MBB - Voyageurs defeated by northern rivals

On Friday night, the men's basketball team took on the Nipissing Lakers in North Bay. The Voyageurs were defeated by their northern rivals 79-61, in the first game of the weekend series.

In the first quarter, the Voyageurs started off strong with a layup from Cedric Mbiaba, 12 seconds after tip off. Kamil Dia Hantchi made one free throw which showed 3 points on the board for the Vees. Due to an organized defence by the Lakers, Laurentian was scoreless until the fifth minute mark, where Hantchi sunk a 3-pointer. Later on, Evan Munro and Tyler Brown both scored 4 points, which would help the Voyageurs get closer to the Lakers' score.

In the second quarter, both teams were scoreless for two minutes, when the Lakers scored a layup. Hantchi made another 3-point shot, and Daniel Muila scored his first two points of the game. Halfway through the quarter, Brown added 2 more points to the board and Munro scored a layup, which resulted in a timeout call by Nipissing. By the end of the quarter, the Vees were trailing the Lakers 39-30.

Coming back from halftime, Chikosi Boardi opened up scoring for Laurentian with a 3-point shot, followed by a repeated motion by Hantchi. Two minutes later, Boardi added 9 more points on the scoresheet and Muila added 2. The Lakers were still in lead 58-49 going into the last quarter.

In the last ten minutes, Mbiaba scored a free throw, while Boardi scored two 3-pointers. At this point, the Voyageurs were behind by only seven points. Hantchi, Shamar Forbes and Keenan Morain scored a combination of 5 points to conclude scoring for Laurentian, which would end up in a 79-61 defeat.

Chikosi Boardi led the Voyageurs with 18 points, Kamil Dia Hantchi put up 12 points and 9 rebounds and Cedric Mbiaba scored 7 points and got 5 rebounds in the contest.

The Voyageurs are back in action Saturday, as they take on the Lakers once again, but this time on home court. Tip off is set for 8pm.

-Madison Boileau