The York University Lions men's basketball team visited the Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday night to open the 2026 portion of their schedule. York came in looking to win consecutive games for the first time this year after they finished off 2025 with a heart-stopping win over the Algoma Thunderbirds.

The Lions came out strong and took an early 7-3 lead. The teams went back and fourth for most of the rest of the quarter, with the Blues rallying to tie it at 13. York then went on a 6-1 spurt to grab a 19-14 lead, their largest of the quarter, but the Blues closed the frame on a 12-5 run and took a 26-24 lead to the second.

Toronto carried over that late-first-quarter momentum into the second quarter and outscored the Lions 24-12 in the frame. The second was punctuated by a 12-0 Blues run that expanded what was once a two-point lead to 14 at 45-31. The home side closed the quarter strong and maintained that 14-point advantage at the break.

The Toronto lead ballooned to as many as 23 midway through the third, with the Blues leading 68-45. It grew to as many as 25, before York closed the third on a 10-2 run to make it 74-57 heading to the fourth. While the red and white continued to battle, cutting it to eight on a LaDainian James bucket and eventually to five on a James three with 2:21 to go, that was as close as they would get, as the Blues held on for an 89-80 win.

LOOKING AHEAD: 

The Lions will battle the TMU Bold on Saturday night on Community Night at Tait McKenzie Centre in their first home game of 2026. Kids and families wearing the gear of their minor basketball teams will be admitted free of charge. The general public can purchase tickets here or stream the game on OUA TV.