The Brandon University men’s basketball is behind the post-season eight ball after dropping a 77-69 decision against the Winnipeg Wesmen in Canada West action on Thursday night at the Healthy Living Centre.
The Bobcats are now 10 points behind the U-of-W for the final playoff spot in the Prairie Division.
"I think we got a lot of heart and a lot of leadership in that room," coach Gil Cheung told CKLQ’s Tyler Crayston. "We got seven games left. I’m not very good at math, but I would think we would have to win the last seven or go 6-1. You hate playing these mind games, you need help from this guy, that guy. We didn’t take care of business."
Ilarion Bonhomme scored a team-high 16 points while Jordan Reaves recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds for BU, who saw their record slip to 5-10.
"We were good in the first quarter, we held them to six points and then all hell broke loose. They got 24 in the second and 31 in the fourth. We just broke down as a team and didn’t stay together," said Reaves.
Meanwhile, the Brandon University women’s team’s 24-10 fourth quarter rally came up short in a 58-54 loss.
Kaela Cranston collected a game-high 23 points for the Lady ‘Cats, who were held scoreless in the second-quarter.
"Your back is up against the wall and you can either pack it in or you can dig in a little bit deeper and play harder," said coach Novell Thomas. "I can’t remember what triggered the run, but I think it was just us getting out and pressuring, trapping and forcing them into some awkward situations. That’s probably one of the few things we can take away from this game."
"We didn’t come out our strongest, that’s for sure," said Cranston. "The second quarter, we didn’t score and that killed us. The third quarter was a bit better and the fourth was finally how we can play."
Brandon saw their three-game conference winning streak come to an end and sit with a mark of 5-10.
Cassie Cooke was next with 13 points for the Lady ‘Cats.