TORONTO, Ont. - The Golden Hawks flipped the calendar to the second half of the season and looked to ring in the new year by extending their two-game winning streak against the #5-ranked TMU Bold.
Laurier entered the game off two close wins over Guelph and Lakehead, while the Bold were riding high on a four-game winning streak.
Both teams had to dust off the cobwebs after the near six-week winter break, but the Bold were in cruise control from the opening tip, and handed the Golden Hawks their first loss of 2026, 81-76.
The sides went shot-for-shot for the majority of the first quarter. At 3:14, Liban Abdalla made the no doubt three-pointer, putting Laurier ahead by two at 15-13, and that would be the largest lead the Golden Hawks had all game.
The Bold, led by reigning OUA MVP Aaron Rhooms, took the reins and went on an 8-0 run to end the quarter leading 21-15. It was the second lowest scoring first quarter for the Golden Hawks this season, thanks in part to a dismal 28.6% shooting from the field.
In the second quarter, a familiar face returned to the Golden Hawks lineup. Third-year guard Max Voorpool made his season debut after nearly two years of being sidelined. He sank the elbow jumper four minutes into the second quarter en route to a 6-2 Laurier run.
Voorpool ended the night with 13 points and two rebounds in 22 minutes of play.
The Golden Hawks would go on another 6-0 run midway through the second quarter and brought the deficit down to five on Isaiah Fisher's steal and the finish from Joshua Loblaw.
However, the Bold responded with a 9-1 run of their own and went into the half up 13 at 42-29. The Bold were in rhythm, shooting 43.9% from the field and were dominant on the boards with 32 rebounds.
The Golden Hawks were not fully out of the game as TMU could not find their groove from distance, making only one three-pointer in the first half on 14 attempts.
Laurier came out of the recess reset and tried to regain their brand of basketball on the defensive end. They were able to limit Rhooms, one of the OUA's top scorers, to just two points in the third quarter.
Fisher and Aidan Whalen led the way for the Golden Hawks with seven points apiece, and Whalen went perfect from the field and the line.
Despite the uptick in play, Laurier trailed 62-50 going into the final frame.
Abdalla put the cape on and carried the team on his shoulders in the fourth quarter, scoring half of Laurier's 26 points.
With 2:46 remaining, Abdalla led the Golden Hawks out in transition and lost his defender with the spin move, then nailed the triple over the scrambling defender whose late closeout resulted in a landing-space foul. Abdalla would convert the four-point play.
He would end the night with his third double-double of the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds.
Later, Abdalla was fouled in the act of shooting another three and got those points back on the free throw line. With Laurier in the bonus, Fisher also went 2-2 from the line and suddenly it was a two-possession game with TMU leading by five at 81-76.
The Bold, with 24 seconds left, had an offensive miscue as they tried to run out the remainder of the clock, but the Golden Hawks forced a turnover with 11 seconds on the clock.
The Golden Hawks called a timeout to draw up the scheme and returned to the floor shooting a flurry of threes and multiple second chance opportunities, however, no shot hit its mark and the Bold escaped with the five-point win after previously leading by as much as 16.
TMU extended their win streak to five and improved to 9-2 for first place in the OUA Central, while Laurier dropped back to .500 with a 6-6 record, but still sit second in the OUA West.
UP NEXT
The Golden Hawks are back in action on Friday, January 16 when the #3 Western Mustangs come to town for the Gold Out game to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wilfrid Laurier University Students' Union.
Tipoff is set for 8pm, and tickets are available here.
