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ame Recap: Basketball (M) | 2/5/2016 10:04:00 PM | Posted by: Adam Ali, Sports Information Assistant
Gaels use explosive first quarter to defeat Gryphons 93-81


KINGSTON, Ont. (November 5, 2015) - The Queen's Gaels men's basketball team used a dominant first quarter to build an early lead, and weathered a second-half comeback bid to defeat the Guelph Gryphons 93-81 on Friday evening at the Athletics and Recreation Centre (ARC).

Sukhpreet Singh picked up a game-high 24 points, while Ryall Stroud added 17 points and nine rebounds in the win for Queen's. Tanner Graham also picked up 17 points and seven rebounds for the Gaels, while Ahmed Haroon tallied 17 in a losing cause for the Gryphons.

The Gaels (8-5) maintain their second-place standing in the OUA East, while Guelph (5-7) remain fourth in the Central division.

GAME FLOW
Led by the veterans Singh and Graham, the men used a potent opening quarter where they shot an astounding 76.2% to drop 36 points in the first 10 minutes of the contest. After both squads exchanged baskets early on and battled to a 14-14 score, the hosts took over in the middle portion of the quarter, using just over three minutes of game-time to score 18 points in a row before the Gryphons could finally stop the run with two minutes left in the first.

Singh picked up a big dunk off a Gryphons turnover to spark the run, and Graham drained a couple of deep three's to keep the Gaels tide moving. Graham (Kingston) would end with 13 points in the quarter, while Singh (Toronto) picked up seven.

The Gaels stayed hot early in the second, as Andrew Mavety (Vancouver, B.C.) drained two three-pointers to for Queen's. The hosts would finally cool off in the middle of the second, and a 9-0 run from the visitors brought the lead down to 15. The hosts regained their stride, however, finishing the half on an 8-2 run to take a 54-33 lead into the locker rooms.

The Gryphons refused to go away in the third quarter, twice bringing the Gaels lead down to 11 points. On both occasions, Singh responded for Queen's, first with a lay-up, and second with a three that helped the men maintain some breathing room.

But the Gryphons persevered, shooting a formidable 55.6% in the period and, with 1:07 left in the third, Taylor Boers drove to the basket and picked up a lay-in, bringing the Queen's lead down to single digits for the first time since there was 3:30 left in the first quarter.

Another tough lay-up by Boers brought his team within seven to open the final period of play. After the Gryphons were able to bring the lead down to five, however, Queen's seemed to re-find its footing in the final period, going on an impressive 11-0 run that saw Stroud do some excellent work in the post, dropping two straight buckets and then hitting two free-throws on his next possession. The Toronto native picked up seven of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Gaels put the lead out of Guelph's reach and snap their two-game losing streak.

FINAL SAY
"You know the likelihood of keeping those offensive numbers going is small, you know it's unrealistic that your team is going to continue to shoot 75% from the field," said Head Coach Stephan Barrie. "So you address all the things that are not being done the way that they need to be done, even if you're getting away with it. So when the other team makes its run, and they will, then you are ready to withstand it. So we did that, and I think what we did well late was get the ball back inside to Ryall, and that settled things as it often does. Ryall was solid tonight and I think that got us back in control of the game."

BY THE NUMBERS
93- The Gaels scored a season-high 93 points on Friday against the Gryphons
50.7%- It was the third time this season that the Gaels shot 50% or higher
36- Queen's tallied a season-best 36 field goals on Friday night