KINGSTON, Ont. (January 12, 2018) - The Queen's Gaels (8-5) lost a hard-fought battle against No.1 Carleton Ravens (13-0) on Friday night at the ARC in Kingston. The Gaels trailed 9-0 to start the game but broke through to take an early lead before Carleton smothered the Gaels defensively and ran away with the game.
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GAME FLOW
The Ravens began the game looking like a well-oiled machine, with precision passing, and strict defence. Carleton opened up on a 9-0 run to start things off.
Tanner Graham (Kingston, Ont) put the Gaels on the board, knocking down a jumper from behind the arc.
Quinton Gray (Richmond Hill, Ont) got another three to fall for the Gaels as they put a run together of their own.
Mid-way through the first, the Gaels offence looked to have clicked.
Sammy Ayisi (Toronto) tied the game for the Gaels, off a beautiful cut and layup. The Gaels also showed terrific defence, not allowing a basket by the Ravens for nearly four minutes.
Mike Shoveller gave the Gaels the lead, knocking down a deep triple. He also found the basket, off a spin move in the paint. The Gaels finished an impressive opening quarter showing with the lead 20-17.
The Gaels looked to keep up their offensive showing, into the second quarter. Mat Elcock (Waterdown, Ont.) knocked down a tough 3-pointer, with a feed from
Jaz Bains (Brampton, Ont.). The Ravens were running a full-court press, to try and slow the Gaels offence down. Eddie Ekiyor, of Carleton, knocked down a 3-pointer, to give the Ravens the lead back.Â
The Gaels came out of a timeout with a blocked shot, which led to a
Harry Range (Ottawa) floater. Bains picked up a steal and took the ball down the court for an impressive finish. A 3-pointer by Yasiin Joseph, gave the Ravens a double-digit lead, forcing a Queen's timeout. The Gaels trailed the Carleton Ravens, 49-34 at the end of the opening half.
Tanner Graham sank a free-throw, for the Gaels first points of the second half. Queen's could not keep up with the Ravens offence, as Carleton kept adding on to their lead. The Ravens were able to get open from mid-range, as well as find driving lanes, for easy layups, and the Gaels could not stop it. A 3-pointer by the Ravens made it a 21 point lead and forced a Queen's timeout. The Gaels trailed the Ravens at the end of the third quarter, 72-48.
Gray sank a layup, to open the fourth, as the Gaels looked to potentially bounce back. The Ravens answered that layup with a 3-pointer to make it a 28-point game.
Tanner Graham, who had a quiet night, redeemed himself with a low-post shot, and the and-one opportunity. Gray, who had an excellent night, coming off the bench, knocked down a fade-away to add to his scoring total.
Vincent Wood (Toronto, Ont.) got himself some late-game action, with a steal off the inbound, and a layup. The Gaels, in the end, fell to the Ravens 97-68.
BY THE NUMBERS
52%- The Carleton Ravens made 52% of their shots on the night
13- Shoveller and Gray both lead the team in scoring with 13 a piece
6- The Gaels did a good job protecting the rim, with six blocks on the night
UP NEXT
The Gaels are back at home tomorrow night, facing the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Tip-off is at 8 pm at the ARC, tickets can be purchased at www.gogaelsgo.com/tickets, or the game can be seen live on OUA.tv.
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