Rustlers Men's Basketball | Weekend Recap - Feb 28 & 29, 2020
The Rustlers men's basketball team suffered two losses to the Concordia Thunder this past weekend in the final weekend of the regular season.
On Friday night in Edmonton the Rustlers would fall to the Thunder 69-91.
The Rustlers would trail the Thunder by 4 points at the end of the first quarter and were only down 5 points at the half. They seemed to be pacing themselves well with the Thunder until the second half of the game.
In the third quarter, the gap began to widen to 11, and in the fourth quarter, the Thunder would pull away with a 22-point lead to finish the game.
The Rustler effort was led by third-year forward, Kwantez Simmons with 19 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal, earning him player of the game honors. Paul-Smith Profit had 9 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist for the Rustlers, and third-year guard, Rashon Russel had 9 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal.
Fifth-year guard, Ricardo Joseph had 8 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal, and fifth-year guard, Terrell Murdaugh had 7 points, and 3 rebounds.
On Saturday, the Rustlers looked to bounce back on homecourt in their final game of the season. The Rustlers would ultimately lose to the Thunder 74-84.
The Thunder would have a strong start, and at the end of the first quarter they led the Rustlers 22-17. The Rustlers gave a push back in the second quarter and at the half the led the Thunder by 1 point, 41-40.
The second quarter rush was led by Paul Smith-Profit with 7 points, fifth-year guard, Akeem Philllip with 6 points, and Kwantez Simmons with 5 points.
The Thunder would have a strong third quarter where the Rustlers would struggle defensively, allowing the Thunder to take an 8-point lead. The Rustlers would respond with a stronger fourth quarter, however, it wasn't enough to overpower the Thunder.
The Rustlers were led by fifth year guard, Ricardo Joseph with 17 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal. Paul-Smith Profit added 15 points, and 12 rebounds. Fifth-year guard, Akeem Phillip had 11 points, and 7 rebounds, and third-year forward, Kwantez Simmoms also had 11 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block.
Graduating players Terrell Murdaugh, Ricardo Joseph, Akeem Phillip, and Paul Smith-Profit were all awarded player of the game in their last home game as Rustlers athletes. Following the game, head coach Sheray Thomas took a few moments to recognize and celebrate the graduating players.
The Rustlers men's basketball team completed the regular season with a record of 9 wins, and 15 losses, putting them in 5th place in the North Division and just short of qualifying for the ACAC Conference Championships.