HAWKS LOSE TIGHT TWO POINT EXHIBITION ROAD GAME AT NIPISSING
Recap by Ronny Musiketele
NORTH BAY, ON: The Humber Hawks men's basketball team fell to the Nipissing Lakers 84-82 Saturday evening in their second northern exhibition game. It was a tough officiated game for the Hawks, as they had a total of 24 fouls called against them.
It's always challenging to play on the road, and tonight the young Hawks were tested heavily. Being on the wrong end of calls all night and going into the home soil of the Lakers was the perfect challenge before the start of the season . Despite them losing the game, they won every quarter except the third, something they can be proud of.
In the first quarter, the Hawks played well enough to maintain the lead throughout the quarter. Fowzi Mohamoud came out on fire from downtown knocking down two of his seven three pointers on the night. Unfortunately, there was no answer for the Lakers big man, Jordan Roberts who grabbed multiple offensive rebounds and kept his Lakers in the game.
Both teams went back and forth early in the second quarter. The foul calls started piling up for the Hawks and seem to disrupt their rhythm. Lakers, Marcus Lewis and Jordan Roberts helped push them to a 28-27 lead over the Hawks and momentum seemed to be swinging on the Lakers side. Fowzi Mohamoud then hit a timely three to give the Hawks a 30-28 lead. The team fed off Mohamoud's hot shooting and went into halftime with a 42-37 lead.
In the third quarter things went south for the Hawks. After getting a 52-43 lead, frustration began for the Hawks as they felt the refs missed a few calls. The Lakers took advantage and followed up with a 15-5 run, outscoring the Hawks 27-18 in the third. Lakers went into the fourth quarter with a 64-60 lead.
The Hawks continued to battle, with Mohamoud keeping them in the game as he finished with a game high 27 points. Unfortunately, there was no answer for Jordan Roberts in the post who finished with 22 points and 17 rebounds. Despite the big night from the Lakers centre, the Hawks stayed in the game with some clutch shots from their captain DeQuon Cascart. They managed to trim their deficit to two points with a chance to tie or win the game but missed the game-tying lay-up.
When asked about his performance, Fowzi Mohamoud said
" I just tried to come out and be very aggressive. I been passive the last few games so playing aggressive was my mentality coming in the game ."
When asked about what he took from today's lost Mohamoud said
"It's all the little things. Rebounding, boxing out and limiting turnovers. I feel like if we limit our turnovers and run plays I feel like will be alright.