North Bay, ON – Nipissing Men's Basketball walked away with a win over the McMaster Marauders 77-70 on Saturday, January 17th at home. 

The Lakers got out to a quick start in the first quarter, outscoring McMaster 23-12. Mateja Vukic got the Lakers on the board with a three-point shot that helped the Lakers climb to a 7-0 lead. That lead turned into a 15-5 advantage for Nipissing off of a Chris-Evrard Malonga two-handed dunk. Ryan Heim added a three-pointer and Jean Rene Brutus Escalona added a three-ball of his own to give the Lakers an 11-point lead after 1 quarter. 

The second quarter featured a slower scoring start for the Lakers, who didn't register a point until 5:53 in the quarter. Brutus Escalona added another three points, and Jeziyah Excell-Johnson scored a three-pointer of his own to give the Lakers an eight-point lead. McMaster would creep closer to the Lakers with a three-pointer scored a 0:50, making it just a three-point game at 37-34 at halftime.  

Alvin Icyogere opened the third quarter for the Lakers with a three-point shot to put the Lakers up by six. Mateja Vukic sank a three-pointer at 6:39 to help grow the lead to eight. The Lakers and Marauders would trade possessions from here, scoring a handful of free throws each. The Lakers did a good job of maintaining their lead and not letting McMaster go on any type of run to get back into the game. The Lakers lead was 57-47 heading to the fourth. 

In the fourth, Alex Blackmore sank a three-point shot to keep the Lakers up by 10. Jeziyah Excell-Johnson, Alex Blackmore, and Chris-Evrard Malonga scored key free throws in the middle of the quarter. The Lakers would keep the distance from McMaster, not letting the Marauders back into the game and eventually taking the win, 77-70. 

Jeziyah Excell-Johnson led Nipissing with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, and a block. Chris-Evrard Malonga scored 14, had 12 rebounds, and added 2 assists and 2 blocks. Alex Blackmore had 12 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 7 steals, and 2 blocks. Jean Rene Brutus Escalona scored 11 points and added 1 rebound and 3 assists in the win.  

The win moves Men's Basketball to 5-10 on the season. 

The Lakers are back in action Friday, January 23rd at 8PM at Lakehead University on the road in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Catch the action live on OUA.tv. 

#GoLakers