By Luke Turner

The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold’s men’s basketball team won their first preseason match against the George Brown Huskies at the Mattamy Athletic Centre on Thursday. 

After reaching the U SPORTS national championships in March and falling short in the bronze-medal game against the University of Victoria Vikes, the Bold looked to shake off the rust ahead of the new season.

In the first quarter, the Bold got off to a scorching start, surging to a lopsided 28-5 lead. Coming off a 24-point outing, second-year transfer guard Tobe Ezeokafor made an immediate impact off the bench, scoring nine points in the quarter on 3-for-4 shooting. 

The Bold maintained a heavy defensive presence heading into the second quarter, as third-year forward Emmanuel Owonibi anchored the paint, cutting off the Huskies’ primary source of attack. 

Offensively, the Bold’s tactics served them well throughout the quarter. 

“Being aggressive on the board,” said Owonibi, set the tone for their scrappy half-court defence. 

“Just got to time the ball properly,” Owonibi said.

The Huskies broke their silence with a top-of-the-key triple, as they crossed the double-digit mark with four minutes left in the second quarter. Despite the resilience from the away team, the Bold steamrolled their way to a 50-18 lead after two quarters of play. 

Early in the third quarter, second-year guard and forward Gurdeep Kalsi rose up to make a statement slam, sending the home crowd into a frenzy. Fourth-year guard Javier Glasgow kept the Bold’s momentum going, running the breaks and setting up spot-up shooters. 

The climax of the third quarter came when third-year guard Greg Angelakos drilled a buzzer-beating three-pointer, capping off a high-octane run from the home team. 

The fourth quarter saw head coach David DeAveiro lean into his bench unit as they forced multiple shot-clock violations. First-year forward Olivier Desjardins kept their impressive shooting rolling, draining multiple three-pointers over Husky defenders. 

The Bold would go on to defeat the George Brown Huskies 104-39 in 40 minutes of play. 

UP NEXT: The Bold will take on the Acadia Axemen on Oct. 2 for the Shoveller Memorial Tournament. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at the Dalplex.