SHERBROOKE, Que. – A putback by Alain Bernard with 15 seconds left gave the Laval Rouge et Or a 70-68 win over the Bishop's Gaiters in RSEQ men's basketball action at the Mitchell Gym in Lennoxville, Saturday. Bernard's putback capped a back-and-forth contest that featured five ties and six lead changes.
 
On the Gaiters' final possession, Abdul Kamane (Montreal, Que./Vanier College ) attacked the net, but his shot was blocked by Joel Muamba, and the visitors were able to kill off the final eight seconds.
 
Laval (7-16, 5-8) led 16-12 after the first quarter, as they ended the period on a 6-2 run. However, Bishop's (5-16, 2-11) turned the game around in the second quarter, as a three-pointer by Owen Martel (Erin, Ont./Georgetown D.H.S. ) put the Gaiters up 27-26 with 3:38 to go, and Bishop's stretched their lead to six points, 38-32 at halftime, as a block by Bruce Adjei (Bristol, England/SGS College) at the buzzer signalled that momentum had switched to the home side.
 
However, Laval came out strong in the third quarter and opened the period on a 12-0 run, taking a 44-38 lead with 3:38 to go in the period, and they led 51-46 after the period.
 
Laval took their largest lead of the night, 63-54, midway through the third, before the pair of Jona Bermillo (Montreal, Que./Vanier College) and Abdul Kamane (Montreal, Que./Vanier College ) combined to set the Gaiters on a 12-3 run to tie the game up at 66-66. Kamane scored a pair of three-pointers, while Bermillo tied the game with his triple at the 1:41 mark.
 
A layup by Kamane with 1:13 to go gave the Gaiters their first lead since the third quarter, 68-66, but Muamba tied the game up 10 seconds later.
 
Bermillo led the Gaiters attack with 16 points and seven assists. Kamane ended the night with 14 points while Joany Castor-Thadal (Saint-Leonard, Que./Champlain-St. Lambert) had 12 along with a team-high six rebounds.
 
Muamba led the Rouge et Or with 19 points, while Nicolas Begain came off the bench to score 18.
 
With the win, Laval is now three games up on the Gaiters in the race for the final RSEQ playoff berth.
 
The Gaiters are back in action on Saturday, Feb. 18, as they play the McGill Redmen. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m.