X-Men defeat Tigers for second time this week

ANTIGONISH, NS - The STFX X-Men Basketball team continued their strong season with a big 93-72 win over the Dalhousie Tigers on Coach K Court Friday night. 

STFX Gabriel Pizza Player of the game DJ Jackson (Mississauga, ON), had a monster of a game, dropping 29 points along with three rebounds and two assists. Bennett Grumbach Toronto, ON) added 12 points and seven rebounds for X, while Gatluak James (Windsor, ON) had 11 points and eight rebounds. 

For the Tigers, Player of the Game Andre Reid (Calgary, AB) had a team high 16 points along with a pair of rebounds, while Jayden Parker (Milton, ON) scored 9 points, two rebounds and two assists for the visitors. 

It was the seventh straight win for the X-Men, who lead the Atlantic University Sports standings with a 10-1 record, while the Tigers record falls to 3 and 8. 

The teams traded buckets early, but the Tigers held a one-point lead after the first four minutes. STFX had some shooting woes in the first quarter but seven points from seven trips to the charity stripe pulled them to a 21-14 lead after the first quarter. 

The X-Men were dominant on the glass in the first half, snagging 28 rebounds compared to 15 from the Tigers. Seventeen first-half points from DJ Jackson (Mississauga, ON) and 9 bench points from Grumbach helped keep the X-Men ahead, but solid shooting from the Tigers kept it a close 40-33 game at halftime. 

STFX started pulling away in the third quarter, and lead by 17 with four minutes to go in the stanza. The teams exchanged three pointers to close out the quarter, with STFX leading 74-52.

The X-Men went on an 11-4 run in the first four minutes of the final quarter, though the Tigers replied with a 7-3 run of their own. The Tigers kept fighting but couldn't overcome the heavy deficit, and STFX walked away with the win. 

The X-Men return to action next Saturday, January 18, when the visit the Acadia Axemen for an 8 p.m. matchup. The Tigers are also on the road next weekend, when they take on the UPEI Panthers in Charlottetown at 8 p.m. on Saturday night. 

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Recap courtesy Matt Draper, STFX Athletics