SHERIDAN 88, FANSHAWE 79 (FINAL)

BRAMPTON, Ont. - While they could never put the hammer down when they had chances to put the game away, the Sheridan Bruins men's basketball team (9-3, 1-0 OCAA) still made enough plays to defeat Fanshawe 88-79 in their OCAA West Conference opener.

"I thought we were going to pull away there for a bit, but Fanshawe played well tonight," assistant coach Dave Ferencina said. "We were okay, we played well too and we didn't bend when they got to within seven [points]. We stuck with it and we had a good, hard-fought win."

A slow start saw the double-blue in an early 12-4 hole, but they responded with a 23-2 run -- triggered by a 7-0 run from Khalid Abdel-Gabar and capped by a pair of three pointers from Muzher Mirza -- to end the first quarter.

Sheridan was able to maintain that 13 point edge through the second frame -- where neither side was able to score more than five unanswered points -- and held a 50-37 advantage at halftime.

In the third quarter, Fanshawe was able to chip away at their deficit, getting within eight points, but going into the final quarter they still trailed by double-digits, 70-60.

The Bruins pushed the lead to 15, but a 13-5 run from Fanshawe cut it to seven points before a Sheridan free throws sealed the victory.

Abdel-Gabar had a game-high 22 points, while Denmark McDonald (21), Allan Anderson (12) and Orlando Palmer (11) were all in double figures.

The club has a quick turnaround, hosting their rivals from Humber on November 5 (8pm).

Source: Sheridan I.T.