ANCASTER, ON – The Niagara Knights men's basketball program (7-3, 2nd OCAA West) overcame an early deficit to defeat the Redeemer Royals (2-8, 8th OCAA West) 105-96 on Friday night.
After the first quarter the Knights found themselves down seven points. However, a frenetic second quarter saw a high-energy Knights team take control, allowing them to outscore the Royals by 15 in the frame. Opening the second half with an eight-point lead, the high-tempo pace continued with the teams trading opportunities at both ends of the floor. In the end Niagara extended their league to 11 heading into the fourth quarter, leading 85-74.
The fourth quarter saw a persistent Royals team that did not back down. They were able to cut the Knights' lead to 6 with less 8 minutes remaining, but that as close as the Royals would get. Niagara's defense kept the Royals offense at bay and the Knights' balanced offensive attack propelled them to the nine point victory.
Lequan Hylton (Mississauga) led the way offensively for the Knights with a season-high 28 points. Marako Lundy (Nassau, Bahamas) added 23 points and season-high 9 rebounds. Collectively the Knights shot 50% from the field and 38.5% from beyond the arc, both above their season averages to this point. With their 105 points, the Knights eclipsed the 100 point plateau for the first time since the 2012-13 season.
Niagara will now travel to Jamestown, NY to take on the Jamestown Community College Jayhawks in exhibition game on January 10th. The Knights will open the second half of their regular season home schedule on January 16th when they welcome the Sheridan Bruins (7-2, 2nd OCAA West) to Welland. The game will take place at the Welland Campus Recreation Centre, with tipoff scheduled for 3:00 pm.
