Wolves bow out

The Lakehead Thunderwolves picked a bad time to stage a three-game losing streak.

The picked an even worse time to stop scoring on Saturday, coming up short in a fourth quarter they entered with a seven-point lead on the Acadia Axemen in the consolation semifinal at the CIS Final 8 in Halifax.

The Wolves were outscored 30-14 in the final 10 minutes and bowed out of the national men's basketball championship, dropping an 84-75 decision to finish in a tie for seventh at the eight-team tournament.

It wasn't what the Thunderwolves landed in the Maritimes to accomplish, said guard Ben Johnson, who scored 12 point, but only managed to hit five of 17 shots on the afternoon.

"If you look at our season, it's a terrible time for a three-game losing streak," Johnson said. "It's really disappointing and it really takes away, as it should, from the great season that we had.

Despite the loss, Johnson said the Wolves will find a way to take some positives out of the disappointment of a third straight trip to nationals and not yet advancing into the second round of the championship bracket.

"It's experiences. There were positives coming out of that game. Joey Nitychoruk played great. We're going to put some weight on him because he's going to be lifting with me when I get back. But it's tough to think about that right now."

Nitychoruk, a Manitoba native, had six points and eight boards before going down with a left shoulder injury, and said getting time in on the national stage was a valuable learning experience for he and some of the other younger guys on the Thunderwolves.

"This is the biggest stage I've ever played on and it was a great experience," Nitychoruk said.

"I always thought I could do something at this level, it's just the opportunity. I had that opportunity today and I tried to do the best that I could. But there was a lot of stuff that I still need to work on. This isn't where it ends."

LU coach Scott Morrison, already without starter Ryan Thomson, the victim of a well-documented foot injury, decided to sit pivot Yoosrie Salhia on Saturday to rest his ailing back.

Morrison said he knew he was in tough heading to Halifax.

"The expectations shifted a bit, considering the injuries, but we definitely wanted to get that first win out of the way on Friday and couldn't get it done. More than today being disappointed, we were still disappointed about yesterday, although I'm not very proud of how we battled today in the fourth quarter. I thought we kind of packed it in," Morrison said.

The Wolves went back and forth with the Axemen, erasing an early 18-10 first-quarter lead to pull within three, 36-33 at the half.

They took over in the third, retaking the lead for the first time since the opening quarter on a pair of Greg Carter free throws.
OUA West MVP Venzal Russell buried a three to make it 48-44 for Lakehad, with Joseph Jones extending the lead to seven, a lead they maintained through three when Matt Schmidt dropped a three at the buzzer.

But the momentum disappeared and when Anthony Sears hit an impossible hoop while being fouled by Carter, then completed the three-point play, the Axemen were within one. Sears hit another basket to give the Axemen the lead for good.

Owen Klassen, a finalist for CIS defensive player of the year, led all scorers with 27.