LONDON, Ont. (January 6, 2017)- Richard Iheadindu sunk a critical three-point basket with just over a minute left in regulation, and the Queen's Gaels men's basketball team staved off a comeback bid, defeating the Western Mustangs 75-69 on Saturday evening.
 
GAME FLOW
Sukhpreet Singh (Toronto) tallied a team-high 16 points, showing 6-of-12 from the field and adding six points and four steals. Tanner Graham (Kingston, Ont.) added 14 points and eight rebounds, and Iheadindu (Brampton, Ont.) recorded 12 points, all of which came from a team-best four three-point buckets.
 
The victory improves the Gaels conference record to 6-1. Omar Shiddo led all players with 21 points, shooting a perfect 5-of-5 from three-point range in a losing cause for the Mustangs, who fall to 1-8 on the season.
 
After the Gaels went up by as many as 14 points in the first half, the host Mustangs responded and cut the Queen's deficit down to five by halftime. Iheadindu nailed a jumper from range midway through the third quarter to push the lead back up to double-digits. Western stayed within striking distance into the final quarter, and then went on an 11-2 run to take their first lead of the contest at the 4:38 mark of the fourth.
 
After Tanner Graham (Kingston) brought the Gaels to within a point of the lead, Iheadindu nailed a three to put the men back on top with 1:17 left. The Mustangs would miss their next three shot attempts, and Isse Ibrahim sunk all four of his free throw attempts to give the visitors some breathing room with time winding down and secure the victory.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
46.0%- The Gaels shot 46% (29-63) from the field on Friday, compared to 43.9% from Western
4- The Gaels have shot 36% or higher in four of the past five games, well above their season average of 26.5%
1- Tanner Graham has scored 10 or more points in all but one game this season
 
UP NEXT
The men wrap up their road trip on Saturday evening when they take on the Windsor Lancers. The Gaels return to Kingston next weekend to host the Ryerson Rams and Toronto Varsity Blues at the Athletics and Recreation Centre (ARC) on Friday and Saturday respectively.