THUNDER BAY -- The Lakehead Thunderwolves know, statistically, they have been one of the worst shooting men’s basketball teams in the country.
The shooting woes came back to haunt Lakehead as they stayed close but could not keep up with the No. 5 Windsor Lancers, falling 85-76 at the Thunderdome on Saturday night for their third straight loss.
Lakehead (2-3) only hit two of their 16 tries from long-range, for a dismal 12 per cent. After firing from 47 per cent from the floor in the first half their rate fell to 31 per cent over the game’s final 20 minutes.
At less than 21 per cent from beyond the arc, the Thunderwolves are the sad owners of the lowest rate in Canada while they rank 44th out of 47 teams in field goal percentage.
“There has to be more confidence shooting the ball. I think that’s where we’re lacking most,” said guard Ashaunti Hogan, who went 0-for-5 from downtown. “They’re shooting the ball and not shooting to score, they’re shooting to get it off.”
The team’s inability to efficiently make shots is nothing new for head coach Manny Furtado.
“We’re just not shooting the ball well. We’re getting some wide open looks. We’re creating but not finishing,” Furtado said.
“This is something that has been an ongoing thing for us this year...Something has to change for us to get better.”
The third quarter served as the turning point in the match with Windsor outscoring Lakehead by a 27-12 margin to overcome a seven-point halftime deficit.
“That third quarter has been a nemesis for us. We adjusted at halftime but the guys just didn’t answer the bell,” Furtado said.
“We have to make sure we are focused on (every) possession, whether it be defence or offence, and I don’t think that focus for 40 minutes is there yet…Our highs and lows are one extreme to another.”
Senior forward Anthony McIntosh led Lakehead with 18 points and 8 boards over 34 minutes to lead the effort offensively and on the glass. In the first half he had help fellow post Bacarius Dinkins picking up eight points and five rebounds down low.
Dinkins was limited to just five minutes in the second half after picking up his fourth foul. He was held scoreless and snagged two boards.
Hogan believes they could have been more effective if the perimeter shooters made the Lancers defence respect the long-range threat.
“They’re doing a great job down low rebounding, getting buckets and playing great defence against the big guys. If we can do our part and knock some shots down it’s going to be a completely different outcome of the game,” Hogan said.
“We could have won this game if we had knocked down four or five more threes.”
Despite the poor third quarter, Lakehead showed signs of life in the fourth and got within two scores before Windsor guard Mike Rocca hit the dagger with a three-pointer to ice the game.
Five Windsor players finished in double digits, led by Rotimi Osuntola Jr. who poured in a game-high 22 points despite fouling out late in the fourth quarter.
Dwayne Harvey added 14 points for Lakehead while Mor Menashe chipped in 13 coming off the bench.
The Thunderwolves hit the road next weekend to take on Nipissing and Laurentian.
