Big second half powers X-Men past Tigers

ANTIGONISH, NS - The STFX X-Men scored 52 points in the second half to pull off a 90-76 come from behind win over the visiting Dalhousie Tigers Friday night on Coach K Court.

With the victory, their fifth in a row, the X-Men (10-3) move into the top spot in the AUS, as second place Acadia fell to Memorial earlier in the evening. 

The X-Men ran out of the gate with 9 straight points in the first two minutes. The Tigers replied with five in a row from the free-throw line and chipped away at the lead to tie things up with two minutes to go. A jumper from Lydell Husbands gave Dalhousie their first lead in the game, and another made it 25-22 going into the second quarter. 

The pace slowed down in the second stanza, while the Tigers held a two-point advantage four minutes in. A layup from Austin Thomson and free throws from Husbands made it a 9- point game two minutes later, and the Tigers finished the half holding a 42-38 advantage. 

The X-Men stormed back onto the court with a 14-4 run to pull ahead of the Tigers, capped off with a highlight dunk from Koat Thomas. It was back and forth for the rest of the quarter, which ended with STFX up 61-59. 

AUS leading scorer DJ Jackson knocked down four points from in close to open the final stanza and added a couple more enroute to a 16-6 STFX run in the first five minutes. The X-Men continued making stops while hitting shots, dropping 29 points in the quarter as they pulled away with the win. 

Player of the game Nicolas Niare picked up 18 points, three blocks and eight rebounds on the night. Jackson netted a game-high 20 points, with five assists and four steals, while Husbands also finished with 20 points for the Tigers.  

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Recap courtesy Matt Draper, STFX Athletics