Huskies drop second of two game series to Tigers, 94-60

The Dalhousie Tigers men's basketball team used a dominant third quarter run to defeat the Saint Mary's Huskies 94-60 at the Dalplex on Saturday night.

After trading buckets to start the game, the Tigers went on a quick 12-0 run to open up a 14-4 lead and force Saint Mary's into an early timeout. Dalhousie's early scoring push was led by Nginyu Ngala (Montreal, QC).

Saint Mary's responded by going on a 12-3 run of their own that necessitated a timeout from the Tigers with just under two minutes to go. The first quarter ended 19-17 in favour of the visitors, with Jayrell Diggs (East Preston, NS) six points leading the way for the Huskies in the quarter.

The second quarter was more of a back-and-forth affair to start with as open shots and opportunities to run in transition came less frequently than in the first.

One of those transition opportunities, however, produced a moment of excitement when Ngala's fast-break alley-oop to Malcolm Christie (Fredericton, NB) resulted in a tough and-one finish from the guard.

Ultimately, it was Dalhousie's ability to take care of the basketball and punish their opponents turnovers that proved the difference and built their halftime lead. After two quarters the Tigers had just three turnovers to Saint Mary's 12, as well as 18 points off turnovers compared to 1 for the visitors. That, along with the Tigers all-around attack, saw Dalhousie lead 46-36 at the half.

Individually, both teams had a balance offensive workload in the first half. For Saint Mary's, it was Jonas Maerz's (Rosenheim, Germany) hot shooting (3/3 on three-pointers) as well as Diggs and Dontae Mitchell's (Vaughan, ON) pressure on the rim that kept the Huskies offence moving. The hosts were led by Ngala with 13 points, Christie with nine and Samule Wade (Wallace, NS) with eight.

The Tigers built their lead up to 21 points halfway through the third quarter, forcing a timeout from Saint Mary's to try and halt the momentum. Unfortunately for the visitors, it did no such things. Dalhousie's defensive intensity could not be slowed in the third quarter, nor could their shot-making inside and outside the arc.

The game was ultimately blown open in the third quarter, as the Tigers outscored the Huskies 32-12, led by 11 points by Christie, and Dalhousie took a 78-48 lead into the fourth quarter.

Although they fought to the end, Saint Mary's couldn't cut into the deficit, and the Tigers won 94-60.

Dalhousie's Nginyu Ngala was named the Subway Player of the Game with a game-high 21 points to go along with three rebounds and five assists. Malcolm Christie added 20 points, and Shamar Burrows (Nassau, Bahamas) added a 10 point, 11 rebound double-double.

Dontae Mitchell had 12 points, four rebounds and an assist to lead the way for the Huskies, while Maerz added a career high 11 points and four assists off the bench.

The Tigers win improves their record to 3-1 on the campaign, heading into next weekend's road trip to Newfoundland as they take on the Memorial Sea-Hawks in a back-to-back, Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. 

The Huskies will return to the friendly confines of the Homburg Centre next weekend, hosting the UNB REDS for a back-to-back, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. GET TICKETS

Recap by Jack Longo / Dalhousie Tigers Athletics
Photos by Trevor MacMillan / Dalhousie Tigers Athletics