Lakehead vs. Cape Breton - Fourth Quarter

Capers open with two to push the lead to 20. Nagy gets a strong offensive board, is fouled, and hits both FTs. Cape Breton has a guy on their bench who looks like former Michigan State PG Mateen Cleaves, just an observation. James Dorsey is fouled by Hornby and heads to the line for two. The PA announcer is calling him “J-Smoove” – pretty sure that’s Josh Smith. It’s confusing. Yoos with a big block on Jasper and JJ makes another aggressive drive in transition to draw the foul and hits some FTs. Yoos makes a nice post up basket and Carter forces a quick turnover on the subsequent inbounds. Nagy makes a strong baseline drive but his layup gets pined against the glass. Another stop for Lakehead as Hornby tosses a nice outlet pass up to Jones. The Capers’ McGarrigle follows JJ in pursuit as he bobbles the ball out of bounds. Next LU possession goes to JJ for a sweet 3-ball but Burrows answers with a nice hook shot. Capers 77 Wolves 55. A lot of people came dressed as chairs this weekend and I’m intrigued by the lore of the Halifax championships. Nagy misses a 3-pointer, but CB’s Jaspers-Fayer misses worse. He does not keep his hand in the air about that shot. Nagy hits a three and is knocked into the LU bench – no call, must have been a fadeaway. Yoos grabs another towering defensive rebound, followed by an offensive board and the foul but misses the FTs. Fraser makes a nice move at halfcourt and streaks in for the layup. “Keep playing,” says Scott from the sidelines. Yoos is still hitting the glass hard. He gets a nice ovation as Scott brings Seb on in relief. JJ is down a badly hurt on the defensive but the refs keep the play going as Capers get a layup. JJ heads to the bench as Scott rushes onto the floor to check on him. It’s a 23-point lead, you’ve got to draw the line at some point, call a timeout, anything – JJ doesn’t fake injuries. Hornby hits an NBA 3-ball with no shot clock on. Game over, Capers win 87-65. JJ is the player of the game and deserves it after dropping 14 points and sacrificing his body for the team. He’s hurt, probably broke his ribs, yet gets off the bench to congratulate Cape Breton in the post game handshake. What a competitor, what a sportsman. The tournament is over for Lakehead, a learning experience absolutely, but this team has made all of Thunder Bay proud and has brought excitement back to the University. Lakehead often has a defeatist attitude, but not anymore. This team is for real and they will without any doubt be back on this stage soon.