Strong second half propels Huskies to a 90-73 win over Axemen

HALIFAX, NS – Saint Mary's guards Shae Linton-Brown and Dontae Mitchell combined for 48 points helping power the Huskies to a 90-73 win over the Acadia Axemen on Wednesday night at the Homburg Centre in Halifax. 

The home team got off to a strong start, with back-to-back lay-ups by guard Jayrell Diggs (East Preston, NS) giving them an early 8-3 lead. Axemen forward Miguel Perez Boskovic (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) hit a lay-up to cut the Huskies lead to 13-12, before Shae Linton-Brown (Toronto, ON) found first-year wing Ethan Vey (Conception Bay, NL) for a corner three to extend the lead to 16-12. 

Axemen guard Gabe Davignon (Whites Lake, NS) came off the bench to score five first-quarter points for the Axemen, but Huskies guard Dontae Mitchell (Vaughan, ON) scored eight first-quarter points, including a pair of three's and the Huskies took a 24-23 lead into the second quarter. 

The Axemen responded well in the second quarter, with six straight points from Alex Muise (Bedford, NS) and Adam Barney (Ottawa, ON), giving them a 29-24 lead. The two teams went shot-for-shot throughout the second quarter. With the Axemen taking the lead 37-36, Mitchell scored five straight points in style, with an and-one lay-in and a two-handed slam to put the Huskies back up 41-37. 

Towards the end of the first half, Huskies centre Topaz Nnani provided a boost off the bench with a hook shot and a big blocked shot, and the Huskies finished the quarter on a 25-15 run to take a 49-44 lead into the second half. 

Mitchell led all scorers with 15 first-half points, while Diggs (12 points) and Linton-Brown (10 points) also scored in double-figures for the Huskies.  

The Axemen were led in the first half by 10 points each from Alex Muise and Gabe Davignon.  

In the third quarter, Linton-Brown took over, scoring nine points and adding two assists in the frame alone. One of his assists was finding Diggs for a three-pointer to extend the lead to 60-51, and the Huskies outscored the Axemen 24-13 in the frame to take a 73-57 lead into the fourth quarter. 

The fourth quarter saw the Huskies bench step-up led by first-year guard Jonas Maerz (Rosenheim, Germany), who scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter, and the Huskies went on to win 90-73. 

Huskies guard Shae Linton-Brown was named Subway Player of the Game with 23 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, three steals, and one block. It was the fourth-year guard's third consecutive double-double, and he's averaged 21.3 points, 10 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 2.7 steals over the last three games. 

Dontae Mitchell poured in a game-high 25 points, added five rebounds, four assists and a block. After eight games played, the fifth-year guard ranks third in the conference in scoring with 21.4 points per game. Jayrell Diggs added 18 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals for Saint Mary's. 

The Axemen were senior guard Alex Muise who posted 20 points, five rebounds and two assists. Thomas MacDonald added a 14 point, 14 rebound double-double while guards Demeric Mercer (12 points) and Gabe Davignon (10 points) also scored double-figures for Acadia. 

The Huskies' win improved their record to 5-3 on the campaign. They'll be back on home court on Friday, hosting the UPEI Panthers at 8 p.m. at the Homburg Centre. 

The Axemen's loss dropped their record to 1-6 on the season. They'll be returning to Halifax for their next game on Thursday, Dec. 1, as they take on the Dalhousie Tigers, with tip-off at 8 p.m.. 

Recap by Allan April / SMU Huskies Athletics