The York University Lions men's basketball team led from start to finish against the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks and picked up their second win in a row, 96-79 at Tait McKenzie Centre Saturday night.
The win for the Lions marks their third win of the season, as they complete their series sweep against the Ridgebacks. The Lions' record now stands at 3-7.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The game began in a much different way than Wednesday's win over the Ridgebacks. It was a tight start, but two three-pointers from Brendon Chevannes, and Chevon Brown helped York build a 18-10 lead.
- The Ridgebacks tried to find their way back into the game after going 5-8 from beyond the arc in the second quarter, with two of the threes coming from the AJ Cummings off the bench. However, the Lions extended their lead before halftime, with Kamunga once again leading the Lions with eight points in the quarter. A buzzer-beater put-back by Brown ended the quarter with the Lions leading 40-31.
- Tyler Pryce's strong defence led to an even better offence in the third quarter, when he made a steal on one end and ran the court to make the slam, forcing the Ridgebacks bench staff to call a timeout. Kamunga was lights-out with two ground-breaking slam-dunks to lift the Lions to a 69-56 lead through three.
- Despite a fierce drive by the Ridgebacks, the Lions would maintain their scoring pace into the fourth quarter, marginally outscoring them and holding them off in the final minutes of the game.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
"We definitely carried that momentum from last game, and it's never easy beating the same team twice in a row. But we raised our bar and brought consistency on both ends. We have great momentum now, guys believe that we can win and make a run, and now got to prepare for the short turn-around against Laurentian on Wednesday." — head coach
Nate Philippe
NOTABLE NUMBERS
- The Lions were led by spectacular performances from Kamunga and Somto Dimanochie both scoring 28 points each and combining for a total of 56 of the 98 points scored by the Lions.
- The Ridgebacks had four players in double figures and were led by Cameron Ramage with 18 points and three rebounds.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Lions are gearing up for a five-game road trip, beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 23 at the Ben F. Avery Gymnasium in Sudbury, Ont., where they will cross paths with a fresh opponent, the Laurentian Voyageurs. The tip-off is scheduled for 8 pm.
