The Langara Falcons came up a little short in their attempt to win a third consecutive PacWest men鈥檚 basketball championship in Abbotsford March 7. The Falcons lost 82-76 to the rival 麻豆传媒映画Island University Mariners.
鈥淲e are obviously very disappointed, but VIU is a very talented team and are more than worthy of the title,鈥� said head coach Paul Eberhardt in a release. 鈥淲e are also excited that we will still be going to nationals as a wildcard team and we will have an opportunity to defend our title.鈥�
Langara was the only team to hand the Mariners a defeat this season. They won the CCAA championship last year and won bronze in 2013.
The PacWest championship final between Langara and VIU was a rematch from the two previous seasons.
Both teams pushed the pace from the get-go, and VIU took the upper hand with a 25-17 lead until Langara鈥檚 Montell Lindgren heaved a shot from behind centre, making the net swish as the buzzer sounded and cutting the lead to five points. The pace slowed slightly in the second quarter but VIU hit the game鈥檚 second buzzer-beating near-centre shot to lead 42-39 at the half.
The fourth started from a 58-apiece deadlock, but after VIU hit back-to-back three-pointers, the Falcons spent the rest of the night playing catch-up.
The Falcons trailed by three points with 40 seconds to go. After missing a short jumper and fouling to draw out the clock, Langara could not get any closer and lost by six points.
鈥淲e had a bit of a mental lapse to start the fourth and they took advantage big time,鈥� said Eberhardt.
Elliot Mason led the Falcons with 29 points, six rebounds and four assists. Garrett Ling-Lee scored a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards.
The Falcons travel to Hamilton, Ont. Next week for the CCAA national championships at Mohawk College March 19 to 21.聽
With files from Langara.
