Tigers drop Shoveller tournament final 69-64 to Huskies

Game recap by: Kirk Jessome

(Halifax, NS) – In the championship game of the Rod and Joan Shoveller Memorial Tournament, the host Dalhousie Tigers took on the cross-town Saint Mary's Huskies. It took till the final possession for the Huskies to secure the win after an early lead, but they claimed the tournament victory with a 69-64 win.

The Huskies were hot from deep to start the game, with four different shooters hitting from long range to put them in front 15-7 early while the Tigers struggled to get shots to fall.

The shooting continued for the Huskies, with Will Spaulding knocking down his second of the game to make it a 13 point lead midway through the quarter.

A big three on one end from Mike Shoveller (Arnprior, ON) and a charge taken by Cedric Sanogo (Montreal, QC) stopped the bleeding and turned the momentum toward the Tigers.

At the end of the quarter however, the Huskies still held the lead at 22-10.

The Tigers were getting quality scoring chances in the paint, but were shooting just 18% from the field after the first quarter while the Huskies went 5-9 from deep.

Finally getting their outside shooting going, the Tigers picked up threes from Keevan Veinot (Port Williams, NS) and Alex Carson (Lower Sackville, NS) to force a timeout to stop the run.

Nico Brauner was on fire for the Huskies in the quarter however, slashing into the paint as well as hitting a tough three off the glass.

At the end of a tight quarter, the Huskies still held a 37-26 lead.

The pace of the game was furious coming out of the half, with the defensive intensity through the roof on both sides, the difference being that the Tigers had to settle for outside shots while the Huskies were able to get into the paint.

The Tigers were able to shut down the Huskies shooters in the final minutes of the third, and get themselves going on a run to close it out, with Xavier Ochu (Milton, ON) was able to get a score in the final seconds, followed by a steal on the inbound for a quick five-point swing to head into the fourth.

The Huskies managed only 10 points in the quarter, and some foul trouble took some important length out of the Huskies lineup.

Going into the final quarter, the Huskies held the slight advantage at 47-44.

The teams went back and forth trading three-point plays early in the quarter with Kemar Alleyne (Scarborough, ON) finishing for the Huskies and Mike Shoveller throwing one down on the other end.

Trading baskets each way, the Huskies held a four point advantage at the one-minute mark with the Tigers inbounding from half. After the Huskies using fouls to give, 30 seconds ran off the clock that the Tigers needed. The shot finally went up short, and the Huskies recovered the ball and were fouled.

The free throws were enough for the Huskies to run out the clock and finish off the 69-64 win to claim the tournament championship.

The Tournament All-Stars from the Huskies and Tigers were selected with Kemar Alleyne and Mike Shoveller being named, as well as Nico Brauner being named the tournament's most valuable player.

Xavier Ochu led the scoring for the Tigers in the loss, finishing with 19 points along with 7 boards, while Brauner finished with a game-high 22 points to lead the Huskies to the win.