Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 | Box Score 3 SUDBURY, Ont. - The Bishop's Gaiters men's basketball team went 2-1 at the Voyageurs Pre-Season tournament, falling in the final to the hosts Laurentian 84-81 in overtime.  

Game 1 – Gaiters 84 – Western 75

The battle of the purple jerseys in the first game was a fairly even contest through the first 10 minutes but it was in the second stanza where the Gaiters began to pull away, outscoring the Mustangs by 10 to take a 44-28 lead into the half.  Western mounted a comeback in the 3rd quarter, cutting the deficit in half thanks to some solid free throw shooting but the Gaiters regained their composure in the final period to see out the 84-75 win. 
Leading the way for the Gaiters was Jordan Thornhill (Montreal, Que./John Abbott College) with a 13 point, 12 rebound double-double.  Thornhill was one of five Gaiters to score in double figures, four of whom had 13 points, in the well balanced attack.  For the Mustang, Eriq Jenkins had a game high 19 points in the losing effort.

Game 2 – Gaiters 88 – Waterloo 72

In the first game it was once again a balanced attack that led the Gaiters to an 88-72 win over the Waterloo Warriors in a game that Bishop's led for 39 of the 40 minutes.  Five different Gaiters reached double figures with Carl Jacob (Sherbrooke, Que./Champlain-Lennoxville) leading the way with a game high 18 points on 6-8 shooting.  Waterloo was led by Nedim Hodzic who had 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. 

Game 3 – Gaiters 81 – 84 Laurentian (OT)
 
In the second game of the day, the 2-0 Gaiters battled the 2-0 hosts in the defacto championship game and what had the potential to be a great game did not disappoint.  With 13 lead changes, this was a see-saw battle from the opening tip.  The Voyageurs took a 2 point lead into the half but a cold shooting third quarter (2-13) by the hosts saw the Gaiters get the upper hand heading into the final period of regulation.  The Voyageurs fought back, eventually taking a three point lead with 0.9 seconds left thanks to a pair of converted free throws by Haroun Mohamed.  Undeterred, the Gaiters advanced the ball to the half court courtesy of a timeout and executed their set play to perfection as Carl Jacob (Sherbrooke, Que./Champlain-Lennoxville) drained a 3 as the buzzer sounded to force overtime.
 
In the extra frame, it was more of the same as the teams went toe-to-toe.  A Kadre Gray step-back 3 with 4 seconds left on the clock put the Voyageurs up by as many points.  Bishop's looked to recreate their earlier magic, advancing the ball through a timeout.  This time, however, the shot coming out of the set play rimmed out and the Voyageurs emerged as tournament champions. 
 
Tournament MVP Gray led all scorers with 40 points in the game, adding in eight rebounds.  Sam Ivey chipped in with 16 points of his own and Litha Ncanisa secured an 11 point, 10 rebound double-double before fouling out.  For the Gaiters, it was Abdul Kamane (Montreal, Que./Vanier College) leading the way with 25 points on 11-12 shooting.
 
Tournament All-Star Team
Kadre Gray - Laurentian - MVP
Sam Ivey - Laurentian
Nervens Demosthene (Terrebonne, Que./Cegep de Montmorency) - Bishop's
Ibrahim Ngom (Montreal, Que./Vanier College) - Bishop's
Julian Walker - Western
 
Next up the Gaiters are back in action this weekend for an exhibition contest against St. Francis Xavier at 4 p.m. EDT in Antigonish, N.S.  
 
Stay tuned to www.gaiters.ca and #GaiterNation or @BishopsGaiters on social media to follow the Gaiters men's basketball team.  
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