UNDER BAY – A fourth-quarter flourish wasn’t enough to earn the No. 9 Lakehead Thunderwolves a sixth straight win.
But it was important.
The T-Wolves entered the final period on Saturday night trailing the Brock Badgers by 23 points.
The loss may have been inevitable at that point, though Lakehead would never say never, but the key was to outscore the Badges by at least six in the fourth, in order to secure the tiebreak in the OUA Central.
Lakehead opened the two-game set on Friday night in St. Catharine’s, Ont. with an 88-70 win, the 18-point cushion giving them a good chance to at the very least secure the advantage in a conference that saw the two teams separated by a single game heading into Friday night’s contest.
They’re still a game apart, but because the Badgers could only manage a 13-point triumph, LU has the edge should the two teams wind up tied two weekend’s from now when the regular season comes to a close.
It was a night to forget for Lakehead’s quintet of starters, who combined for just 31 points on the night.
The bench, and specifically Adrian Nowak, came through big time.
Nowak poured in 33 points, 23 in the fourth quarter alone, to help the T-Wolves dig themselves out of a much deeper hole.
Nowak hit 7-of-10 three-pointers in the final frame, as LU outscored the Badgers (14-4) 33-23 in the quarter.
Unfortunately for LU, it was all Badgers in the first 30 minutes of play.
Brock raced out to a 27-13 lead after one quarter and led 49-33 at the half.
Davante Hacket got to work in the third, putting up nine points in the quarter as the Badgers upped their lead to 23, out-pacing the Thunderwolves 26-19.
Hackett finished with a team-high 21 points, making 5-fo-8 free-throw attempts. All five Badgers starters hit double digits, as did Jalen Edwards off the bench, finishing with 12 points. Michael Matas and Nathan Charles each had a double-double for Brock, Matas collecting 18 points and 10 boards and Charles hitting both targets right on the number.
Lakehead (15-3) returns home next weekend to the Thunderdome, where they’ll host the University of Toronto Varsity Blues for a pair. Game time both nights is 8 p.m.
