Box Score
The Guelph Gryphon men's basketball team dropped a heartbreaking 69-66 game tonight to the Western Mustangs at the W.F. Mitchell Centre.

CIS leading scorer Ryan Barbeau led the Mustangs netting 27 points to go with seven rebounds and seven assists, as the Western Mustangs came back from a halftime deficit to defeat the Gryphons. Western now improves to 6-11 on the season, while Guelph drops below .500 and sit at 8-9.

Along with Barbeau, Western was led by Fergus's own Ryan Higgins who added 12 points and five rebounds, while two other Mustangs added eight. As a team, the Mustangs connected on 85% of the free-throws, while hitting 41% of their field goal attempts.

Kareem Malcolm (Brampton, Ont.) once again led the Gryphon's in scoring, tallying 18 points and nine rebounds, but shooting just 1-10 from three-point range. Zachary Angus (Burlington, Ont.) added 15 points, while Daniel McCarthy (Guelph, Ont.) chipped in 13 while grabbing eight rebounds. Guelph as a team attempted 27 three pointers do to their guard oriented line-up, yet held a 43-27 advantage on the boards.

Guelph stormed out to an early lead thanks to some timely three-pointers from their three leading scorers, and grabbed a quick 13-5 lead halfway through the opening quarter. Western was able to chip away thanks to Barbeau, who hit two three-pointers early on to keep the Guelph defence on its toes. After the first quarter, Guelph was up 21-17 behind five points each from Malcolm, McCarthy, and first year guard Eric McDonald.

The second quarter saw the Gryphons extend their lead to double digits before Higgins and Barbeua got hot from three, scoring eight and nine points respectively in the frame. Guelph held a slight 42-39 led heading into halftime. Barbeau led all scorers with 15 points, while Malcolm countered with 13 points for Guelph.

Barbeau turned up the heat in the second half with his playmaking ability, and his ball distribution allowed the Mustangs to play strong defence while Barbeau worried about the offence. Things got chippy early on between McDonald and Western's Peter Scholtes, but cooler heads prevailed. Western outscored the Gryphons 20-16 in the third to take a 59-58 lead into the fourth, setting the stage for a wild finish.

The fourth quarter saw both teams play strong defence as neither team was able to distance themselves. Both teams struggled from the field, and it wasn't until Malcolm's step-back jumper that the Gryphons regained the lead. The moment was short lived however as Barbeau was able to attack the rim for the tough layup while being fouled to give the Mustangs a 67-66 lead. After missing the and one, Malcolm's jumper fell flat, setting Barbeau up with a game clinching layup to give Western the 69-66 victory.

Guelph will look to shake off the disappointing upset and regroup when they take on the visiting Windsor Lancers Saturday, February 4^th at the W.F. Mitchell Centre. Tipoff is scheduled for 4pm.