CCAA Bronze Medallists
The Mariners complete a 21-point comeback to defeat St. Clair Saints 109-100 for national bronze
Story: CCAA [original source]
The Vancouver Island University (VIU) Mariners will head back to Nanaimo, BC, with hardware, coming back from a 21-point deficit to defeat the St. Clair Saints 109-100 to capture the bronze medal at the 2023 CCAA Men's Basketball National Championship.
It's the fourth national medal for the Mariners in 11 seasons under CCAA Coach of the Year Matt Kuzminski, which also includes two titles (2013, 2019) and a silver medal in 2015.
Landon Radliff, one of three fifth-year Mariners completing their post-secondary eligibility, earned player of the game honours for VIU with a team-high 31 points to go with seven assists and five rebounds, while fellow graduating players Richard Henderson (27 points, 13 rebounds, three steals) and CCAA All-Canadian Tori Odom (eight points, five assists) each made their mark on the contest; Akoi Yuot also played a pivotal role in the comeback with a monstrous 30-point, 15-rebound performance.
For St. Clair, CCAA All-Canadian Shakael Pryce picked up player of the game recognition with a game-high 32 points to go with five rebounds and four assists, while Jalen Harmon added 13 points, six rebounds and three assists as he wrapped up his post-secondary playing career; Terence Williams and Darnelle Peddie also posted 10 points apiece.
The Saints opened up the game on a 7-0 run spanning the opening three minutes of the first quarter, only for the Mariners to push back and bring the game to within two later in the frame. However, Peddie went on an 8-0 run by himself to push the Saints lead out further, eventually ending the quarter up 26-13.
An early second quarter timeout briefly energized the Mariners as they cut into St. Clair's lead, only for the Saints to lock in on defence to extend their lead, forcing VIU into another timeout with 3:52 left and the Saints up 41-22. The rest of the quarter opened up considerably after that, with the Saints taking a 58-39 lead into halftime, with their lead stretching as far as 21 at one point.
VIU then executed a dominant third quarter, almost completely erasing the deficit within five minutes as they stormed back to get within one of the Saints at 64-63. After St. Clair briefly settled things down, the Mariners provided yet another pushback, taking their first lead of the game with 1:53 left on a floater from Odom in the lane, though the Saints would escape the quarter with a slim 75-74 lead.
The fourth was largely a back-and-forth struggle on both sides, with neither side letting the other get ahead by more than two possessions most of the way. However, the Mariners ultimately achieved the separation they needed to wrap the game up through a 10-2 run to push their lead to 101-93 with 1:32 remaining.
