Game recap by Kirk Jessome
(Halifax, NS) – In Sunday matinee basketball action, the Dalhousie Tigers hosted the Cape Breton University Capers at the Dalplex. The rebounding edge for the Tigers made the difference in this one and helped them to an 83-68 win.
The Tigers size on the defensive end was frustrating the Capers shooters early, with each shot coming heavily contested.
On the other end, the Tigers offence was rolling early, with Keevan Veinot (Port Williams, NS) dropping a nice dime to Sascha Kappos (Miami, FL) for an easy lay-in, followed up by Alex Carson (Lower Sackville, NS) knocking down a shot from deep to force a timeout from the Capers.
Cape Breton was able to regroup in the quarter and start to find their flow in the final minutes, with Izaiah Ugoalah (Vancouver, BC) and Cooper Ward (Ipswich, AUS) finally getting their shots at the rim to fall, but heading into the second quarter, the Tigers held a 17-13 lead.
Once again the size was on display in the second quarter with the Tigers outrebounding the Capers and gaining second-chance points in the paint for Shamar Burrows (St. Catherines, ON) and Kappos.
With the outside shots not falling for them, the Capers continued to push the ball inside and were rewarded with trips to the line for Paul Watson (Mississauga, ON) and Ward.
With the final possession of the half, the Tigers ball movement found Matt McVeigh (Halifax, NS) for a three to give the Tigers a 42-28 lead going into the second half.
Threes were flying for the Tigers coming out of the break, with Carson knocking down a pair from deep and Veinot adding another one. The Capers kept pace with them in the opening minutes with Ugoalah finishing an and-one play, followed up by Ibrahim Gosselin-Diawara (Longueuil, QC) hitting from deep.
Both teams moved into a pressure defence that forced both teams into tough shots late in the clock. Both sides were struggling to get shots to fall in the back-half of the third quarter.
The Capers were able to find some light at the end of the quarter, capitalizing on four-straight turnovers from the Tigers with big plays from Ugoalah and back to back threes from CJ Bennett (Brampton, ON).
The Tigers were able to answer back with a three from McVeigh in the dying seconds, and as a result, took a 65-55 lead into the fourth.
Alex Carson took over the offence late in the fourth quarter for the Tigers, knocking down a pair of threes, as well as spending time at the free-throw line to extend the Tigers lead to 20.
With time running out, the Tigers were able to come away with an 83-68 victory.
Jason Callaghan (Sydney, NS) provided a spark in the fourth quarter for the Capers to finish with 15 points on 5-9 shooting. For the Tigers, Alex Carson was on fire in the second half, finishing with 27 points, hitting from deep five times to earn the Subway Player of the Game title.
The Tigers are back home next weekend for a pair of games against UPEI, while the Capers will host Acadia for a doubleheader next weekend as well.