LONDON, ON - The Mustangs had a thrilling matchup against the Laurentian Voyageurs at Alumni Hall on Friday night, as their 2022/23 Home Opener saw Western topping the Voyageurs by eight points.  

A large crowd of fans, family, and other Mustang's teams were in attendance at the first home game of the season as Western secured their third victory in a row, on their home turf. 

Tensions seemed high on the court right from the jump, with Laurentian opening the quarter scoring 5-0. The Mustangs were having a tough time on the rebound at the beginning of the first. 

The Voyageurs started off appearing more dominant defensively, but as the first quarter progressed, the Mustangs became more put together, and were effectively putting pressure on Laurentian on both ends of the court. 

Western also had some trouble putting up second chance points in the first, only scoring two points off of rebounds. 

Despite this, Western's defense was stronger toward the end of the opening quarter, as the Mustangs were consistently putting tight pressure on Laurentian.

The first quarter ended with the Mustangs making a comeback, and tying up the score to head into the second at 19-19. 

While they did trail in points throughout the entire first quarter, the Mustangs played powerfully in the second, getting set up and planting themselves down low on defense, and shooting more accurately, improving from 42% to 58.8% from the field in this quarter. 

"We just turned the ball over a little bit less," said Mustangs Head Coach Brad Campbell, "just a little bit more stress on our defense and I think we may be a little bit better quality possessions there and we rebounded a little bit better" he said. 

There was a really close margin all game, with the Mustangs largest lead so far of five points coming in the second quarter, and despite some tough calls from the officials, Western held the lead heading into the second half up 43-39. 

"Games like this where it's physical both ways was going to make sure that we're doing whatever we can to stay disciplined and be locked in" said Mustangs forward Aryan Sharma, "we were definitely hype coming into this game... and we want to come in and get a win up on our home court." 

"There was a lot of energy and we were waiting for this. We had four away games to start, which doesn't usually happen, it was great with the crowd coming out, it definitely boosted our energy," said Tyson Dunn, a guard for the Mustangs.

The third quarter was still a very closely fought battle, much like the first half of the game. Laurentian was able to take a seven point lead right off the start of the quarter, but Western powered through on both ends of the court, setting up great plays both offensively and defensively.

Western's defense was also very solid, and the Mustangs were doing well at posting up quicker, and playing tighter on their players, making it more difficult for Laurentian to move the ball. 

While the game was played very close the entire quarter, the Mustangs headed into the final quarter of play with a three-point lead, up 68-65. 

"We kind of evaluated things after COVID it seems like a lot of teams got older and we seem to get younger" said Campbell, on the changes to the lineup in the off-season, "playing younger guys and putting them through that experience is going to be key so the faster younger guys can improve and get better... It's been a challenge."

"Every year you get turnover, which is natural, so we adjusted. We've got a young team but we play well together," said Dunn. 

"We all love each other on the court, off the court. We play for one another, we battle for one another, we go to war for one another so no matter who it is on the court," continued Sharma.

The Mustangs started strong once again in the final quarter, scoring five points on their opening two possessions within the first 30 seconds of play. 

Since the middle of the third quarter, the game had been played within a four point difference between the teams, showing just how tight the margin has been. 

The Mustangs were making some excellent steals and great offensive plays, especially in transition, that they were seeming to struggle with a little toward the beginning. 

Western was also doing well with setting up solid screens and creating space for an open shot, which was really frustrating Laurentian. 

For the final few minutes of the game, Western had earned themselves a consistent lead of at least five points, which allowed them to leave the court with another victory under their belt - defeating the Voyageurs 92-84. 

The Mustangs return to Alumni Hall again tomorrow night, Saturday November 19 to face Nipissing at 8 pm. Fans can purchase tickets at WesternMustangs.ca/tickets.