It
definitely was not pretty, but the X-Men held on for a 78-72 victory
over the Memorial Seahawks who played well for second year coach Peter
Benoit. Offensively, the X-Men got off to a strong start (15-4)
aided by 2 consequive 3s by newcomer Charlie Spurr and it appeared that
this might turn into a lopsided contest. Not the case. X
led 24 - 17 at the quarter and 38-33 at the half. MUN held the
edge in play in the third quarter and actually took the lead 55-53 late
in the third. X had enough gas in the tank to close out the
Seahawks, but it was not easy.
The big story of the game
for X on offence was turnovers - a whopping 28 - many unforced errors
just trying to advance the ball on the break. This was
definitely an early season game - offensively the X-men were completely
out of synch - they also missed 10 of their 17 free throws. On
the defensive end, the X-Men did some great things, holding MUN to 35%
shooting, blocking 10 shots and outrebounding them by a 44-32 margin.
X also had 18 offensive rebounds.
Alberto Rodriguez was
a bright spot for X on the offensive end with 18 points on 8-10
shooting to go with 9 boards and 4 blocks. Rodriguez was
unstoppable close to the rim and 4 of his buckets were dunks - 3 off
ally oop passes from T Bear Upshaw. Upshaw contributed 11 points
and 7 assists, but also had 7 turnovers. Rookie Jordan Clarke
continued his stallar play and chipped in 10 points and 6 rebounds and
got important minutes down the stretch. Charlie Spurr and Will
Silver returned from injuries to kick in 9 points each and Will Donkoh
had a strong game with 8 points and some good D. Some great news
for X fans was seeing Terrance Taylor's brief appearance in the game.
Taylor, who has been battling a head injury, has been given
medical clearance to play this season. MUN was led by Mike Helsby
with 20 points and Jason Shappard with 16. Memorial
X
plays SMU in the final of the X Invitational tonight at 8 PM Atlantic -
the game will be webcast live. The Huskies easlily handled the
UNB Varsity Reds 93-60. UNB will tangle with MUN at 6 in the
consolation match. The Webcast of last night's game can be seen
bt clicking HERE
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