Statement victory for Men's Basketball to open national tournament

By: William Shoukri
Humber Athletics Communications

SACKVILLE, NB - Humber men's basketball opened their championship run with a 104-57 win against the MSVU Mystics. Jalen Menzies was fantastic, scoring 24 points and adding six rebounds on his way to earning Player of the Game honours. The 2024 OCAA six-man of the year Kyle Brown-Fazekas added 19 points of his own, while Malik Grant had 13 points and 13 rebounds for the luckiest double-double a Hawk has had this season.   

Game Recap

In their first matchup of the 2024 CCAA Championship, the Hawks faced the Atlantic champions, MSVU. It was a slow start for both teams, with the rim seemingly rejecting every basket attempted. It took a couple of minutes for Humber to settle into the game. The Hawks had serious turnover trouble early in the first, but the Mystics failed to capitalize properly. Humber started taking the game to MSVU, stretching out the floor and using athleticism to get in close. Both teams started getting hot in the second half of the quarter, and sloppy defence from both squads resulted in an explosion of offence through the middle of the quarter. Humber led 19-17 after ten minutes of action.

The game opened up in the second quarter. The force field that had hampered the Hawks' offence in the first had disappeared and Humber exploded. Kyle Brown-Fazekas, Jalen Menzies, and Malik Grant acted as a three-headed monster for the Hawks, all contributing offensively. The Hawks started stroking it from three, with Grant and Brown-Fazekas going two-for-two in the half. Humber doubled on MSVU in the quarter, outscoring the Mystics 26-13. The Hawks went into the half with a commanding 45-30 lead.

Malik Grant and Jalen Menzies were the story of the third quarter. After turning this game into a blowout in the second half, the Hawks needed to be responsible and shut the game down. To MSVU's credit, the team played good basketball, received good looks, and hit some tough shots. The Hawks were more complete. Humber's squad was bigger, stronger, faster, and more athletic. The Hawks were also cash from three. Humber shot 58 per cent from beyond the arc in the game, scoring 27 from beyond the arc through three quarters and 42 in the game. Humber would close out the quarter and go into the game's final ten minutes with a 71-52-point lead.

The fourth quarter was a complete blowout. MSVU looked defeated, and Humber was rolling, already looking ahead to its next matchup. The Hawks sat their starters, and the bench came out blazing. The reserves scored a collective 52 points in this one, exactly half of the teams' total points. Humber outscored Mt. Saint Vincent 33-5 in the fourth quarter en route to a final score of 104-57.

Humber Highlights

• Humber extends its winning streak to ten.
• After averaging 86 PPG all season, Humber's defence held the Mystics to a season-low 57 points on 27.1 per cent shooting from the floor.
• Humber's 47-point victory is its largest win at nationals since defeating St. Thomas by 41 in the 1994 CCAA quarter-final.
• Malik Grant collects his sixth double-double of the season.
• The Hawks improve to 17-6 all-time in the quarter-final and 4-1 against MSVU at nationals.
• Coach Miles improves to 4-0 in the CCAA national tournament.

What's Next?

Humber will face the winner of the Keyano/Camosun quarter-final on March 14. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. You can catch the PPV action live on CCAA.ca.