OTTAWA, Ont. (January 29, 2016)- The Queen's Gaels men's basketball team came up short against the No. 2 ranked team in the nation on Friday evening at Monpetit Hall, falling to the Ottawa Gee-Gees by a score of 76-60.
 
Sukhpreet Singh (Toronto) recorded a team-high of 18 points, shooting 6-of-14 from the field, and added six rebounds and two assists for the Gaels (7-4), who have lost three of their last four contests after putting together their best start in program history before the New Year.
 
Jesse Graham (Kingston, Ont.) tallied 11 points, and Andrew Mavety (Vancouver, B.C.) added six points and game-high 11 rebounds for the men, while Mike L'Africain notched a contest-high 30 points to help the Gee-Gees improve to 10-1 on the season and hold down first place in the OUA North division.
 
GAME FLOW
The Gee-Gees set the pace in the opening quarter, jumping out to a 10-point lead less than five minutes into the game. After the hosts went up by as much as 19 in the second quarter, the Gaels slowly cut into the lead over the final few minutes of the half. The men then used a 7-0 run, which included a three from Mavety and two made free-throws from Singh, to bring the Ottawa lead down to single-digits at the halftime buzzer.
 
Ottawa's offence, however, continued to roll in the second half after working at over a 50% shooting efficiency in the first two quarters. The Gee-Gees made 15 of their 28 attempts from the field, and L'Africain scored 20 of his 30 points in the second-half to help push the game out of reach.
 
The Gaels ended the game shooting 31.8% from the field while pulling down 40 rebounds, compared to 38 from the hosts. Queen's committed 19 turnovers, and the Gee-Gees gave up the ball on 11 occasions.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
1 - Andrew Mavety grabbed 11 rebounds for the Gaels, the first time this season he has pulled down 10 or more rebounds in a game
3 - Jesse Graham totaled 10 or more points for the third time in the regular season
60 - The Gaels were held to 60 points by Ottawa, their lowest single-game point total this season
 
UP NEXT
The task doesn't get any easier for the Gaels, as they conclude their weekend on Saturday evening against the No. 3 ranked Carleton Ravens. The men return to the Athletics and Recreation Centre (ARC) next Friday, February 5 to take on the Guelph Gryphons.