MBB | Voyageurs Battle Through Tough Weekend at Ron & Jane Graham Shootout
The Laurentian Voyageurs men's basketball team travelled out west for the Ron & Jane Graham shootout hosted at the University of Saskatchewan. The Vees squared off against the
Huskies on Friday and tested the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday. While the results didn't favour LU, they provided valuable early-season evidence of a strong year.
Thursday's opener proved to be a strong start for Laurentian, as they grabbed their first win of the weekend against UFV. The Vees leaned on balanced scoring with guard Brice Fandio finding his groove, dropping 22 points in the afternoon win. Defensive stops in the second half allowed the Voyageurs to create separation, and late free throws clinched the victory. The close 70-68 win not only marked an encouraging start to the tournament but also gave the young roster a boost of confidence.
In Friday's match against the host city, Laurentian had to bear a storm it couldn't weather. In the opening three minutes, the Huskies jumped ahead with a 9-0 run. After some misfires on offence and hiccups on defence, LU trailed 25-9 at the end of the first quarter. The Voyageurs responded with force in the second, finding rhythm through Favour
Ugbah and Matthew Djanashvili, while Brice Fandio added a much-needed three-pointer to cut the deficit. In the second quarter, Laurentian put 22 points together, but still
found themselves trailing 45-31 at halftime. The Huskies rode their momentum in the second half, taking the game in an 80-63 victory. Ugbah and Djanshvili shone for the team, scoring 11 and 13 points respectively.
After a night's rest in Saskatoon, the Vees found themselves in a different kind of battle against Waterloo. The game opened with LU coming ready to play. The Warriors edged ahead in an 11-9 first quarter, and the match remained tight until halftime, with the Voyageurs trailing 29-20. In the back 20 minutes, Ugbah provided another needed spark, providing 16 points and 13 rebounds, while Angel Castellanos gave his best with 10 points and 6 boards. Although a strong game from Laurentian's front five, the Warriors pulled through with a 59-51 victory.
Laurentian finished the weekend with two losses and a win, but the Shootout offered positive flashes of offensive rhythm, stretches of dominance on the backboard, and players filling in their roles as the season begins to kick off. Less than three months after the departure of stud Nginyu Ngala, the Vees look ahead to their U SPORTS regular season, aiming to turn their lessons into results.
- Brendan Rubin