WOLFVILLE, NS - The Saint Mary’s Huskies defeated the visiting Acadia Axemen 104-96 in double-overtime in the first of a two-game weekend for the Axemen.
Guard Nico Brauner scored a game-high 26 points for Saint Mary's and added seven rebounds in the win while Nikita Kasongo added 22 points and six rebounds for the Huskies.
In his first game this year as a Cape Breton Caper transfer, Junior Moaku-Matia paced Acadia's offence with 22 points, while Trevon Grant added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Axemen.
Grant's double-double came on the heels of a last-second game-tying three-pointer for the Axemen as time expired in the fourth quarter.
The bucket sent the game into overtime tied at 75-75.
Neither team led by more than two points in the first overtime, as both teams traded baskets thru the first six minutes.
A pair of three-pointers by both teams saw the game tied 83-83 with 2:30 left in the first overtime. An Acadia layup extended the Axemen lead 85-83 with 2:09 left in overtime.
Kasongo nailed a three-pointer with 52 seconds left and two Brent Martindale free-throws saw the Huskies up 88-85 with 17 seconds left.
After an Acadia time-out, the Axemen had two looks from beyond the three-point land and Nick De Palma hit a three-pointer as time ran out in the first overtime to tie the teams 88-88.
SMU doubled-up Acadia 16-8 in the second overtime and took the victory 104-96.
De Palma finished with 16 points in the loss for Acadia, who drop to 12-4 on the year.
Win over Cape Breton
The Axemen basketball team got back on the winning track with a convincing 92-63 win over the visiting Cape Breton Capers after dropping two four-point games to Saint Mary's.
The Axemen currently sit second in the AUS standings with three games remaining in the regular season.
Down 20-17 after the opening quarter, the Axemen out-played the Capers in the second frame by a score of 27-11. Erik Nissen came to life and posted nine points in the second quarter alone. Nissen finished the game with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Grant's two three-point baskets at the 6:48 and 5:57 marks of the second quarter gave the Axemen a lead that would hold for the remainder of the game.
The Axemen had 40 points off the bench that included Ben Miller's team-high 16 points. Nissen and Mitch Tempro each had 15 points and De Palma added 12 points. Six Axemen posted double-digit scoring.
"It was a good win. We played double overtime yesterday (vs. Saint Mary's) so it was good to get a great start so everyone could play. Coach has been instilling the idea to share the ball more and face the floor more and it will make everybody's job easier," Grant said in a postgame interview.
The Axemen improve to 13-4, while the Capers drop to 2-15.
The Axemen host Dalhousie Feb. 15 in Acadia's last home game of the season.