Posted: Feb 03, 2012
In what was an even match that seemed to be going in the X-Men’s favour for the majority of the game, it wasn’t until with a little under five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter that UNB would make a game out of it.
Tying StFX at 55, the X-Men would answer back to go up 57-55. Seth Amoah would get the Varsity Reds back on even ground before Jeremy Dunn hit a three-point shot to put StFX up 60-57.
As the clock counted down both teams traded baskets, with StFX up 66-65 with a little over 10 seconds remaining in the game.
UNB would attempt to get the go ahead basket twice before on the third attempt Quirion was fouled sending him to the line. X-Men coach Steve Konchalski would call a timeout, but Quirion was not phased hitting both shots from the line to put the Varsity Reds up 67-66.
“(I said) nothing (to Quirion),” said UNB head coach Brent Baker about the timeout before Quirion’s foul shots. “All we talked about is what we were going to do defensively. I don’t want to get in a shooter’s head and he’s pretty much golden down the stretch of games.
With 2.6 seconds left StFX was hoping to hit a buzzer beater. Dunn would get the ball on the inbound for the X-Men, but tripped as the clock ran down to UNB’s fourth win in regular season play in the Currie Center.
“The one thing we had trouble getting here over the years was some athleticism, but with Seth (Amoah) and Mike (Fosu) as you can see tonight we kind of negate the athleticism of the other team when we get that kind kid in our school and get him playing for us.”
Baker says he would have never expected to keep the X-Men under 70 points.
“I didn’t think it was going to be that kind of score,” said Baker. “I think we got a big boost from Cape Breton and winning that game.”
The V-Reds and X-Men play again tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the Currie Center with the women’s team’s playing a rematch of tonight’s game at 1 p.m.