended the night with career highs across the board with six made threes, 11 rebounds, and 23 points, recording his first OUA double-double.
 
Then, with 3:23 remaining, and Windsor back up by seven, Donald came up huge as he lost his defender who struggled to close him out, Donald hit the three and drew the foul for a four-point play, bringing the score to 66-63.
   
The Lancers, however, were able to seal the deal, handing the Golden Hawks their third straight loss, 75-69. Laurier's situation going into the final regular season game on Saturday became even more dire – do or die, all or nothing, win or go home without a playoff berth. 
 
Laurier goes back on Highway 401 to visit the Western Mustangs who are riding high after their 45-point blowout victory against the Waterloo Warriors.
 
"We have to focus on getting out and pushing in transition, similar to what we did in the second half tonight. Spread out our lanes to keep Western from setting up their zone. We have to be very disciplined and intentional with where and how we attack the zone," Johnson said.
 
"On the defensive end, we have to keep them to one shot and done, we have to hold the glass, we haven't done a good job on the glass in the last three games, and tomorrow in a do-or-die situation, we can't get outworked. At the end of the day we have to play hard."
 
Tipoff is set for 8pm. Catch all the action on OUA.tv and live updates from @WLUAthletics on X.
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