MARTIN FORCES OVERTIME TO HELP No. 2 MEN'S BASKETBALL RALLY OVER NIAGARA, 102-95
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Niagara | 18 | 31 | 27 | 9 | 10 | 95 |
|
Humber | 26 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 102 |
By: Ronny Musikitele
Humber Athletics Sports Information
ETOBICOKE, Ont -- No. 2 Humber Hawks (17-0, 1st West) overcame a 12-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat the No. 12 Niagara Knights (12-5, 4th West) in overtime, 102-95.
It was a thriller in Humber's home gym. Micqueel Martin's late-game heroics helped the Hawks force overtime and come out with the big win.
"Just winning the game for us," said Micqueel on what went through his mind when he tied the game. "We're winners. We're trying to go 20-0 for the season and go into provincials and nationals with the same approach and do whatever it takes. I'm a veteran on the team, so I know what it takes to win a game in those types of situations. The team knew to lockdown and play defence and that's what led us to win tonight."
DeQuon Cascart has been on a tear in his last three games, finishing with a game-high 28 points, five assists and five rebounds. Jordan Francis finished with 17 points and six rebounds, while Jaylan Morgan notched a double-double finishing the game with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
The Hawks were off to the races to open the game, going on a 13-2 run. This forced the Knights to call an early timeout, resulting in a complete change of momentum. Niagara went on a run of their own, but some late buckets from Trevon Mollison helped the Hawks take a 26-18 lead to end the first quarter. The Knights continued to force a comeback in the second frame and managed to tie the game 40-40 with 3:20 left. After outscoring Humber 31-21 in the second quarter, Niagara went into halftime with a 49-47 lead.
After winning five of their last six games, the Knights came out with confidence in the third quarter and continued to add to their lead. The All-Canadian candidate Van Hutchinson Jr. was hard to stop as he finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds. Jordan McDonald was another big problem for the Hawks as he finished with 21 points and 19 rebounds. The two led Niagara throughout the game and helped their team get numerous second-chance points as they helped Niagara outrebound the athletic Hawks, 66-59.
Despite being down as much as 12 points in the fourth quarter, the Humber veterans helped the team keep their cool. DeQuon Cascart, Micqueel Martin and Jordan Francis were huge in the fourth quarter as they helped the Hawks surmount a comeback. After being down four with two minutes left, Humber showed their resiliency as they hit some big shots. The Knights inability to hit free throws late in the game hurt them. Micqueel Martin made them pay as he hit a game-tying shot with two seconds left, forcing overtime.
The Hawks captain, DeQuon Cascart, fouled out midway through overtime but a Jaylan Morgan 3-pointer with 1:32 left in overtime gave the Hawks a 2 point lead they would not relinquish. With a few seconds remaining, Kevin Otoo had a monster two-handed slam that put the game away. To say the crowd went crazy is an understatement. It was a classic showdown and the Humber Hawks came out victorious improving to 17-0 for the season.
"The guys needed some inspiration and they showed it to me," said DeQuon Cascart on his team's performance. "I challenged them at halftime to show me they have the fight and they did. We came back and won in overtime and did it collectively. I'm proud of them."
Game Notes
- With a three-pointer in the third quarter, Curwin Elvis moved into ninth all-time on Humber's career scoring list, surpassing Humber legends Steve McGregor and Fitzroy Lightbody.
- The Hawks improve to 76-0 when hitting the century mark in the regular season.
What's Next?
No. 2 Humber will head to Ancaster to take on Redeemer (10-7, 5th West), Feb. 9. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
