By Jordan Bickramsingh
The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men’s basketball team won 75-62 against the Memorial University Sea-Hawks in a never-before-seen matchup at the Kerr Hall Upper Gym Friday afternoon.
The Memorial Sea-Hawks are an Atlantic University Sports team based in St. John’s, N.L. They’ve come all the way from the East Coast to take on a host of Ontario teams for their pre-season campaign. The Bold were the Sea-Hawks’ second opponent in their six-game run, after a narrow 76-72 loss to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues.
In today’s game, TMU offered them a different test. The Bold maintained a healthy ten-point gap for the majority of the game, leading to a huge win that has extended their pre-season record to 4-1.
The Sea-Hawks took the initial lead with a dominant display by fourth-year guard Flynn Boardman-Raffet, scoring a three-pointer right as the shot clock ran out.
After second-year forward Galand Okuego broke the Sea-Hawks’ scoring streak, intense defensive and offensive power from third-year guard Javier Gilgeous-Glasgow quickly turned the tide in the Bold’s favour.
Gilgeous-Glasgow’s shooting was backed up by an impressive defensive performance from Okuego and fourth-year forward Aidan Wilson, whose 6’11” height proved a major asset. But when it came to the defensive game, it was hard not to pay attention to the silent rivalry between first-year Bold guard Maxine Louis-Jean and Sea-Hawks’ third-year guard Jodick Moudiandambu.
The Bold closed out the first quarter 22-16, solidifying the lead that they held for the rest of the game.
When the second quarter began, it looked like the game might be shifting towards the Sea-Hawks, as third-year forward Josh Reimer came out and dominated the court. Memorial went on a brief offensive streak which tightened the score up to 24-26.
That didn’t last long, as right when the Sea-Hawks started to pick back up, fourth-year Bold guard Aaron Rhooms bared his teeth. With a slick finish following a Louis-Jean pass from across the court, Rhooms made sure to get his slice of the glory.
The game got tense, once again, as the Sea-Hawks’ brought the score to 34-32. However, after a much-needed time-out, Gilgeous-Glasgow returned to the court with an immediate three-pointer that reignited the game before closing out the first half 39-33 for the Bold.
Leading into the third quarter, the tension between Louis-Jean and Moudiandambu began to rise as the Sea-Hawks guard shoulder-checked Louis-Jean for a second time in the game.
The third quarter became an intense defensive game, with several tough calls made by the referees. Throughout the quarter, many fouls were called on both teams which led to numerous disagreements between coaches and referees, though no punishments were handed out.
“This has been the most high-energy game of the pre-season so far,” Debbie, a spectator, said during the game.
Despite the drama, the Bold kept their offence rolling and widened the point gap greatly with Okeugo taking the lead. Despite his 6’5” stature, Okeugo was able to stealthily snake through the opponent’s defence and turn numerous tough situations into points.
As the game raged on, the Sea-Hawks got sloppy and committed numerous errors, resulting in turnovers and free throws. The Bold took advantage and widened the lead to a healthy nine-point gap, 53-44.
The final quarter saw first-year Landon Wright take the court and continue to make waves after his impressive performance against the UBCO Heat on Saturday.
The game slowed down for a bit with not many points being scored but that changed when Gilgeous-Glasgow returned to the court to score yet another immediate three-pointer. Right after that, Wilson followed up with a slam dunk that seemed to shake the gym as the crowd erupted with cheers. This brought the score to a domineering 60-47.
The game got quite physical at that point, with many consecutive personal fouls being called. The tension between Louis-Jean and Moudiandambu finally caught the attention of the refs as a personal foul was called against the Sea-Hawks guard.
The offensive game picked up again towards the middle of the quarter, resulting in a demonstrably skillful play by Okuego. After an intense battle for the ball at the Sea-Hawks’ net, the Bold forward sank a stylish layup to maintain the 13-point lead.
Taking advantage of their lead, the Bold strategically sought to maintain control of the ball for as long as they could. They ran the shot clock down to the last second, minimizing the time that the Sea-Hawks had to try and close the gap.
Throughout the last two minutes of the game, there were fouls being called left, right and centre in an enthralling finale. In the end, the TMU Bold were able to close out the game.
There was one more moment to come in the final half-minute. Redshirt player Egor Lisunov was subbed in with 25 seconds left on the clock and scored the final layup of the game, earning a massive reaction from the Bold.
Despite a lot of negative energy throughout the game, the Bold prevailed 75-62 and left the game with positive vibes as they kept a three-game double-digit win streak alive.
UP NEXT: The Bold continue their pre-season schedule against the McGill Martlets on Oct. 13 at Kerr Hall. Tip-off is set at 1:00 p.m.
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