(Halifax, NS) – In the first day of a back-to-back matchup, the Dalhousie Tigers hosted the Memorial Sea-Hawks at the Dalplex. After a tightly contested first half, the Tigers were able to gain an edge in the third quarter an hang on to earn the 88-82 win.
The offensive was hot for the Tigers out of the gate, spacing the floor well, and creating open opportunities with screens. Kevin Duong (Montreal, QC) capitalized early, rolling to the hoop, and getting to the line.
The Tigers jumped ahead 12-2 in the first three minutes of the game, but Greg Manuel (Mineville, NS) picked up six quick points out of a timeout to stop the Tigers run.
Both teams picked up the defensive intensity late in the quarter with both teams being forced into tough shots late in the shot clock. Alex Carson (Lower Sackville, NS) was able to keep the Tigers lead alive with a rare four-point play, finishing the long range shot through contact.
Jason Thompson (St. John's, NL) finished off the quarter with a floater in the lane, but his team was still trailing 20-16 through one quarter.
Greg Manuel continued to put in work down low for the Sea-Hawks in the second, picking up two quick buckets early in the quarter to give the Sea-Hawks a brief lead.
The Tigers made a point of pushing the ball, and it was creating opportunities for them at the rim. Sven Stammberger (Halifax, NS) was able to slash through the lane and finish at the rim, or found contact to get to the line.
Davion Parnsalu (Ajax, ON) ended the quarter well for the Sea-Hawks, knocking down a shot from deep, and finishing two strong drives through the lane. Ryan Harnett (Corner Brook, NS) answered on the other end for the Tigers however, ending the half with a three of his own.
Heading into the break, the Tigers were still up four with the score at 40-36.
The Tigers put together a run midway through the third by spacing the floor and getting inside, with Stammberger picking up the old school three-point play, but the Sea-Hawks stayed in it with Daniel Gordon (North York, ON) picking up an and-one of his own.
Alex Carson found his touch from the outside late in the quarter, picking up two more shots from long range as the game turned into a track meet. The Tigers traded twos on the defensive end for threes on the offensive end, with Harnett hitting two from deep late in the third as well.
Manuel led the way for the Sea-Hawks through three quarters with 15 points, while Parnsalu was right behind him with 14.
The Tigers went into the final quarter up 68-59.
Stammberger picked up the scoring for the Tigers early in the fourth, picking up the team's first eight points of the quarter. On the other end, Parnsalu was getting inside and was rewarded with trips to the line.
The Sea-Hawks were able to make a run to bring it within six on a huge three from Daniel Gordon with three minutes to go. Parnsalu also hit from long range after a Tigers score, and the game was within five with just over a minute to go.
With the Tigers using up the clock, Keeven Veinot (Port Williams, NS) finished a floater through contact to pick up the and-one and extend the Tigers lead.
Time ran out on the Sea-Hawks however, with the Tigers taking the 88-82 win.
Davion Parnsalu was the high scorer for Memorial with a game-high 24 points. Ryan Harnett was named as the Subway Player of the Game in this one, finishing with 14 points, with 12 of them coming from beyond the arc.
The teams will face off again tomorrow in matinee action at 3:00pm AST.