Kasongo, Huskies fight off late Sea-Hawks rally for 91-88 win

HALIFAX, N.S. - The Saint Mary's Huskies won their third straight game on Saturday night, fighting off a Memorial Sea-Hawks fourth quarter comeback to hold on for a 91-88 win.

The Huskies came into Saturday night's game with a 7-5 record but trailed the 6-6 Sea-Hawks in the standings due to their record in four point games.

In their second last home game of the regular season, the Huskies recognized three graduating seniors; guards Nikita Kasongo (Chateauguay, QC), Dontae Mitchell (Vaughan, ON) and Trayvone Clayton (Halifax, NS).

All three graduating seniors started the game for Saint Mary's and it was Mitchell who hit a three-pointer for the first points of the game, much to the delight of the Homburg Centre crowd. Sea-Hawks star forward Cole Long got off to a great start with 11 points, including a trio of three's, but Johneil Johnson (Lake Echo, NS) answered with nine for the Huskies. The first quarter was back-and-forth, with neither team leading by more than four points, and the Huskies took a 22-19 lead at the end of the quarter.

The tight play continued in their second quarter. The Huskies crowd went wild when Johnson found Mitchell for a fastbreak dunk, giving the home team a 38-31 lead with 4:19 to play in the half, but Long responded with five straight points. A Boris Ristanovic three-pointer tied the game at 44-44, but Kasongo hit a buzzer-beating three from 30 feet away to give the Huskies a 47-44 lead at the half. 

The Huskies were led by a trio of starters with nine first-half points in Mitchell, Johnson and Jace Colley (East Preston, NS), while Kasongo added seven and Jackson Enyinna (Port Harcourt, Nigeria) chipped in six off the bench. The Huskies shot 50% from the field (18/36), 46% from three (5/11) and 86% from the free-throw line (6/7) in the first half.

Long lead all players with 18 first half points, while Ristanovic added nine for the Sea-Hawks. The Sea-Hawks shot just 36% from the field (13/36), but made six more free-throws than the Huskeis (12/16) in the first half to keep them within striking distance.

The Huskies appeared to come out energized in the third quarter, as a Kasongo three followed by a Mitchell three-point play gave them a quick 55-46 lead. Kasongo kept the offensive pressure up, as he scored eight of his team-high 21 points in the third quarter. The momentum continued in the home team's favour, as they outscored Memorial 22-10 over the first seven minutes of the quarter and a lay-up by Johnson gave the Huskies the largest lead of the game, 69-54 with 2:45 remaining in the third. Long scored two more baskets and Colley hit a pair of free-throws to finish the quarter with the Huskies in the drivers seat, up 71-59. 

However, the Sea-Hawks had some fight left in them, and put together a shocking comeback over the fourth quarter, opening the frame with a quick 8-0 run, forcing Saint Mary's to take timeout with 7:46 remaining. A lay-up by Johnson pushed the Huskies lead back up to 78-71 with 6:05 remaining, but Ristanovic responded with a three and layup of his own to lead to two. With less than a minute remaining, Ristanovic made a pair of free-throws to tie the game at 86-86, as the Sea-Hawks erased the Huskies 15 point third quarter lead. 

On the ensuing possession, guard Shae Linton-Brown (Toronto, ON) took his defender to the basket, finishing a tough lay-up through contact and converted the free-throw to give the Huskies a 89-86 lead. Long had a lay-up rim out and Kasongo hit a pair of free-throws, before Long hit a lay-up at the buzzer to make the final score 91-88 for the home team.

Kasongo was named Subway Player of the Game, scoring 14 of his team-high 21 points in the second half, and also leading the team with nine rebounds and four assists. Colley chipped in 19 points, six blocks and four rebounds, Johnson added 15 points, five rebounds and two steals, Mitchell had 14 points, and Linton-Brown added 13 off the Huskies bench.

The Sea-Hawks were led by Long, with a game-high 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Ristanovic added 19 points, and first-year guard Flynn Boardman-Raffet chipped in an 11 point, 10 rebound double-double.

The Huskies third straight win improved their record to 8-5 on the season, while the Sea-Hawks loss dropped them to 6-7. The two teams will meet again on Sunday afternoon, with tip-off scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Homburg Centre.

Recap by Allan April / SMU Huskies Athletics

Photos by Nick Pearce / SMU Huskies Athletics