Men's Basketball Weekend Recap | October 30, 2017
The Lakeland Rustlers Men's Basketball team faced the NAIT Ooks on the weekend and split the series, with each team earning a victory on their home court.
The Rustlers defeated the Ooks 79-78 in a thrilling matchup in Lloydminster on Friday night. The Rustlers started slow, while the Ooks came out strong, opening up a 17-9 lead. The Rustlers were unable to cut into the Ooks lead before the quarter ended and found themselves down 26-17 after one.
In the second quarter, the Rustlers applied pressure defensively, allowing them to cut the Ooks lead down to 6. Both teams turned the ball over as a result of pressure applied by the other team which allowed the Rustlers to come back within 2 points. The teams were nearly even for the rest of the quarter, and the Ooks led 43-40 at the half. The teams were back and forth for much of the third quarter. The Rustlers got several stops late in the quarter to cut the Ooks lead to 1, 60-59 after three.
In the fourth quarter, the Rustlers turned the ball over early on, allowing the Ooks to take a 9 point lead. The Rustlers fought back and found themselves down 1 with less than 10 seconds left when 4th-year guard Terrell Murdaugh got a steal and was fouled. Murdaugh hit both free throws, giving the Rustlers a 1 point lead. The Ooks tried to get a shot off but were unable to get a clean look at the basket, and the Rustlers completed the come from behind victory with the 79-78 win.
The Rustlers were led by Murdaugh who had 18 points, four rebounds, two assists and a steal. Fourth year forward Prentice Gardner, third year guard Ricardo Joseph and second year guard Brandon Isaac each added 12 points. Player of the Game for the Rustlers was #6, Artavis Holiday, who had eight points and four rebounds in a hard fought battle against the Ooks post players.
Saturday night, the Rustlers found themselves on the other end of a close game, losing 78-75. The Ooks game out strong, going on an 8-0 run after the Rustlers scored the first two points of the game. The Rustlers went on a 10-0 run of their own in the last 2:33 to take a 20-14 lead into the second quarter.
The Ooks game out strong in the second quarter, while it took the Rustlers three and a half minutes to score. The Ooks were able to build a nine-point lead in the final minutes of the half, but the Rustlers were able to cut into it and found themselves down only five at the half. The two teams traded baskets in the third, with each team scoring 19 points, making the score 61-56 at the end of the quarter.
In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, the Ooks increased their lead to 12 points, and they maintained an 8-12 point lead until the final two minutes of the game. In the last two minutes, the Rustlers knocked down shots and drew fouls, but weren't able to overcome the deficit, dropping the game 78-75.
The Rustlers were led by Murdaugh with 18 points, three assists, and three steals, earning himself Player of the Game. The Rustlers also got 16 points and three steals from Prentice Gardner and 13 points, three rebounds and three steals from Adrian Richards.
Rustlers Head Coach Sheray Thomas was happy with the way his team competed on the weekend. "We did a better job taking the ball to the rim," Thomas said, "Saturday night we just struggled to finish at the rim and make our free throws. NAIT is a big team, and the pounded the ball inside. We battled, but we still need better post defence."
The Rustlers (4-2) return to the court Friday, November 3, as they travel to Edmonton to play the Concordia Thunder (3-1). The Rustlers and Thunder will then face off Saturday night in Lloydminster. Tip-off is at 8:00 pm.