The York University Lions men's basketball team rode a huge game from Shane Reader to a 99-96 overtime victory over the Laurentian Voyageurs on the road in Sudbury, Ont., on Saturday night (Nov. 14).
 
After Reader (York, Ont.) made a pair of free throws in the final seconds of the fourth quarter it looked as though the Lions had secured the win, but Laurentian's David Aromolaran hit a buzzer-beating three to tie the game at 86-86 and force overtime.
 
The two teams traded baskets throughout the final five minutes and the Lions made a series of free throws down the stretch to stay ahead of the Voyageurs. Reader forced a turnover and stole the ball on Laurentian's final possession to help his team improve to 2-1 on the year.
 
The third-year guard, in his first season with the Lions, finished with an impressive stat line of 28 points, 10 assists, nine steals and four rebounds to lead the Lions. He also shot 12-of-18 from the floor.
 
Phillip Gillen (Hamilton, Ont.) also had a big game with 17 points, six rebounds and two assists, while Tommy Hobbs (Anchorage, Alaska) put up 13 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
 
The contest was close throughout the first half as neither team was able to pull away. They were tied 20-20 after one quarter and the Lions led by just a single point, at 43-42, at the half.
 
However, the Voyageurs found their groove in the third quarter and began building a lead, at one point sitting on a 10-point advantage. But the Lions cut the deficit to three by the end of the frame, and finally took the lead again with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter on a lay-up by Tristan Newman (Maple, Ont.) for a 78-77 advantage.
 
The game's leading scorer was Laurentian's Anthony Iacoe, who had 31 points and added six rebounds and five steals.
 
After three games on the road to start the season, the Lions will finally make their home debut next weekend against the Brock Badgers on Friday night (Nov. 20) at the Tait McKenzie Centre. Tip-off is set for 8pm.