Strong Fourth Quarter Lifts REDS Past Tigers
(HALIFAX, NS) The UNB REDS scored a strong road win Saturday night, beating the Dalhousie Tigers 90-79.
Norm Burry (Grafton, NB) led the way for the REDS with a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double, while Brandon Laryea (Crawley, UK) added 17 points and recorded two steals and a block in the win.
A balanced team effort not only lifted the REDS to victory, it helped them overcome a 51-point night by Dal's Malcolm Christie (Fredericton, NB), who grabbed a share of fourth place on the Atlantic University Sport single game scoring record list.
The game started slowly, with the Tigers leading 30-19 at the end of the first quarter, thanks to Christie's stellar performance.
However, the REDS fought back, with Laryea making a crucial three-pointer in the second quarter to cut the lead to eight points.
Christie's fourth three-pointer of the night gave the Tigers a 49-45 lead at half-time.
The third quarter saw Marcus Barnes (Kitchener, ON), make a three-pointer to bring the REDS within one point, and Christie continued his impressive scoring with 14 points in the quarter for the Tigers.
In the final minute of the quarter, Vegas Evans (Brampton, ON), hit a three-point basket, giving the REDS a 69-67 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The fourth was tightly contested, but the REDS managed to maintain their lead.
With 2:58 left in the game, a Laryea jumper extended the lead to 85-78.
The Tigers struggled to generate offense in the final minutes and the REDS won 90-79.
Barnes finished the night with 15 points and eight rebounds while Evans, off the bench, scored 12 points.
Javordo Mitchell (Woodbridge, ON) registered a game-high 15 rebounds.
With the win, UNB moves to 4-and-4 on the season heading into the holiday break, good for a share of fifth place in the AUS standings.
Dal is now 5-and-4 and falls into a three-way tie for second.
The REDS return to action on January 5th when they travel to Charlottetown to face the UPEI Panthers at 8:00 pm.
RECAP BY: Evan Richtsfeld/UNB Athletics with files from Dal Athletics
PHOTOS BY: Terrel Beals/for Dal Athletics