Western vs Windsor January 7 92 70

If you walked into Alumni Hall that night you could feel the night waiting to unfold. Not tense. Not nervous. Just ready. The kind of readiness that comes when a team knows who it is and a crowd believes it too. Every sound echoed a little longer. Every defensive stop felt like it mattered before the scoreboard ever said so.

First quarter
The game announced itself immediately through defense. Western did not ease into the night. They attacked it. The opening possessions were loud with hands slapping the floor and voices calling out switches. Emmanuel Akot jumped a passing lane early and suddenly the ball was flying the other way. Lucas Sheets slipped behind the defense and finished in stride for the first basket and the building woke up instantly.

Windsor tried to settle with a jumper but Western never let them breathe. Tye Cotie went straight through contact in the paint for a strong finish. Milan John stepped into a three and you could feel the confidence ripple through the floor. Akot followed with one of his own and suddenly Western was moving faster than Windsor could organize. Every stop turned into motion. Every rebound turned into purpose.

John kept attacking downhill finishing through traffic. Cotie got to the free throw line by refusing to be pushed off his spots. Matteo Zagar battled inside ending possessions with tough rebounds. When Akot knocked down another late three the crowd rose as one. After ten minutes Western led 28 19 and the feeling was clear. This was Western imposing itself.

Second quarter
The second quarter is where the night lifted off the ground. Western came out moving the ball like it was second nature. One pass became two. Two became three. And the defense kept collapsing just a step too late.

Sheets found his rhythm and when that happens the gym feels different. He buried a three from the wing. Then another. Each one came off clean and every release brought the crowd to its feet before the ball even dropped. Milan John mixed patience with aggression. One possession he pulled up from deep. The next he split defenders and finished at the rim. He was not forcing anything. He was reading everything.

Raequon Pryce stepped in and hit a three that brought the bench alive. Windsor tried to slow things down but Western answered with force. Owen Urquhart caught it deep in the paint and rose up for a dunk that felt like it shook the walls. The sound lingered. Moments later he did it again. Another dunk. Another roar. Strangers were laughing. People were pointing at the scoreboard just to make sure they were seeing it right.

Western poured in 35 points in the quarter. The ball never stuck. The defense never relaxed. When the horn sounded it was 63 36 and Alumni Hall felt less like a building and more like a celebration in motion.

Third quarter
Windsor came out determined and hit a couple shots to start the half. For a moment the game tried to remind everyone that rivalry nights can turn. Western answered immediately. A stop. A rebound. A sprint. Akot exploded to the rim for a dunk that snapped the net and sent the bench into chaos.

Cotie followed with a powerful finish in transition. Zagar went back to work inside carving out space finishing through contact and grabbing rebounds that felt heavier than normal. Every Windsor miss seemed to land in purple hands. Milan John continued to orchestrate. One possession he found Zagar inside. The next he kicked it out to a shooter at exactly the right moment.

There was a stretch where everything flowed. Steals led to layups. Blocks led to fast breaks. Western never rushed but never slowed. By the end of the quarter the scoreboard read 86 50 and the energy was no longer about tension. It was about appreciation. People knew they were watching something complete.

Fourth quarter
The final ten minutes were about control. Western stayed connected defensively. The ball continued to move. Windsor found some late baskets but the game never slipped. Western had already done the hard part. The bench stayed engaged. The crowd stayed loud. Every possession felt shared.

When the final buzzer sounded it read Western 92 Windsor 70. The sound afterward was not explosive. It was satisfied. The kind of noise that comes when you know you just watched a team play the game the right way.

What defined the night
Western shot 52.9 percent and hit 12 threes but the heartbeat of the game was the 31 assists. That is trust. That is togetherness. Fifteen steals turned defense into momentum. Eleven blocks protected the paint and sent a message. This was not just hot shooting. This was control.


This was not just a win. It was a night where everything made sense. The movement. The noise. The connection between the floor and the stands. Alumni Hall did not just watch a game. It lived inside it.

Western leaders

Milan John
Points 20
Rebounds 2
Assists 6
Steals 2

Emmanuel Akot
Points 16
Rebounds 2
Assists 5
Blocks 1
Steals 2

Lucas Sheets
Points 15
Rebounds 4
Assists 2
Blocks 1
Steals 4

Matteo Zagar
Points 12
Rebounds 8
Assists 7
Steals 2

Owen Urquhart
Points 11
Rebounds 6
Assists 6
Blocks 6