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Nationally-ranked Rams beat Brock 79-63

By Charles Vanegas

The Ryerson men’s basketball team continued its winning streak to seven — remaining as the only unbeaten team in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) conference — after knocking off the Brock Badgers 79-63.

The Rams were led by shooting guard Jordon Gauthier’s 21 points and point guard Jahmal Jones’ 19 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists. Rams’ head coach Roy Rana had high praise for Gauthier, who missed the entire preseason due to injury.

“It’s just Jordon [being Jordon],” said Rana. “He’s consistently one of the best guards in this league. We’re just happy to see him getting healthier every day and getting back into the swing of things.”

The Rams held the lead for the majority of the game, but entered the second half only up by five after being outscored in the second quarter. Jones stressed the need to “wake up earlier in the game,” while Rana credited the defense for picking up the slack.

“It was kind of a sloppy game — we didn’t shoot the ball very well from the three [point line],” said Rana. “But we found a way to win, and I think that’s a credit to our defense and the way we rebounded tonight.”

After starting the season 6-0, the Rams finally cracked the CIS top 10 rankings for the first time in 12 years last week. And while Jones acknowledged the recognition was nice, he said the team was more focused on facing the level of competition in the Rams’ division. As of Nov. 30, four teams in the OUA East — including the defending national champions Carleton Ravens — had 5-1 records.

“I don’t know if ranking means a whole lot to us, but it means a lot to the school,” said Jones. “We know the East has been really good against the West, so we’re going to have to put extra time in.”

Forward Nem Stankovic sat out because of an ongoing back injury.

The Rams host the McMaster Marauders on Dec. 1, their final regular season game before the winter break.

Photos by Marissa Dederer.

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