Citadins 83, Stingers 59: The End to a Hot Start

Concordia Men’s Basketball End First Half of Season With 5-1 Record

SportsBlake Saraga — Published December 1, 2022 2 minutes

The first quarter wasn’t kind to the Stingers. A combination of missed calls and sloppy play prevented them from setting up easy shots as they finished the frame with 14 points. 

The story remained the same for the rest of the first half. The Citadins sent the Stingers to the locker room to dwell on their 13-point halftime lead.

Forward Oge Nwoko went down with an apparent leg injury midway through the third quarter, which was a hard blow for the already deflated Stingers.

Concordia scored 24 points in the fourth quarter—it was simply too little, too late.

“We got to give them credit today. They made their shots,” said Head Coach Rastko Popovich. “They shot 50 per cent from three and 54 per cent from the field. It's going to be hard to beat a team who shoots that well on a given day.”.

The passing lanes on Saturday night seemed invisible, thanks to the defensive efforts of the Citadins, leaving the Stingers with no choice but to take tough shots. With a strong effort on defence, along with their elite shooting, the Citadins clearly had something to prove on Saturday night.

“We had a whole game plan about how to stop them and we didn’t execute it from the start,” said Stingers starting point guard Alec Phaneuf. “Next game we have to double down on defence and rebounding and really execute what coach is saying.”.

The second year guard has been impressive as of late. Phaneuf finished the game with 18 points, four assists, four rebounds and added three steals to his totals as well.

The Stingers look to continue their strong start to the season in the new year at home against the Université de Laval Rouge et Or. Tip off is set for 8 p.m. on Jan. 12.