Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 It was a tough weekend schedule to begin with and the Nipissing Lakers men's basketball team hung in there, but came up short, losing a pair of games.

The Lakers dropped a heartbreaking 81-80 decision to the Guelph Gryphons Friday night, before falling 63-58 in another close contest Sunday to the Algoma Thunderbirds.

In Friday's matchup, it was a true back and forth affair, as the Lakers held a five point lead after the first, quarter and took a one point lead into halftime, up 44-43.

Guelph grabbed the lead after 30 minutes of play by outscoring Nipissing 19-16 in the third quarter and set up a thrilling fourth frame.

In the final 10 minutes, Nipissing managed to climb within one point, but Guelph held on for the victory, edging Nipissing when the final buzzer went.

Marcus Lewis led the way with 28 points, Justin Hill had 14, Marvin Ngonadi added 12 and Shandon Ashitei chipped in with 10.

Sunday, in another close game, a slow start hurt Nipissing and put them behind the eight ball after the opening quarter.

They did fight back and at halftime, they had turned a seven point deficit into a two point disadvantage, trailing 31-29 at the break.

Algoma added to their lead in the third, but just by a single point and in the fourth, despite another comeback attempt, the Lakers were unable to climb all the way back, losing by five points in the end.

Lewis was hot again, posting 24 points and 13 rebounds and Jerron Rhodes chipped in with 10 points to lead the way.

Nipissing stays on the road for their next two games, heading to Waterloo and Laurier for a pair of contests this weekend.