No. 10 Spartans down No. 7 MRU 76-68 to advance to quarter-finals

VICTORIA, B.C. – The No. 10 Spartans of Trinity Western completed the upset, taking down the Mount Royal Cougars, 76-68, in the opening play-in round of the Canada West men's basketball playoffs. 

The Spartans were in control for most of the contest, leading by double digits until the Cougars made a late push. Trinity Western's veteran group leaned on their experience in the clutch, not wavering at every comeback attempt Mount Royal threw at them. 

"It's playoff basketball. It's never easy. 
They're a really scrappy team, and we knew that coming in. So, they fought right to the end, which is the battle, and I'm proud of our guys. We've got some veteran guys on this team. 
So, like, we show up, and I was proud of Connor. In his fifth year, he had 10 tonight. Tyus had nine. Those guys were great. 
And obviously, Jack, he's been an all-star all year, I thought. Just such an incredible shooter. He had seven threes in the first three quarters, which was huge. So, super happy for him."

The game opened with a high-octane first quarter, both teams playing an offensive intensity that saw both units finding success in scoring early. Trinity Western was the first to sustain a scoring run that saw the Spartans build a seven-point lead. Mount Royal fought back with a run of their own, erasing the deficit and engaging in a back-and-forth first quarter.

Connor Platz was facilitating the offence, dishing the basketball and adding timely buckets. Platz and the Spartans' offence sparked a 10-2 scoring run that shifted the game's momentum heading into halftime.  The Spartans' defence was the story of the second quarter, holding the Cougars offensive unit to eight points, securing an 11-point halftime lead.

Mount Royal made a run to open the quarter, capped off by a Kuach Gajak dunk that cut the Spartans' lead to six points. The Spartans began to find their range, sparking a two-minute scoring onslaught that saw their lead stretched to 13 points at the halfway mark of the third quarter.

The ball movement of the Spartans was creating scoring opportunities, and they were capitalizing. A Connor Platz basket off of a beautiful Tyus Devries pass had the Spartans at their largest lead of the game, ahead 63-46. The Cougars would not go away quietly, finding their groove on the defensive end, which they were turning into scoring chances. The Cougars' tenacity and ability to create turnovers found them down 10 with six minutes to play. 

"Tomorrow, it doesn't get any easier. 
The Vikes are the number one team in the country; they've been that way, basically, all year, and we've seen them a lot, so we know what they are, but they're really good. Going to be a fun atmosphere, I imagine. It's always fun to play in CARSA."

The Spartans will return to CARSA Performance Gym for their matchup against the No. 1-seeded Victoria Vikes tomorrow, February 14, at 7 p.m. PT.

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