MBB | Comeback Bid Falls Short, Voyageurs Fall to Ravens

After hosting the #2 ranked team in the country to the Ben Avery the night before, the men's basketball team had the unenviable task of welcoming the top ranked team in the nation on Saturday night.  After falling behind the Carleton Ravens early, the Voyageurs fought back to within five points but ultimately ran out of gas, losing 80-64.

The game started as a bit of a defensive battle with the Ravens holding a 7-4 lead 3:15 into the game.  From that point, however, the Ravens ended the quarter on a 22-4 run, taking a 21-point advantage into the second quarter.  That lead had grown to 25 points with 5:09 remaining in the half when an altercation in front of the Laurentian bench sparked the Voyageurs as they went on a 16-0 run, spearheaded by Coban Scott and Caillou Lacroix, and headed into the break trailing by 13, 44-31.

In the third quarter, strong defensive play from the Voyageurs limited the Ravens to just 12 points in the period and Laurentian headed into the final quarter down just eight.  Ethan Cudney then took control and scored eight straight points for Laurentian and, with nine minutes remaining in the game, that 25 point deficit was down to just five.  After a Jordan Katchunga 3-pointer and a Scott free throw, the Voyageurs found themselves once again within five, 66-61, with seven minutes to play.  Unfortunately, the sharp shooting that had brought them back into the game dried up and the Voyageurs were outscored 14-3 over the final seven minutes.

Lacroix led the Voyageurs with 17 points while Scott added 13 and Abdulmajid Hassan chipped in with 11 in the loss.  Katchunga also had a solid 7pt-7rb-8ast effort against the top-ranked Ravens. The Voyageurs will look to build off this game when they visit the Western Mustangs and Windsor Lancers on Friday and Saturday.