Sunday, February 12th saw the Niagara College men's basketball program improve to 13-2 with a convincing 91-73 home court victory over the visiting St. Clair Saints (7-7).
The Knights struggled in the early stages of the game, trailing 19-7 at the end of the first quarter. The ice cold shooting continued into the second frame. The Knights were kept in the contest by veteran third-year guard Lequan Hylton (Mississauga) who dropped three-point baskets on four consecutive possessions to keep his team within striking distance. Hylton finished with a game high 19 points while also adding four assists, and four rebounds.
St. Clair carried a 39-34 lead into halftime, and the break seemed to work wonders for Niagara as the team found their scoring touch in a big way outscoring the Saints 33-12 in the third quarter. The Knights never looked back leading 67-51 after three, before coasting to the double-digit victory.
Explosive six-foot-four shooting guard Van Hutchinson Jr. continued to dominate the score sheet, finishing with 15 points, a season high 17 rebounds, and six assists. A native of Nassau, Bahamas, Hutchinson Jr. has been outstanding for the knights this season, averaging nearly 15 points and 10 rebounds per game.
Mississauga native Jordon McDonald also gave the Knights a strong outing, finishing a rebound short of the double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.
The Knights have clinched the second seed in the OCAA West, and a bye in the OCAA Championship being hosted by Centennial College from March 2-4. The CCAA No. 4 ranked Knights have one game remaining in the regular season, a Friday, February 17th road game against the Fanshawe Falcons. Tip-off for Friday's game is set for 8:00pm.
