Media From Saturday's OUA 1/4 Final Win Over Guelph

Lakehead advances to the OUA Final Four and will play Ryerson at 6PM on Friday at Waterloo University

Final Four Bound (TbNewswatch.com)

Lakehead Wins Play-off Opener (Chronicle Journal)

'Wolves Beat Guelph; Advance to OUA Final Four

The Lakehead Thunderwolves overcame some shaky decision making and poor rebounding to outlast Guelph 93-70 in OUA 2nd round play-off action. Lakehead's team defense was key as it forced 22 Guelph turnovers which led to some transition baskets for Lakehead.

Guelph, playing their 2nd game of the week on the road battled admirably including Dan McCarthy who attempted a Willis Reed impression playing on 1 good leg and scoring 15 points and adding 6 rebounds. Adam Bering recorded a double-double for Guelph with 13 and 10 while Kareem Malcolm also had 19 and 6 rebounds.

Overall Guelph out-rebounded Lakehead 14-3 on the offensive glass and shot 18-24 from the FT line to Lakehead's 12-23.

Much like last week's regular season matchups, Lakehead was big in the 1st and 4th quarters (26-10 and 26-16 tonight) and that was the deciding factor in the end.

For Lakehead Venzal Russell had 25, 6 rebounds and 3 steals on 10-18 shooting. Ben Johnson shot 7-11 for 19, Ryan Thomson 5-11 for 13 and Greg Carter, battling serious flu symptons all week - sucked it up for 11 points 6 assist and 4 steals. Lakehead shot 9-20 from 3pt range.

Coach Morrison on Tonight's Game:

I did not think it was our best played game by any stretch - our decision making with the ball was shaky at times as was our rebounding. Guelph has had back to back road trips to Thunder Bay plus a wednesday game and still came in here and beat us 14-3 on the offensive glass. In play-offs its about winning, getting the job done and moving on. However for us to get the job done next Friday we will have to improve those two areas of the game immediately.

Coach Morrison on the Thunderdome Fans.

On behalf of the team I would like to thank our supportive and boisterous fans. We have the best atmosphere in the CIS and it has helped us go 15-1 at home this season. We could not have done it without our fans and we will need our Thunderwolf Nation to come out and support us next week in Waterloo at the Final Four.

Guelph Returns to TBay for OUA Quarter-Final

The Guelph Gryphons will make their second trip to Thunder Bay in as many weekends as they travel to face the Lakehead Thunderwolves tonight (Saturday) at 7pm in the Thunderdome.
Lakehead earned a 1st round bye on Wednesday night during which time Guelph defeated the #9 ranked Laurier Golden Hawks in a close battle in Waterloo.
With the win Guelph earned the chance to advance and tip-off vs Lakehead for one of four berths in the OUA Championship "Final Four" in Waterloo March 3-4.

Game time is 7pm local time and the action can be witnessed online via www.ssncanada.ca

Lakehead Finishes Regular Season with Sweep of Guelph

From the desk of SID Hugh Mullally

Media Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 18, 2012

Men's Basketball Make OUA West History

THUNDER BAY, ON -

With their 88-67 victory on Saturday evening over the visiting Guelph Gryphons, the men's basketball team finish their regular season with a record of 20-2, the best ever in OUA West since the beginning of 'interlock' play between the OUA East and West conferences (13 years ago). Prior to this year three teams had finished 19-3.

Lakehead and Guelph came out looking to finish their seasons strong, with Guelph anxious to qualify for playoffs, and the T-Wolves looking for another game of solid play and preparation for playoffs.

Ryan Thomson led the 'Wolves with 22 points (4-6 from three) and Matt Schmidt had a season-high 19 points ant 3 rebounds. Venzal Russell had 18 points with 5 assists and 3 steals. Greg Carter had an impressive 8-8-8 line in points, assists and rebounds.

Guelph got production from Dan McCarthy with 19 points and 5 rebounds. Aron Campbell had 13 points and 6 assists.

Coach Scott Morrison:

"It was great to finish off the season with two strong wins against an always tough Guelph team. We put forth a great regular season that we can be proud of later on in life. However right now we must get ourselves ready for the post-season. That includes working to improve and prepare this week in practice as well as doing our best to get our wounds licked and healthy as possible for next week."

Lakehead will get a first round bye next Wednesday, and will play against the lowest remaining seed at home on Saturday, February 25 at 7 pm in the Thunderdome.

--

Hugh Mullally

Sports Information Director

Lakehead University Athletics

Office: 807 766 7157
Fax: (807) 343-8203
www.thunderwolves.ca

Lakehead 100 Guelph 78 (highlights)

Lakehead Wins Opener vs Guelph 100-78

Dressing only 10 healthy players, the Lakehead Thunderwolves used a quick 26-9 first quarter start to help alleviate some 2nd quarter foul trouble and hold on for a 49-36 half-time lead.

The third quarter started in similar fashion with LU jumping out to a 29 point lead at the end of the third. However just as they did in the 2nd quarter, Guelph started the 4th on a 9-0 run and remained close until the final few minutes.

Lakehead received strong performances from their starting front court tonight as Ryan Thomson led the team with 24 points and 9 rebounds on 10-17 shooting. Matthew Schmidt was 13 points, 7 rebounds on 5-7 shooting and swingman Venzal Russell hit for 22 points on 10-13 shooting. Ben Johnson was also in double figures for the 'Wolves with 12 and 3 assists in 31 minutes.

Kareem Malcolm led Guelph with 21 on 8-11 shooting adding 3 assists and 0 turnovers in 34 minutes. Zach Angus had 11 and Dan McCarthy with 12 were the other double-digit scorers.

Coach Morrison on the win:

We were fortunate to have such great starts in the first and third quarters because Guelph really outplayed us in the 2nd and 4th. With only 10 bodies eligible to play we can't afford to anyone in the lineup not ready to contribute - I thought tonight we let our intensity drop when we went deeper into the bench and that is something we can fix right away tomorrow in addition to doing a better job on our defensive rotations to Guelph's shooters.

Lakehead 82 Brock 73 (Video Highlights)

Lakehead Sweeps Brock - Clinches OUA West Regular Season Title

The Lakehead Thunderwolves clinched their second consecutive OUA West regular season title with a convincing 90-42 win over the Brock Badgers. Lakehead tightened up their defensive rotations tonight and were helped by some cold Badger shooting. Leading 21-6 after the first quarter the Thunderwolves won all four quarters and pulled away early in the third.

Adam Johnson lead the 'Wolves with 23 points and 12 rebounds while Venzal Russell completed a strong weekend notching a second consecutive double-double with 16 points, 13 rebounds 5 assists and 3 steals. Matthew Schmidt had 11 and 7 rebounds and Ben Johnson had 10 points and 7 rebounds.

The lone Badger to score in double-figures was Michael Williams with 16 points. Lakehead was 10-22 from 3pt land and forced 21 turnovers.

Coach Morrison on the Win:

I thought it was one of our better defensive efforts of the season and it was good to get ten guys in the game for some good minutes. To go deep in the play-offs we will need a sound defensive effort and a team effort from our starters and bench. Tonight was a good start towards working toward that goal and now our goal will be to remain focused for our final two regular season games vs Guelph to finish strong.

Lakehead Beats Brock 82-73 in Game 1

The Lakehead Thunderwolves jumped out to a 24-15 first quarter lead and then played steady enough to hold off a charging Brock Badgers team on Jason Pearson Memorial night.

Venzal Russell had a solid game for Lakehead dropping 23 points on 10-21 shooting. Russell added 13 rebounds 8 assists and 5 steals.

Playing without Yoosrie Salhia and Brendan King, who have logged the majority of the minutes at the "5" spot this year, the 'Wolves received excellent production from Matthew Schmidt (17 points / 8 rebounds) and Adam Johnson (15 points on 7-12 shooting). Ben Johnson was also in double-figures dropping 12 points and 3 assists in 39 minutes of play.

Brock was led by Andrew Ferguson who had 19 and 6 rebounds as well as a huge game from Mark Gibson who returned from injury to score 17 and grab 16 rebounds. Tshing Kasamba had 15 points and 8 rebounds and Andrew Kraus had 11.

Coach Morrison on the win:

On the one hand we played hard and received some good production from our bench 'bigs' in the absence on Salhia and King. On the other hand we had the chance to put Brock away in the 2nd half and let them back in the game with sloppy transition defense and some poor turnovers. We also gave Brock some good looks on penetration kick-outs by being a little slow on our rotations. Brock is short-handed but the guys they have out there are very talented and can shoot the ball - we have to do a better job getting back on D and containing middle penetration tomorrow night.

The two teams meet again tomorrow night at 8pm. The game is apparently not webcast - possibly due to Brock's use of HD quality equipment - however the quality of the game film for the coaches will be top notch.

theScore Features Lakehead Basketball in OUA Play-off Preview

Glenn Schiiler of theScore on the defending OUA Champs

Waterloo Game 2 Media & Highlights

Video Highlights (Lakehead 84 Waterloo 72)

"Alone in First" - TbNewswatch.com

Lakehead Completes Sweep of #2 Waterloo

FROM SID Hugh "Grapes" Mullally

Media Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 4, 2012

Thunderwolves Sweep Warriors

THUNDER BAY, ON -

The men's basketball team finished off a weekend sweep of the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday evening, winning 84-72.

Waterloo hung tough from beginning to end, refusing to give an inch to the OUA champs in their own house. Lakehead held a 40-27 advantage at halftime, and would keep pace with the Warriors' best efforts to close the gap in the second half, thanks to some solid shooting by Ryan Thomson and a solid showing at the free throw line as a team (19-22, 86%). Waterloo made the most of its trips to the charity stripe as well, going 16-for-19, 84% (Andrew Melbourne 9-for-9).

Ryan Thomson led the 'Wolves with 25 points (4-of-9 from three), 6 rebounds and 3 steals. Venzal Russell had 20 (2-of-3 from deep), 9 rebounds and 3 steals. Greg Carter had 8 points and 9 assists.

Waterloo's leading scorer was Mike Wright with a game-high 26 points to go with 6 rebounds and 4 assists, and Andrew Melbourne finished with 14 points.

Coach Scott Morrison:

"While we are always happy to get two wins, I was not overly happy with our efforts this weekend. Yesterday our bench was locked in and our starters lackadaisical. Tonight I felt the opposite. This week our focus is on sharpening our team D and being ready to play each day. Waterloo has some tough young guards that are going to give people problems over the next few years including [Mike] Wright, who was very good this weekend."

The basketball teams will head to St Catharines next weekend for a series versus Brock.

OUA Standings note:

Lakehead got some help from McMaster earlier in the day, as they defeated the Laurier Golden Hawks, who had been to that point tied with Lakehead for 1st place in the OUA West, with Lakehead holding the tie breaker. With a record of 16-2, the T-Wolves have four regular season games remaining (vs Brock and Guelph).

Lakehead 84 Waterloo 74 (Game 1)

MORE HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2011-12 SEASON

Lakehead Wins Ugly Vs Tough Waterloo Squad

The Lakehead Thunderwolves' starting five did not have one of their better games, but luckily for 'Wolves fans a four man bench crew of Adam Johnson (2nd Yr/Baltimore), Matthew Schmidt (4th Yr/TBay), Nate Wainwright (2nd Yr/Kapuskasing) and Joseph Jones (4th Yr/D.C.) saved the day with 52 points and 20 rebounds off the bench to hold off a scrappy Waterloo Warriors squad that would not go away.

Up 13 at the half, Lakehead could not put the Warriors away but counted on the bench to get the W. Adam Johnson led all scorers with 26 points and 9 rebounds, while Nate Wainwright connected on 4-7 from long range for 12 points. Schmidt added 9 points and Joseph Jones made up for some poor shooting (1-6) by collecting 9 rebounds. The only starter for Lakehead in double-figures tonight was Ben Johnson who connected on 3-5 from 3pt land to finish with 11 points. Greg Carter had a nice Vegas line of 7-7-7 and 2 steals in 37 minutes.

For Waterloo Mike Wright had a good scoring night with 19 points while Andrew Melbourne recorded a double-double with 14 and 9 boards. Zach Angelini also hurt LU hitting three straight 3s in the 4th quarter to help him 13 points 6 assists and 5 rebounds.

Coach Morrison on the win:

Our starting five did not come focused to practice Thursday night and that missed opportunity really hurt them tonight. We came out flat on O, settling for quick shots instead of pounding the ball inside where we held a distinct size advantage against this opponent. Thankfully our bench guys really stepped up including Johnson, Schmidt, Wainwright and Jones - who's focus in practice carried over to strong play tonight. Credit to Waterloo - they outworked us on the glass and hit some tough shots to keep the game tight. We are going to have to execute much better tomorrow night to pull-off this sweep.

Every Weekend is Big As Waterloo Travels to TBay

From SID Hugh "Diesel" Mullally

Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 2, 2012
THUNDER BAY, ON

The Skinny

The basketball teams will host the Waterloo Warriors for a weekend series as both T-Wolf squads jockey for playoff position. Game times are 6 and 8 pm, Friday and Saturday.

Webcast coverage will be available via SSN Canada, www.ssncanada.ca/games and play-by-play is available via CILU Radio, 102.7 FM, www.luradio.ca

Men's Match-up (T-Wolves 14-2; Warriors 4-12)

Coming off two big wins on the road in Windsor, Scott Morrison's team aims to finish off the season strong with 4 home games and 2 road games remaining, all against the bottom tier of OUA West opponents. Although Waterloo's record (4-12) could be taken as a comfort going into this weekend, the T-Wolves can take no opponent for granted, given they are two points behind Laurier for first place in the OUA West (with one game in hand). It's also worth noting that Waterloo did defeat the men's team last season.

Waterloo is led by veteran Cam McIntyre, whose status going into the weekend is unknown. He missed both of last weekend's games due to undisclosed reasons (possibly a nagging injury). He has averaged 13.4 PPG this season, and is a very potent threat from outside if not guarded closely. Warriors' guard Mike Wright has put up 14.8 points per contest.

Last Match-up Results

The Warriors took the first game of the double header in Waterloo last year, 79-65, before the 'Wolves recouped a 65-58 win the following evening. In both games Waterloo relied on a sagging defense to limit penetration and control rebounds, while giving up open looks to Lakehead shooters. In the Warriors' win, Lakehead shot 11-37 (30% from three point land), and didn't shoot much better the next game from distance (10-28, 36%), but played better defense to secure the win.

Coach Morrison's Message:

"We are nearing the stretch run in conference play and it starts to become more tempting to start looking towards the end of the season. We have to avoid just that and stay focused on having good practices and executing one game at a time. Waterloo defeated us last season thanks to some great team defense and strong shooting. We are going to have to gear up and give another top notch effort as a team this week."