Queen's Men's Basketball secured a dramatic 64-62 victory over the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks in the OUA semifinals at the ARC, punching a ticket to the Wilson Cup final for the second straight season. The Gaels overcame a sluggish first half and a frigid night from three-point range, using defensive intensity and timely scoring to grind out the win in front of a raucous home crowd.

Ontario Tech, entering as the underdog, took control early, capitalizing on Queen's offensive struggles and second-chance opportunities to hold a 31-28 lead at halftime. Queen's, which shot just 1-for-14 (7.1%) from beyond the arc in the opening half, found ways to stay in the game through relentless rebounding and defensive pressure.

Coming out of the break, Queen's began to find a rhythm, sparked by Ollie Engen (Kinesiology), who led all scorers with 26 points. Engen's ability to create shots and finish in traffic helped the Gaels claw back into the game. Luka Syllas (Concurrent Education) facilitated the offense with seven assists and added 15 points, including a critical three-pointer in the fourth quarter that sent the ARC into a frenzy.

The decisive fourth quarter saw Queen's take control after Engen weaved through the Ridgebacks' defense for a baseline floater to put the Gaels up by three. Syllas then found Malcolm Bailey (Arts & Science) for an alley-oop lay-in before drilling a deep three to extend the lead to six. The intensity of the home crowd reached its peak as Syllas forced a turnover and set up Engen for a fast-break finish.

Ontario Tech battled back, cutting the deficit to one in the final minutes. With 2:15 remaining, AJ Cummings (Arts & Science) drilled a clutch three-pointer out of a timeout to push the lead to four. Ontario Tech answered with a three of its own to take a brief one-point advantage, but Syllas responded immediately, driving baseline and finishing through contact for an and-one layup to put Queen's back in front for good. Ontario Tech had one last possession but was unable to convert, sealing the Gaels' trip to the OUA final.

Despite struggling from beyond the arc, shooting just 20.8% (5-for-24) from three, Queen's found other ways to win. The Gaels outrebounded the Ridgebacks 46-42 and held Ontario Tech to just 36.4% shooting from the field.

Lead Asst. Coach Curcio highlighted the team's resilience: "That's just basketball. Some nights the shots don't fall, but we were great on the boards and defensively held them to 62 points. When you're not making shots, your defense needs to be on point."

With the win, Queen's advances to the OUA Championship game on March 8th and has secured a spot in the U SPORTS Final 8 in Vancouver. The Gaels will host the title game at the ARC if TMU wins its semifinal matchup, or travel to Ottawa if uOttawa advances.

Tip-off details will be announced in the coming days. Catch the action live on OUA.tv.