With the game tied at 90 and the target score at 92, Saskatchewan Rattlers point guard Tony Carr stepped to the foul line. He sank the first and then the second free throws – much to the delight of the home crowd – as the Rattlers edged out the Ottawa BlackJacks 92-90. It snapped their four-game losing streak.
The Rattlers were leading by over 20 points earlier in the game but Ottawa clawed back to cut the lead to one in Elam time.
The first quarter was a one of runs. The BlackJacks jumped out to a strong start, much like their last game against the Rattlers. Walt Lemon Jr. hit a three while Bernard Thompson and Chad Posthumus scored inside. Tyrell Green added a three to give the visitors a 15-2 lead.
Saskatchewan chipped away at the lead, scoring 14 straight points. Carr went on a scoring streak, getting to the basket and the free throw line. Carr hit two free throws to give them a 16-15 lead. He drilled a three at the first quarter buzzer, putting Saskatchewan up 21-16.
Green answered the Rattler’s run with a corner three to open the second quarter. However, the home team kept scoring by attacking the basket. Jordy Tshimanga and Malik Benlevi both scored inside to give Saskatchewan an eight-point edge.
The Rattlers made defensive stops and pushed the pace in transition as they took a double-digit lead. Ottawa focused on getting the ball to their forwards in the paint. Meanwhile, Saskatchewan guard Devonte Bandoo hit back-to-back three-pointers. The Rattlers increased their lead to 51-30 after two quarters.
Carr scored in the paint again to start the third quarter. Rattlers guard Scottie Lindsey hit two threes in the first half and he drove inside and scored as well. The BlackJacks picked up their pace as Green hit a three in transition. Tyrell Tate added a corner three to cut the deficit to 14.
While the BlackJacks shot the ball well and cut into the lead, the Rattlers responded. Lindsey sank free throws while Bandoo added a pair of triples. Ottawa continued to push back as Thompson scored off a steal to cut the lead to eight.
Ottawa went to forward Zena Edosomwan multiple times in Elam time for six points. Deng Adel scored a layup and the following free throw to make it a one-point game.
The teams traded baskets as Saskatchewan forward D’andre Bernard hit a corner three to put them within two points of victory. Adel tied the game at 90 with a floater before Carr hit the winning free throws.
The Rattlers and BlackJacks both shot 45 per cent from the field but the BlackJacks shot 50 per cent from three compared to the Rattlers’ 34 per cent. Saskatchewan was led by Lindsey (26 points, four threes), Bandoo (25 points, six rebounds, two steals) and Carr (23 points, nine assists, eight rebounds) as they move to 8-8.
“The game was a step in the right direction,” Carr noted. “We won. We had a great first half and we stuck together when it got tough in the second half.”
He noted how Ottawa’s performance improved in the second half. “They made more shots, they moved the ball well,” he said. “They just bounced back.”
Carr also had takeaways about his team’s performance. “When we play defence and move the ball, we can be a very good team and we can take that experience in the second half…we stuck together, so the more we do that, the more we face adversity, the better we’ll be,” he noted.
The BlackJacks are now 5-10, having lost two games in a row. Green led the team with 22 points while Edosowman (17 points, 13 rebounds) and Gray (16 points, nine rebounds, six assists) made major contributions off the bench.
Green noted how the team lost their intensity in the late first quarter after a great start. “I just felt like our intensity picked up,” Green said of their fourth quarter comeback. “We were getting stops. Eve ryone was in tune and talking…we’ve got to keep it like that for all four quarters.”
The Rattlers host the Guelph Nighthawks in their final home game of the regular season on July 21. The BlackJacks travel to Fraser Valley on July 17 to finish their road trip.
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