Pink Fire Pointer Mustangs fall short on home opening game 61-77

Mustangs fall short on home opening game 61-77

#20 Adam Vandervoort
The Western Mustangs men's basketball team hosted a tough Ottawa University squad in the highly anticipated home opener last night, former OUA semi-finalists. In a tough battle, the Mustangs fell short, losing to the Ottawa Gee Gees with a final score 61-77. The team played a competitive, rivaled game overall, but could not contain the powerful University of Ottawa offense.

In the first few minutes of the game, Ottawa managed to control the pace on both ends of the court. Ottawa created opportunities off of the fast break and in many cases caught the Mustangs off guard.

The Mustangs fought back, executing offensive plays to a tee while creating off ball opportunities. Excellent shooting from Greg Morrow gave the Mustangs the advantage they needed to obtain a first quarter lead.

The first quarter concluded with the Mustangs clinching a two point lead over Ottawa University.

The second quarter started out with a bang as Morrow showed the crowd his vertical abilities in a tip dunk off of a missed layup. This spark of energy gave the Mustangs the motivation they needed to overcome the Gee Gee’s. Tight defense from the Mustangs frustrated Ottawa, leading to forced turnovers and bad passing decisions.

Precision shooting from behind the arc was crucial in the Mustangs' success in the second quarter. Co-captain Quinn Henderson was especially strong from outside and Greg Morrow continued to disrupt the Ottawa defense. Tensions began to escalate in the second quarter leading to a very physical game. Ottawa claimed the second quarter, but only three points ahead at 38-35.

In the third, Henderson made two clutch three pointers, which energized the Mustang squad. Unfortunately, the speed of Ottawa University was uncontrollable. The Gee Gees continued to maintain a fast pace game, fast breaking at every opportunity. Before the Mustangs knew it, the team found themselves down to a game-high nine points.

Full court pressure from the Ottawa Gee Gee’s flustered the Mustang guards -- leading to unforced errors. The third quarter ended with a score of 48-60 in favour of the Ottawa Gee Gee’s.

The Mustangs took to the court in the fourth quarter determined to make a comeback. Peter Scholtes found his touch and began to make key shots. Western was more aggressive defensively and successful boxing out from the Mustang post players led to many offensive and defensive rebounds. Unfortunately the Ottawa Gee Gee’s still found success on both ends of the court and were too much for the Mustangs to handle.

This 61-77 loss is a more competitive score than the matchup result between these two teams last season.

Head Coach Brad Campbell commented on where they went wrong. “The other team executed better. They disrupted our offense and beat us on the glass.”

Moving forward to Saturday's game against Carleton, Campbell said “we will need to commit to the defensive rebound, which is the strength of Carleton and battle for each possession.”

The team prepares for the second game of the home opening weekend double header against Carleton University. Tip off is 8:00pm at Alumni Hall on Saturday, November 10.

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