WINDSOR, Ont. – Wednesday night (Nov. 3) in Windsor, the Guelph Gryphons men's basketball team officially tipped off their 2021-22 OUA regular season schedule with a road matchup versus the Windsor Lancers. In what was a captivating season-opening matchup, the Gryphons put forth a tremendous road effort but fell just short of stealing the road win in an 82-80 loss to the Lancers. The Gryphons (0-1) will not have to wait long to avenge the loss, as they will host the Lancers (1-0) on Saturday, November 6 at 4pm in Guelph.
With the game tied 77-77 with :24 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter, the Gryphons took a three-point lead on a clutch three-pointer from fourth-year forward
Rasheed Weekes. After calling timeout, the host Lancers were able to respond at the other end with Jake Polski getting a lay up to go, plus the foul, to trim the Guelph lead to 80-79. Polski's ensuing free throw would miss, but the Lancers were able to collect a pair of offensive rebounds before Thomas Kennedy's lay-in put Windsor back in front 81-80. Kennedy, who led the OUA in rebounding in 2019-20 and was named an OUA Third Team All-Star, finished the night with 26 points and 21 rebounds. Following a missed three from Weekes, Windsor would add another free throw down the stretch to extend the lead to 82-80.
Guelph's last chance at stealing the win on the road would fall just short when a three-point attempt at the buzzer from Gryphons rookie guard
Khalid Ismail would not fall. Despite the disappointing ending, it was a solid team effort by the Gryphons and a spectacular U of G debut for newcomer
Khalid Ismail.
After suiting up for the Humber Hawks in the OCAA, incoming transfer
Khalid Ismail made quite the impression in his OUA debut. The 6'3" management major from Toronto logged 30 minutes of floor time (2nd-most on the team next only to
Rasheed Weekes' 31 minutes) and finished the day with a team-high 25 points. Ismail's memorable debut included a clutch three-pointer with 2:34 remaining in the final quarter to give Guelph a one-point lead. Ismail was 4-7 from beyond the arc, and made an impact at the defensive end of the floor as well with a team-high 4 steals.
Ismail was one of four Gryphons to score in double figures on the night, with
Rasheed Weekes (14 points),
Malcolm Glanville (12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists) and rookie
Jalen Mason (10 points) all chipping in. The Gryphon bench, led by Ismail, outscored the Windsor bench 33-16, with the Gryphons also limiting the Lancers to just 5-19 from three-point range.
The Gryphons will play a total of 16 games during their 2021-22 regular season schedule, six of which will come before the exam/Christmas break. The Gryphons will host Windsor this Saturday (Nov. 6) for their 2021-22 home opener at the Guelph Gryphons Athletics Centre.
Tickets are still available, with the game also being streamed live online at OUA.tv.
