LONDON, ON - Western returned home to Alumni Hall on Saturday defeating the Guelph Gryphons and honoring the graduating Mustangs players.
Omar Shiddo, Anthony Zrvnar, Aaron Tennant, and Isiah Familia all played in their final regular season game as Mustangs today.
Shiddo has been with the Mustangs since 2016, and has played all five years of his eligibility with the team.
Zrvnar has played for multiple teams, and spent his fourth and final year with Western, arriving in 2020.
Tennant joined the Mustangs in 2018, and has played in the purple and white since then, finishing up his time in the OUA in his third year of eligibility.
Familia has been with Western since the 2018-19 season, and has spent the last two years wearing number 32 for the team.
The Senior Night game had a bit of a slow start, with Guelph opening scoring with a 12-0 run against the Mustangs.
It was an extremely physical match, causing some frustrations from both teams, which impacted the game. Western was having trouble sinking shots, and being as effective on the offensive end as they were on defense.
They were gaining more momentum in the final minutes of this quarter, as scoring picked up and became more consistent, which really hyped the crowd up.
"Our guys have friends and fans cheering them on and I think that gives them a little edge," said Mustangs' Head Coach Brad Campbell, "our competitiveness was good and I think the home crowd helped us with that" he continued.
The first quarter ended with a five point difference, with Guelph in the lead 20-15.
Western's defense held strong in the second quarter, causing intense pressure on the shooter and making it tough for Guelph to make the shots that put them in the lead in the first.
The Mustangs then went on a run, shortening the score from a seven point deficit, to just two. "We just had to give maximum effort," said Mustang Senior Isiah Familia, "tonight's the most we played as a team since the new year so it's just nice to see a bunch of guys step up, and have everyone contribute."
Western were effective at making steals and converting them to points. They managed to pull the game together and after some incredible shots and a great job defensively, they went into halftime in the lead, 43-42.
Shiddo opened scoring for the Mustangs immediately in the third, beginning an impressive pace for the team in the final 20 minutes. "we knew we were just down and had to let it all out on our home court," said Shiddo, "we knew we didn't want to end our season on this note, so for us seniors, we wanted to go all out."
As a team the Mustangs really pulled their game back together here. They were making great shots, sticking tight on defense, and doing an excellent job crashing the boards, maintaining control of their game.
The Gryphons held their tight defense, making the Mustangs work hard for every point, and Western powered through, ending the third quarter up 69-76.
Tensions were running high in Alumni as the Mustangs headed into the final quarter of this game fighting to hold their lead.
The Mustangs maintained their pressure, and continued to outscore Guelph as they did in the previous two quarters. They kept fighting through the Gryphons' defense, and kept beating them back on offense which was key to their success.
Western did a great job setting up their offense and effectively drawing away Guelph players from their man, creating a scoring play for the open man.
The Mustangs fought hard right to the end, and won the game 104-95 to continue into the playoffs next week.
Heading into his final playoff series as a Mustang, Tennant said they are "just keeping up the intensity and improving on defense and just supporting each other and not looking back," he continued "you're always looking toward the next season and what we can give to the younger guys to push forward."
The Mustangs' next game will be announced in the following days; check www.westernmustangs.ca for the schedule and updates.
