OTTAWA, Ont. (March 5, 2016)- The Queen's Gaels men's basketball team nearly shocked the CIS basketball world on Saturday evening at Montpetit Hall, pushing one of the top-ranked teams in the nation to the brink in a riveting match, but fell just short to the nation's No. 2 ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees 73-72 in the OUA quarter-finals.
 
GAME FLOW
After trailing the second-seeded Gee-Gees for the first three and a half quarters, the Gaels strung together a fourth-quarter comeback and twice re-took the lead late in the fourth quarter, but were unable to respond after Ottawa moved in front with just seconds remaining in regulation.
 
Sukhpreet Singh (Toronto) notched a team-high 18 points, shooting 6-of-10 from the field and 6-of-8 from the foul-line for the Gaels. Tanner Graham (Kingston, Ont.) pitched in 15 points and eight rebounds, while Mike Shoveller (Arnprior, Ont.) tallied 11 points and a team-best 15 rebounds to record a double-double.
 
Mike L'Africain recorded a game-high 27 points, making 11 of his 27 attempts, the last of which was the game winner with 1.2 seconds remaining in the match.
 
Down by eight heading into the final period, the Gaels picked up the first seven points of the fourth to pull within a point of the lead. Singh and Graham hit consecutive three's to even the game, and Graham made 1-of-2 free throws on the men's next possession to give the guests their first lead of the contest with 6:28 left.
 
Eight-straight points from L'African, who drained 12 of his 27 points in the final 10 minutes, put the Gee-Gees back in front, but Andrew Mavety's (Vancouver, B.C.) six straight during that same span helped Queen's stay within striking distance.
 
Singh then picked up two-consecutive baskets, the second of which occurred while he was being fouled, to bring Queen's within a point. He made the ensuing free-throw to even the game at 71-71, and was put back on the line once again with under 10 seconds remaining.  
 
After he went 1-of-2 to give the Gaels a one-point lead, L'Africain put the Gee-Gees back in front with just 1.1 seconds remaining, taking the ball off the inbounds at mid-court and speeding down the court for a quick lay-in.
 
Mavety had his buzzer-beater miss, allowing the Gee-Gees to escape with the victory and book their ticket to the OUA Wilson Cup Final Four.
 
The Gaels finish their season with an 11-8 regular season record, while picking up their first post-season victory at home in six years.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
49.1%- The Gaels shot an impressive 49.1% from the field on Saturday. It was their fourth-best shooting performance of the season, including regular season and playoffs
26- The bench point difference. The Queen's bench outscored Ottawa 42-16
4- There were just four lead changes in the contest, all of which occurred in the fourth quarter