By Nour Alzahran
The Laurentian Voyageurs men’s basketball team is hitting its stride at just the right time, earning a spot in the round of eight after a 75-59 playoff victory over the Windsor Lancers this past Wednesday. Despite lacking extensive U Sports playoff experience—Nginyu Ngala was the only player with any significant postseason background—the Voyageurs looked confident on the Lancers’ home court.
Offensively, Ngala and Ismael Konate led the charge with 21 points each, while Shawn Barthelemy added 12. The result marked a measure of revenge for Head Coach Brandon Edwards and his squad, who had fallen to Windsor 89-81 in the regular season on their way to an 11-11 record.
“The playoffs are a completely new season and we’re a completely different team,” said Edwards. “I think the group that played Windsor the other night is a team that really understands what we are trying to do now. I think the improvement showed itself.”
Their reward for toppling a 12-10 Lancers team on the road is a quarter-final match-up with the 20-2 Ottawa Gee-Gees, currently ranked second in the country. “The biggest thing for us—and we’ve learned this time and time again—is that we have to go out there and attack,” Edwards said of his team’s mindset heading into the nation’s capital. “We’re not talking about winning. We’re talking about going out there and playing our best and focusing on what we need to do to be at our best, because this will require our best. We’re playing the number two team in the country, and they are steamrolling people in our conference right now.”
While the men march on, the Laurentian Lady Vees saw their season end on the same night with an 81-72 loss to the Brock Badgers. Despite 20 points from Emilie Lafond and 14 from Cadence Pecore, the Lady Vees couldn’t muster enough offense to keep pace. As one chapter closes for Laurentian basketball, another continues, with the men hoping their newfound momentum can fuel a deeper playoff run.