LONDON, Ont. – The Mustangs men's basketball team shut down the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks 106-67 Saturday evening on home court. The win will bring the Mustangs to a 6-2 regular OUA season record and drop the Ridgebacks down to 0-7.
 
Though the Ridgebacks were the first to strike, the opening quarter didn't prove to be in their favour. Western found space easily in the gaps of the Ridgeback's defense, and with ample opportunity for free-throws, Julian Walker got the Mustangs up and running with 10 points to kick-start the Purple and White's lead.
 
With the 'Stangs leading 21-8 into the second quarter, the Ontario Tech discovered their voice in the form of guard AJ Cummings. Back-to-back three-pointers from Cummings gave the Blue and White a burst of energy, enabling both D'on Duncan and Nelly Hussein to put more points on the board for the Ridgebacks. Regardless of the brief comeback, Walker kept up the pace with the free-throws, Eriq Jenkins put up 7 points, and Jerric Palma added another 10 to the Mustangs' already prominent lead. The half came to a close with the Mustangs leading by 19 at 45-26.
 
With 5:50 remaining in the third quarter, the Ridgebacks had yet to break 26 points. Between Nikola Farkic's free-throws and Walker's consistent dunks, the Mustangs had increased their lead by a strong 20 points before the Tech would sink their first basket of the half. The score 70-30 with 4:00 to go, Cummings put another 2 on the board for the Blue and White but failed to make a substantial difference. Both Omar Shiddo and Aryan Sharma made repeated appearances on the board to hike the Mustangs' up to 85 while the Ridgebacks hovered at 40.
 
"We're playing a team in its first year of existence," offered Head Coach Brad Campbell. "We just needed to make sure we played with some energy, communicated with one another, and stayed focused."
 
Graddy Kanku of the Blue and White opened up the fourth quarter with undeniably impressive back-to-back dunks. Between him, Cummings, and Ammar Hassan, the Ridgebacks' score began to climb, albeit slowly. However, though they continued to fight, the decline in energy did not go unnoticed. Western fundamentally outplayed the Ridgebacks as Palma brought the 'Stangs into the 100's just prior to the three-minute mark.
 
When asked what the team did right, Omar Shiddo said, "We did a good job today. We came out straight, had a high energy level... We know how good we can be when we play together and execute." In order to have a similar result at their next game, Shiddo said the men would need to "make sure we do that [play together] for long stretches and not have lapses… We've just got to stay the course, and if we do that, we know it'll work out."
 
The men's basketball team will be returning to the court on Wednesday, November 20^th, when they face off against the Waterloo Warriors in Waterloo, Ontario. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:00 P.M. EST.