Kajan Thiruthanikasalam (Sports Writer, Centennial College)
SCARBOROUGH, ONT.- The hype in the regular season finale between the Durham Lords and the Centennial Colts died down quickly in the first half as the Lords took a 24 point lead but the noise level rose right back up when the Colts came all the way back in the third quarter.
Unfortunately, when Durham went on yet another run in the fourth quarter, Centennial didn't have the juice for another comeback.
Brandon Halliburton and Funsho Dimeji led the way for Durham with 19 points each as they beat Centennial, 81-64, in front of a packed house at the Athletic and Wellness Centre. All five starters scored in double figures for the Lords, who combined for 71 of the 81 points.
Dimeji finished with a game high 13 rebounds while Trea Lawson had 12 points and Andre Barrow scored 11. Julian Hinckson finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds while Barrow and Halliburton had a team high four assists.
Meanwhile, for Centennial, only two players scored in double figures. Kendell Wilson finished with a game high 25 points on six made triples while Walshak Yusef finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds, with 16 of them coming in the first half.
"Walshak has been consistent on the glass; he converted on many of our missed shots (at) the rim," head coach Trevor Challenger said. "Kendell shot the ball extremely well tonight; I think he found his rhythm by being patient and aggressive."
Jahshua McFarlane finished with a game high seven assists while Bailey Burton had a game high three steals in the loss.
Durham jumped onto Centennial early, as they broke a 6-6 tie with a 19-0 run, before a layup from McFarlane ended the run. Yusef scored the first six points for the Colts but Halliburton had eight first quarter points as the Lords were up 27-8 after one.
A long two from Halliburton gave Durham a 32-8 lead, their largest of the game, before the Colts closed out the first half on a 19-0 run, capped off by a buzzer beating putback from Yusef, who had 10 second quarter points while Wilson hit three triples during the quarter as Centennial only trailed 34-30 at the half.
A free throw from Wilson and a corner three from Dennis stretched the run to 23-0 as the Colts tied the game at 34 and eventually took the lead at 38-37 after a layup from Wilson, their first lead since 4-2. It was the last lead Centennial would have as Durham then scored the next seven points to take the lead for good. Despite seven points in the quarter from Wilson, the Lords went on a 10-2 run to go up 54-44 heading into the final frame.
Durham then continued the onslaught to start the fourth quarter as they extended their lead to 20 (67-47). Consecutive threes from Wilson momentarily gave the Colts as they cut the lead to 11 with three minutes to go but it was as close as they would get.
HIGHLIGHTS
Despite committing 33 turnovers and being outscored 21-15 from behind the arc, Durham had the edge over Centennial in field goal percentage (43.1-30.7), assists (18-14) and blocks (3-0). But the two biggest differences, in terms of stats, came on the glass (69-37) and at the charity stripe (14-3).
It turned into a dunk fest for Dimeji, who had four during the game, including a massive putback dunk to put an exclamation point in the game, as Durham went up 80-60. The Lords ended the season, finishing third in the OCAA East with a 15-5 record.
Before the game, the Colts athletic department honoured Burton, Daniel Humphrey, Hussein Mahdi, and Yusef as part of Seniors Night.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR CENTENNIAL
The Centennial Colts ended the regular season fourth in the OCAA East with a 13-7 record. Challenger knows that this sort of up-and-down effort against the Lords cannot happen on Sunday afternoon (Feb. 25) at 3:00pm as they prepare to host the Lambton Lions for their crossover match, with the winner advancing to provincials.