Diggs fourth quarter explosion leads Huskies to second straight comeback win, 91-87 over Capers
HALIFAX, NS – Saint Mary's guard Jayrell Diggs scored 17 of his game-high 32 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Huskies to a thrilling 91-87 win over the Cape Breton Capers on Saturday night at the Homburg Centre.
The Huskies trailed by as many as 13 points early in the fourth quarter, but outscored the Capers 31-14 over the final nine minutes for their second straight comeback win, with Player of the Game Jayrell Diggs (East Preston, NS) hitting the go-ahead three-pointer and six clutch free-throws to seal the victory.
"Feels great to get back-to-back wins, and make it five-in-a-row," said Diggs. "We weren't happy with the first half of our season but we're all locked in and feeling good now and ready to keep winning for the rest of the season."
The Capers seemed eager to erase yesterday's disappointment. Forward Jamal Cadore (Toronto, ON) stifled the Huskies attack while collecting boards on both ends. However, despite Shakael Pryce (Pickering, ON) draining his first shot from deep, the Huskies held an early 12-7 advantage, and Capers coach Matt Skinn sent four starters to the bench, leaving in the relentless forward Tyson Cato (St. Catharines, ON). Seizing his opportunity, guard Stefan Anisko (Mississauga, ON) carried the Capers with three triples, a long two, and a block leading to an open corner three for guard Ceejay Hanson (Manchester, UK) and a 21-14 lead. Huskies guard Marc-Denault Gabriel (Montreal, QC) replied with a stepback two, and guard Shae Linton-Brown (Toronto, ON) was disruptive on defense with deflections before taking a hard fall on the penultimate possession of the quarter. The Capers led 21-16 after one.
Huskies guard Devawn White (Montreal, QC) opened a dramatic second quarter, sinking a jab-step corner three before skying everyone for a gigantic rebound. Capers guard Jahnian Simmonds (Lower Sackville, NS) came back for an acrobatic layup, but bounced off Cato underneath the basket, letting Diggs loose in transition. Settling into half-court offense, Pryce attacked a matchup with Huskies guard Aidan MacDonald (Timberlea, NS), drawing an and-one, but began meeting stiffer resistance. Capers guard Aaron Cunningham (Shelburne, ON) was able to poke the ball from a returning Linton-Brown in the backcourt, forcing a rare eight second violation. While MacDonald was eager to fly out of bounds at three different corners out of the court chasing loose balls he was still tasked with containing a productive Pryce, who kept earning trips to the line. Despite multiple offensive rebounds when Cato missed the second of a pair from the line, the Capers couldn't pull away. Down eight, Gabriel faked two synchronized Capers off their feet before finishing the and-one. Drawing defenders on his next drive, Gabriel kicked it to guard Jonas Maerz (Rosenheim, Germany) who swung it to guard Tjark Lademacher (Lüneburg, Germany) for three. Lademacher then hit Diggs' back cut with a bounce pass, bringing the score 42-40. The Capers kept attacking to finish the half. Pryce got Gabriel in the air, opening a give-and-go with Cato in the corner for a layup and a 46-40 halftime edge.
Gabriel poked a rebound from Cadore off of a missed free throw, leading to a pair of threes from Linton-Brown, but Mersereau hit two of his own. A couple of quick fouls from forward Jackson Enyinna (Port Harcourt, Nigeria) forced the Huskies to spread the floor. While they found open threes, they gave up easy opportunities in the paint, and the Huskies called timeout behind 58-51. Linton-Brown stole from Simmonds and was fouled with a clear path, hitting both and keeping possession. Undeterred, Simmonds forced Linton-Brown into a turnover under the basket, before Cato skied his own teammate for the offensive rebound. Cato's energy extended their lead to double digits, but Linton-Brown replied at the rim in the final moments to bring the Huskies within 69-60.
Simmonds whirled through the Huskies for a reverse layup to start the fourth. Diggs seemed poised to repeat his fourth quarter performance from the night before with four quick points. The Capers recovered, and Mersereau's distance shooting left the Huskies needing a timeout behind 79-67. Resurgent, White's hustle forced Pryce into a back-over-violation, and the Huskies went on a tear, with Diggs beating the shot clock for three to bring them within 79-75. Pryce tried to slow the Huskies with a rainbow triple, but an Enyinna layup and a Linton-Brown steal and layup forced a Capers timeout at 82-79. Linton-Brown tied the game with a sidestep triple, but Enyinna fouled out after a chaotic possession, sending Cato to the line, although he split the pair.
The Homburg Centre was on edge in the final minute as Capers seemed unstoppable in the paint, but White snatched the ball in the scrum and sent it ahead to Linton-Brown, who found Diggs for corner three to retake the lead 85-83. Linton-Brown blocked Pryce out of bounds, before tipping a crucial rebound ahead for a Devawn White layup, making it a two possession game. Echoing Linton-Brown on Friday, Diggs shared the ice in his veins, icing the game with six consecutive free throws and a 91-87 Huskies victory.
The Huskies were led by Player-of-the-Game Jayrell Diggs 32 points (10-20 FG, 6-11 3PT, 6-6 FT). Shae-Linton Brown was a scourge on both ends, with 19 points (7-13 FG, 3-4 3PT), seven boards, three assists, two steals and a block. Despite fouling out, Jackson Enyinna added ten points and nine rebounds.
Shakael Pryce had 24 points (7-19 FG, 7-9 FT), five rebounds, and five assists for the Capers, while Tyson Cato had 19 points (5-14 FG, 9-14 FT), eight rebounds, and 3 assists. Stefan Anisko had 11 of his 13 points off the bench in a perfect first quarter performance (4-4 FG, 3-3 3PT).
The Huskies fifth straight win improves their record to 10-3 on the campaign. They'll hit the road to Antigonish, NS this Wednesday, Jan. 24, as they visit the St. FX X-Men at 8 p.m., before returning home to host the UPEI Panthers on Saturday, Jan. 27 at 8 p.m.
"Every game is pretty even but we were able to pull out the last five and we're just going to keep working and doing whatever it takes to win," said Diggs post-game.
The Capers fourth straight loss drops their record to 6-8 on the campaign. They'll host the X-Men in Sydney next Friday, Jan. 26 at 8 p.m.
Recap by Dr. Casper Macaulay / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics