Courtesy Mat MacDonald
“This is mine. They can’t take this from me! They can’t take this from me!”
Those were the words shouted from StFX fifth-year senior Christian Upshaw as he
subbed out of Friday night’s quarter final game against the Saint Mary’s Huskies with
two minutes to go in the game.
Without a doubt, it was his game.
Upshaw scored 14 of his game high 43 points in the fourth quarter as the X-Men rolled
over Joey Haywood and the Saint Mary’s Huskies 111-93.
In five seasons with the X-Men, Upshaw’s never won more than a playoff game. He’s
never won an AUS Championship, and he’s never won a national championship. In his
last year, he knew that he had to take control of the game in order to keep his dream
alive.
Along side Upshaw was fellow St. Pat’s graduate Will Silver who finished one assist shy
of a triple-double (14 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists).
After jumping out to an early lead, the Huskies looked poised to hold on to the game
and spoil X’s party at the Metro Centre. AUS MVP Joey Haywood came out strong,
hitting shots from every angle on the floor. The Huskies held a six point lead for much of
the first quarter as both teams tried to find their way on the floor.
The second quarter was the turning point for the X-Men as they chipped away at the
lead and took a four point lead late into the frame.
Charlie Spurr was huge again for the X-Men, turning the game around and hitting some
big time threes. Perhaps his biggest shot of the night came in the second half right next
to his own bench. Off a kick-out, Spurr set his feet and drilled a three in the face of the
SMU’s Torey Fassett. With a salute to the crowd, Spurr set off an X run that wouldn’t be
slowed down.
The X-Men started rolling, dropping shots from everywhere on the floor with no answer
from the Huskies. The big body of Dwayne Johnson was too much for the Huskies
interior as he bullied the Huskies, grabbing 10 rebounds and netting 15 points.
In front of a home crowd, the X-Men did nothing to disappoint, and according to
Upshaw, there was no other option but to play their hearts out.
"When you leave that court, you want to leave everything on it. You want to walk off that
court naked with nothing left."
They certainly did that.
The X-Men now look forward to tonight’s game against the Dalhousie Tigers at 8:15 for
a chance to move on to Sunday’s AUS final and a birth to nationals.
The game will be webcasted and also broadcasted live on EASTLINK.