Box Score TORONTO, ON
On Saturday night the Mustangs went up against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues in Toronto.
Both teams came out hustling and playing with grit in the first quarter. The Varsity Blues led 19-15 after the first quarter, both teams being evenly matched.
In the second quarter, the Varsity Blues continued to expand on their lead, despite Western continuing to hustle on the offensive end. UofT had a plan for Western's zone defense, moving the ball around and penetrating, scoring 18 points in the paint. The Mustangs struggled to find rhythm in their offense and defense during the first half of the game. The Varsity Blues led by as much as 19-points, heading into the break 41-29.
Milan John fought for the Mustangs, keeping them in the game. He went into the break with 10 points and 2 steals.
The Mustangs fought back in the third quarter, forcing turnovers on defense and making the Varsity Blues pay for it. Noah Otshudi also got going, penetrating the zone defense and hitting pull-up jumpshots. Western cut the lead to 6-points heading into the final frame.
In the fourth quarter, the Mustangs continued to press the Varsity Blues, forcing turnovers and stealing the ball a total of 14 times. The game went down to the wire, Western regaining the lead with 3 minutes left. Milan John, Noah Otshudi and Mikyle Malabuyoc continued to make tough shots for the Mustangs. Western came back from a 19-point deficit to beat UofT 83-81.
The Mustangs are back in action at home on Friday, November 22nd at 8pm EST against the Nipissing Lakers. Tune in on OUA.tv.
KEY STATS
G | Milan John - 23 PTS (8-16 FT, 5-8 3PT), 6 STLS, 5 REBS
G | Noah Otshudi - 22 PTS, 3 STLS, 2 REBS, 2 ASTS
F | Lucas Sheets - 12 PTS (4-7 FG), 2 REBS, 2 ASTS
F | Matteo Zagar - 9 PTS (4-7 FG), 7 REBS, 4 ASTS, 2 STLS
