Gryphon men dropped by Laurentian to finish season
SUDBURY – The Guelph Gryphons struck for the first six points of the game, but the Laurentian Voyageurs weren’t fazed as they came back for a 104-82 victory in OUA men’s basketball play Saturday at Laurentian’s Ben Avery Gym.
The game was the final one of the season for the Gryphs who do not qualify for the playoffs. The 104 points surrendered by the Gryphs were the most they yielded in a single game in league play this season.
The Voyageurs led the Gryphs 24-20 at the end of the first quarter, 58-37 at halftime and 87-64 at the end of the third quarter.
Shaathon Walker had 20 points and two steals for the Gryphs while Viktoras Nausedas had 17 points, four rebounds and a block and Dezayne Mingo had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists. Emmanuel Ansah had seven rebounds, four assists and two steals and Eric Armstrong had six rebounds. Raef Wykes and Adrian Morra each had two assists and Dylan McFee had two steals.
Caillou Lacroix had 22 points for Laurentian while Kamil Dia Hantchi had 18, Cedric Mbiaba had 12 and Keenan Morain had 11. Lacroix and Mbiaba each had eight rebounds while Mbiaba and Pierre Mukandila each had two steals.
The Gryphs shot 41 percent on field goals, 28 percent on three-pointers and 63 percent on free throws. They also grabbed 31 rebounds, had 15 assists, one block and 11 steals, committed 10 turnovers, had 44 points in the paint, 21 points off Laurentian turnovers, 11 second-chance points and received 22 points from their bench.
The Voyageurs shot 58 percent on field goals, 54 percent (14 of 26) on three-pointers and 67 percent on free throws and had 40 rebounds, 23 assists, three blocks, eight steals, 15 turnovers, 50 points in the paint, 22 points off Gryphon turnovers, 11 second-chance points and 40 points from their bench.
The Gryphs finish on a seven-game losing streak and dropped nine of their final 10 games. They finished tied for fourth in the OUA East and tied for 14th overall at 5-17. They were also 9-24 overall.
The league’s playoffs are to start Wednesday with the play-in round. The quarter-finals are to go next Saturday with the semifinals slated for Feb. 28 and the Wilson Cup final is scheduled for March 2.
- Guelph Sports Journal