After a week on the road last weekend, the Western Mustangs women's and men's basketball teams return home to Alumni Hall to host a duo of Toronto schools. The double-header basketball action kicks off this Friday, November 23 at 6pm.

Women’s vs. Toronto

The Stangs take to the hard court this weekend as they look to finish the month of November on a high note. Western, currently sitting at 2-2 on the season face an undefeated Varsity Blues squad from the OUA East. With a win the Mustangs would gain some ground on Windsor and Brock in the OUA West who are both undefeated.

The unbeaten Varsity Blues squad is led on the scoring sheet by Jasmine Lewin who is averaging 13.0 points per game with an impressive 33% clip from beyond the arc. Lewin, combined with the proficient rebounding of Amanda Lauzon who is averaging an impressive 10.5 rebounds, provide Toronto with a dynamic duo that have been giving opposing teams many headaches. In addition to the offensive combo of Lewin and Lauzon Toronto are one of the stingiest team defences in the OUA, allowing only 52.2 points per game. Western will have to change that if they want to break their undefeated run.
The Purple and White come into the game with a lot of offensive firepower. Dundas native and former Troy University Trojan Jenny Vaughn is second in the OUA averaging a gaudy 19.5 points per game in 35.5 minutes of action per night. Vaughn and Laura Dally, a University of Denver transfer, look in midseason form and are well on their way to more OUA All-Star nods. On the glass Jory McDonald has been solid taking down 7.8 rebounds per game giving the Mustangs second chance opportunities at pivotal moments. In this heavyweight matchup look for this trio to play a big factor in determining Western’s success on Friday evening.

Tip off is Friday, November 23 at 6:00PM at Alumni Hall. Mustangs TV will be live-streaming the game.

Men’s vs. Toronto

The Mustangs look to finish off the month of November on a high note as they face two opponents from the provincial capital. Friday night Western begins their home stand versus the Varsity Blues where they look to notch their first victory of the young campaign. The young squad is looking to carry some momentum from their close loss against the Voyagers of Laurentian who are one of the top teams in the OUA.

In order to give themselves an opportunity to win they will have to limit the dynamic Varsity Blue duo of Alex Hill and Arun Kumar who are averaging 17.5 and 16 points per game, both in the top 15 in the conference. Toronto is coming off a win against Waterloo the previous weekend and look to get above the .500 mark, if they can find the bottom of the rim while continuing their stingy defense of allowing only 74.5 points per game.

The Mustangs will look to attack the glass and feed the ball to London Oakridge product Peter Scholtes who is averaging a solid 14.8 points per game with 10 shots already nailed from beyond the arc. The young squad with the likes of Ottawa native Elliot Dooley and Toronto Guard Jermaine Bernard look to increase their point production as they search for their first victory.

Tip off is Friday, November 23 at 8:00PM at Alumni Hall. Mustangs TV will be live-streaming the game.


Women’s vs. Ryerson

The Mustangs conclude their weekend home stand against another Toronto school, playing the Ryerson Rams on Saturday evening. Western who sits at .500 and face a Ryerson team who sits second in the OUA East with the same record at the ‘Stangs. With a win Western could very well head into the month of December placing themselves at or near the top of the competitive OUA West.
 
The Ryerson Rams are led offensively by Kelsey Wright and Cassandra Nofeunte. Brampton native and fourth year veteran Wright is averaging 15.0 points per game while Nofeunte a Toronto native has been putting up an average of 12.8 points per game setting herself apart as one of the top first year players in the country. Nofeunte doubles as a rebounding machine on top or her scoring prowess with 7.8 rebounds per game. For the Mustangs to be successful they will have to limit the first year player on the glass and in the paint.

Western comes into the game led by veterans Laura Dally and Jenny Vaughn who excel on both ends of the court. Look for Dally who is averaging 2.0 steals per contest and veteran Melissa Rondinelli who is averaging 0.7 blocks per game to limit the scoring of Nofeunte and Wright. Perennial OUA All-Star Vaughn who leads the team in scoring at 19.5 points per game will need to have another solid outing in order for the ‘Stangs to come out on top in what has the makings to be a shootout.

Tip off is Saturday, November 24 at 6:00PM at Alumni Hall. Mustangs TV will be live-streaming the game.
 

Men’s vs. Ryerson

Western caps off their weekend as hosts to two OUA East opponents as they face the undefeated Ryerson Rams. The young Mustangs squad led by Brad Campbell look to find the chemistry between his young talent. They face a talented Rams squad who currently sit 4-0 at the top of the OUA East.
The Rams come into the game with a plethora of scoring threats led by Mississauga native Jahmal Jones. Jones who is averaging 19.2 points per game in just under 33 minutes of action per contest. When his shots don’t fall Ryerson features two of the top rebounders in Jordon Gauthier and Bjorn Michaelsen who are averaging 10.0 and 7.5 rebounds per game respectively. As good as the Rams are offensively, they have been just as good defensively. Ryerson sits at the top in the OUA allowing a meagre 60 points per game something in which Western will have to change in order to score a big win.

The Purple and White despite their 0-4 record have been coming on strong gaining experience from their extensive pre-season schedule which seems to be paying off. Even though they have been off to a winless start they have been in many close contests such as last game versus Laurentian where they ran out of gas on their way to a ten point defeat. Look for Peter Scholtes and company to improve their offensive output and continue to shoot beyond the arc where they are operating at a 31% clip. If the Mustangs can capitalize on their three point opportunities while being tough under the glass they will put themselves in a position to beat a very good Ryerson team in the fourth quarter.


Tip off is Saturday, November 24 at 8:00PM at Alumni Hall. Mustangs TV will be live-streaming the game.