X-Men outlast Capers for 97-91 win

Antigonish, NS – In a clash of AUS rivals at the STFX Saputo Centre, the STFX X-Men bested the Cape Breton Capers 97-91 on Thursday night on Coach K Court.

STFX Gabriel Pizza player of the game DJ Jackson powered the STFX offense with a game-high 27 points on the night.

The X-Men established an early lead in the first quarter and went up by 10 points - 16-6 - six minutes in after Matt Pennell drained a three-pointer.

Tempers flared in the competitive contest early on when STFX's Gloire Koua and CBU's Liai Tong were tagged with unsportsmanlike fouls.

STFX held a 30-17 lead after the first quarter. Gatluak James scored nine points for X in the quarter including a three-pointer in the closing minute to up the home team lead.

Consecutive three's by Koat Thomas and Keyonte Beals to start the second quarter gave the X-Men a 19-point lead – 36-17 – but Shakael Pryce went down court and replied with a three of his own in an effort to kickstart his Capers squad.

Midway through the quarter the Capers went on a 10-0 run – bookended by a pair of three-pointers from Stefan Anisko – to close the deficit to six points, 40-34.

The Capers kept chipping away at the lead and by halftime trailed by three points, 50-47, as they outscored the X-Men 30-20 in the second quarter.

Tyson Cato scored 14 for CBU in the first half and Anisko had 12.

DJ Jackson netted 13 first half points for the X-Men and James had 11.

The X-Men took a 10-point lead three and a half minutes into the third quarter, but then struggled to finish shots as their offense went cold.

CBU went on an 18-0 run to take a 68-62 late in the quarter, a 28-point swing. They held the X-Men scoreless for a five minute period and led by eight points, 75-67 after three quarters.

The Capers outpaced the X-Men 28-17 in the frame.

Cape Breton held onto their lead into the fourth quarter then it was STFX's turn to claw their way back into the game.

A three-pointer by Pennell with 6:38 left to play drew the X crowd to their feet as it brought the score to 77-76 for CBU.

STFX's top rebounder Jeff Ngandu fouled out with 4:23 left in the game.

The score remained close throughout the final minutes of play, but the X-Men began to pull away and lead by eight points, 86-78 with two minutes to play.

The Capers continued to fight back but time was not on their side and STFX held on for the 97-91 win.

Jackson was STFX's top scorer with 27 points. James finished the night with 19 points and 9 rebounds. Beals scored 12 and Koat Thomas had a double-double game with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Pennell contributed 11 off the X bench and Ngandu was the top X-Men rebounder with 13.

For the Capers, Pryce earned player of he game honours with 24 points and 7 rebounds. Cato scored 20 and Anisko finished with 17 points and 9 boards. Tong scored 13 off the Capers bench.

The same two teams will be back in action on Saturday night, November 9^th in Cape Breton for a rematch. Game time is 8:00 pm.

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Recap courtesy Krista McKenna, STFX Athletics