Lancers men's basketball wins another two
By Michal Tellos
Sports Editor
January 28, 2009
 The Lancers men’s basketball team racked up two more in the win column last week, upsetting the Western Mustangs last Wednesday and beating the Brock Badgers on Saturday.
The Lancers hosted Western and then took to the road to meet Brock.
Wednesday night’s game was a thrilling evening.
Western, ranked sixth in the CIS, was outplayed by ninth-seed Windsor for almost the entire game, with Windsor eventually edging the Mustangs out by nine, 77-68.
The night was billed as “rivalry night” by the athletics department, as Western, being under two hours away, is the closest opposing team. The event featured a live DJ playing throughout both the women’s and men’s game, as well as an entertaining dance-off between several familiar Lancer faces.
Head Coach Chris Oliver, however, downplayed the idea that the rivalry is entirely based on geography or how often the teams play.
“It’s a rivalry because they’re good and we’re good. I don’t think it’s a Western-Windsor thing, we’re just good teams. We’ve both been top ten teams for the last two years,” he said.
Nevertheless, Oliver admitted that the atmosphere at the St. Denis Centre was electric.
“It’s awesome. It’s an awesome atmosphere. It’s not every game we have a DJ in the house. It was just a great environment to win a basketball game in.”
The game itself did not disappoint, however, as the densely-packed and rowdy Lancer fans made it tough for Western coaches and players to gain any offensive focus.
This allowed Windsor to jump to a quick and uncontested 10-0 lead, a margin that essentially held for the rest of the game.
It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that the Mustangs made a serious effort to creep back, but it was too little too late, and the solid defensive start for the Lancers proved insurmountable.
Oliver is particularly happy with the defensive aspect of the team, which struggled seriously earlier in the season.
“I’m extremely happy with the defence, to have come into a game and defend the way we have for the last three games. And I’m proud of that. We certainly do have to refine some stuff on offence, but defensively we’re getting there for sure,” he said.
In a highly competitive OUA, consistency at both ends of the court would make the Lancers an even more serious threat in the post-season.
Against Western, the Lancers were led by Greg Surmacz who netted 20 points and six rebounds. Nigel Johnson-Tyghter chipped in with 11 rebounds as well.
Andre Smyth was two points and one rebound shy of a double-double.
The game against Brock was similar in that it was a strong defensive effort winning the game, with Windsor leading for most of it.
The final score was 61-57, Lancers.
Surmacz again led the way, sinking the Badgers with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Smyth was this time just two points shy of a double-double, while Johnson-Tyghter snagged 10 rebounds.
Heading down the stretch, there is much to be happy about for the Lancers men’s basketball team.
The harder parts of the schedule seem to be behind the team, but the men have also, historically, improved throughout the season.
And they have a strong candidate for OUA MVP in Surmacz.
Surmacz is third in the league in both scoring and rebounding, and his only serious threat is probably Boris Bakovic of the Ryerson Rams, a team with roughly the same record as the Lancers.
With just seven games remaining, the Lancers are most likely safe for the playoffs, and the fight is now on for home-court advantage.
But one thing stands in the way.
“We’ve got to be consistent and that’s the challenge for this team,” said Oliver of a team that he deemed “schizophrenic” at times, as the team has made a habit out of winning a huge game only to play terribly in the next.
The next opponent for the boys will be the Guelph Gryphons on Jan. 28, while the next home game will be against the McMaster Marauders on Feb. 4.
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