Jan. 8: Lakehead 71 – Guelph 63
GUELPH - A fourth quarter rally came up short for the Guelph Gryphon men's basketball team, who dropped their second straight game, 71-63 to the visiting Lakehead Thunderwolves on Saturday night at the W.F. Mitchell Centre.
The Thunderwolves took both games of the weekend doubleheader and advance to 8-2, while the Gryphons drop to 3-7.
With the Gryphons trailing by 12 mid-way through the fourth quarter, Guelph led a furious comeback that brought the game within four points in the final minute. Guelph's Matthew Howlett scored a three pointer with 22 seconds to go in the game to get the Gryphons to within four (67-63). Lakehead, however managed to convert their free-throws with the game on the line, making 8-for-13 in the second half, to hang on for the win.
The Thunderwolves managed to keep themselves at a safe distance for most of the game, outscoring Guelph for three quarters. Russell Venzal led Lakehead with 17 points and six rebounds. Ryan Thomson had 13 while Greg Carter and Yoosrie Salhia each tallied 11 points. Salhia also grabbed 13 rebounds to earn his second straight double-double.
The score might have been different if the Gryphons improved on the glass as Lakehead pulled down 47 rebounds while Guelph grabbed only 22.
The Gryphon's were led by Michael Petrella's (Brantford, Ont.) 18 points, while Drew Morris (Guelph, Ont.) tallied 13 and Michel Clark (Burlington, Ont.) and George Mason (Orillia, Ont.) each tallied 10 points apiece in the losing effort. The Gryphon's were done in by their up and down offence, who couldn't put together successive quarters to put away a gritty Lakehead team.
It's clear that injuries are catching up with the Guelph Gryphon's squad. With three starters not dressed for the game, the Gryphon's bench only had so much fire power to give. The Gryphons will hope for a healthier line-up when they return to the court this week against the Waterloo Warriors on Wednesday (January 12) at the W.F. Mitchell Centre. Tip off is set for 8:00 p.m.
