MBB | Gee-Gees Pull Away in Second Half to Hand Voyageurs First Road Loss

For their first game on the road this season, the Laurentian University Men's Basketball team travelled East to take on the Gee Gees at the University of Ottawa. Coming off a string of losses, the Voyageurs were looking to swing their momentum on a two-game road trip.

The air was fresh in Ottawa, as the Vees clocked a shot-clock beating three on their first possession to take the lead. The remainder of the first quarter consisted of well-placed shots by Laurentian, with all five starters scoring their own buckets. With 50 seconds left, Brice Fandio
recorded a steal, leading to an off-balance shot in the paint to close the quarter. The Vees went into the post-quarter huddle trailing by just seven points.

Toby Ezenwa came into the lineup ready for his moment. After scoring a contested layup off an offensive rebound, the Mississauga native went end-to-end to close the gap on another tough layup. He finished off his scoring, going one-for-two at the free-throw line late in the second. Fandio closed off the first half with a step-back fadeaway just shy of the arc, solidifying a 40-29 deficit.

Laurentian opened the third quarter looking to build momentum, but Ottawa's offence caught fire early. Keenan Morain hit a jumper to cut into their lead, but Ottawa answered with a sequence of shots beyond the arc. After a timeout late into the quarter, Laurentian's Castellanos
and Evan Boudreau-Munro responded with timely shots to steady the Voyageurs, but the Gee-Gees closed the quarter strong, holding a 67-45 advantage.

In the final ten minutes, the Vees continued to battle on the boards, with Favour Ugbah and Ismael Konate working to create second-chance looks. Morain added another jumper, while Boudreau-Munro drained a late three to highlight Laurentian's effort down the stretch. Despite
the push, Ottawa's depth and shooting proved to be decisive, as they sealed the 83-57 win, dropping Laurentian to 0-3 on the season.

- Brendan Rubin