But there’s no other way to describe the utter dismantling of the No. 7 Wilfred Laurier Golden Hawks on Saturday night by the host Lakehead Thunderwolves.
The Wolves (5-1), pulled away in the second half and never looked back, downing the Golden Hawks 99-79, a win that almost certainly will earn them a spot in the national top 10 when the rankings are released on Tuesday.
It would be the first time they made the weekly list since 2013, when the Thunderwolves reached the national final.
“I think it’s a major win. We have a big recruiting class, including me and my teammates from (junior college), there are a lot of good guys coming in. This is like a staple moment because they’re one of the top teams and we’ve got to make a name for ourselves this year,” said 6-foot-8 second-year transfer Jamani Barrett, who scored 13 points off the bench, hitting five of seven shots from the field.
“I think it’s time we really got some more respect in this league. We’re up-and-coming and we’re going to be at the top of this league, hopefully by the end of the season.”
It’s a team brimming with confidence and leading scorer Isaiah Traylor could barely contain his emotions late in the game.
Ahead by 19, he lobbed up an alley oop that Chume Nwigwe slammed home with authority.
Traylor raced up the sideline, staring down the crowd, pumping his arms and screaming for joy at the now-certain triumph over a ranked opponent.
They’re starting to believe in themselves and it shows.
“Obviously it’s big,” said second-year guard Alston Harris, whose 20-point effort was second to Traylor’s 23.
“We’ve been working. We have one goal, which is to go to nationals and compete. They’re a team that’s nationally ranked, so they have a bigger target on their backs. It was important for us to show what we could do and beat a top-ranked team.”
The Thunderwolves jumped in front early, but by the time halftime rolled around, the Golden Hawks were up 43-40, powered in part by an 11-4 second-quarter run that saw them move in front for the first time in the game.
They add one to their lead early in the third, but it was all Lakehead after that.
Harris gave them the lead for good at the free-throw line and they stretched it to 10 by quarter’s end.
A Traylor three early in the fourth all but iced it for the Thunderwolves, who led by as many as 21.
“The guys played hard. In the first half we had some foul trouble that sort of changed the way we were playing a little bit. In the second half, we still had that foul trouble, but other guys stepped up,” said third-year coach Ryan Thomson.
“I thought Quincy (Johnson) kind of hit his stride tonight, he had a big second half. Alston was great and Isaiah was solid as usual.”
Defensively, the Wolves found a way to neutralize Laurier’s Ali Sow, who put up 16 first-half points, but only scored four in the third. He finished with a game-high 31, the final 11 points coming with the game all but out of reach.
Notes: Nahshon Hurst, who spent two seasons with the Thunderwolves, from 2016 to 2018, is now playing for Laurier. He had two points and two roebounds … Lakehead guard Laoui Msambya left with an injured right ankle in the third, but returned late in the fourth. He finished with 10 points …. The Wolves head to Brock next weekend.
