Box Score LONDON, Ont. – Third-year guard Omar Shiddo scored a game-high 32 points to go along with four rebounds in Western's 88-87 loss to the McMaster Marauders on Saturday afternoon's Senior Day game.

With the loss, the Mustangs finish the regular season with a 16-8 record and head into the postseason with the second seed in the OUA West division and a first-round bye. The Marauder's win improves their record to 11-13, as they finish in fifth in the OUA West heading into the playoffs.

"It was a toss-up at the end of the game, but we had some issues all game long with our defensive consistency, so we have to give credit to them and be better moving forward," said Mustangs' head coach Brad Campbell. "We have to put this one behind us, we can't linger on it now. We'll have a good week of practice and look forward to the playoffs."

"I think this game actually said a lot about our resiliency," said forward Jedson Tavernier. "Obviously, we would've preferred to play to our potential, but this was a good test for us. We were down early, and we fought our way back against a good team. That's the attitude we'll need to have in the playoffs, now we just need to make sure we execute better."

Two other Mustangs scored in double-figures for the purple and white, as Marko Kovac poured in 18 points while Julian Walker added 14 points and eight rebounds to help the cause.

The intensity of the Marauders seemed to catch Western off-guard through the opening minutes of the game, as McMaster's guards slashed into the paint with ease, dropping it off to their forwards for high-percentage looks. Western eventually found their footing late in the quarter behind the fast break, but the efficiency of McMaster's interior scoring left the Mustangs trailing 29-14 heading into the second quarter.

But despite the early deficit, Western quickly clawed back into the game behind an improved defensive effort, as McMaster struggled to penetrate the paint as they did in the opening quarter. Western kept themselves in the game throughout the frame, largely behind Shiddo's scoring output, but struggled to put together a sustained enough run to take the lead as they went into halftime facing a manageable 48-38 deficit.

Western continued to chip into the McMaster lead early in the second half, forcing the Marauders into a string of fouls and converting at the line with consistency. Finding easy points at the line seemed to spark the rest of the Mustangs' offence, as Shiddo continued to carry the scoring load to help lead Western to a 63-62 advantage heading into the fourth. 

However, the three-point shot became the primary catalyst behind McMaster's scoring early in the fourth, as the back and forth affair persisted. Shiddo's offensive firepower continued to keep the purple and white afloat along with the help of Kovac, who came alive in the final quarter of play. The game would come down to the final seconds before it was finally decided by the buzzer, as McMaster escaped with the 88-87 victory following a string of made free throws down the stretch.

"We came up short tonight, but this was a good opportunity for us to see some of our weaknesses before playoffs start," said Kovac. "We've been in a lot of close games this year, including this one, so I think we're going to be more used to the high-pressure stakes than most. We're excited to get back to work and prepare."

"We have to clean up some things that have needed work all season, but I like our team moving forward," said Campbell. "We have talent and character, especially in our seniors, Jedson [Tavernier] and Alex [Coote]. It was good to be able to celebrate them today on Senior Day because they do so much for us in the locker room and they have for years. Those types of leaders are the ones you need to have around to be successful, especially in the playoffs."

The Mustangs will be back in action Saturday, February 23, where they will take on the winner of the Brock-McMaster first-round matchup.