VANCOUVER, B.C. – A buzzer-beating three-point attempt from McGill rookie Daniel Pieper clanged off the rim, allowing the UBC Thunderbirds to escape with a nail-biting 69-68 victory over the Redmen, Friday, in the ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS men's basketball consolation semifinal held in front of 1,538 at the Doug Mitchell Sports Centre.

CIS CHAMPIONSHIP SCOREBOARD

Trailing by what appeared to be an insurmountable 16-point deficit just before halftime, the Redmen clawed their way back and silenced the hometown crowd with a storybook rally at the tail end of a fourth quarter that saw McGill outscore UBC 22-11.  With the Thunderbirds up 65-52 and 4:42 remaining in the fourth, McGill reeled off an unbelievable 14-3 run to pull even. Jenning Leung had one of the highlights down the stretch, at one point hitting a three-pointer, collecting a steal on the ensuing in-bounds pass and stepping back over the line for another triple, all within a 21-second stretch.

The Redmen took a 68-67 edge -- their only lead of the game -- with 91 seconds remaining. But UBC All-Canadian guard Jordan Jensen-Whyte of Calgary nailed a pair of free-throws with 19 seconds left to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

"I'm extremely proud of the way we came back in that game," said McGill head coach David DeAveiro, whose troops were making their sixth-ever appearance at the Nationals but third in the past four years. "The kids showed a lot of heart and character. It would've been easy for us to fold our tents and go away, and they showed who our identity is: just a hard-working team."

The Redmen trailed 25-15 after the first quarter, 43-27 at the half and 58-46 after three.

Leung and Dele Ogundokun each finished with 15 points.

Ogundokun, a third-year management student from Hamilton, Ont., led all players with 38 minutes of court time. He shot 5-for-14 from the field, including 2-for-6 from the three-point range, and sank half of his six free throws. The reigning RESQ defensive player of the year pulled down five rebounds, had a pair of assists and stole a game-high five balls.

Leung, a psychology junior from the Philippines, shot 50 per cent in every category, including a flashy 4-for-8 from beyond the arc and dropped two of four chances from the foul-line. He collected one offensive rebound and was credited with two assists and two steals.

Teammate Michael Peterkin, a 6-foot-4 guard from Toronto, nabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and scored eight points. He was 3-for-8 from the field and 2-for-4 from the stripe, and also blocked a shot.

With no medals on the line, DeAveiro opted to give some of the team's younger players the experience of a major game, rather than rely solely on his veterans. on the dozen who dressed, nine saw 10 minutes or more of court time. McGill's bench outscored UBC's subs by a 27-16 margin.

Avery Cadogan, a second-year guard from Winnipeg who made just four regular-season appearances and averaged seven minutes in league play, spent 17 minutes on the court and was one of three Redmen to reach double-digits in scoring with 10 points. He shot 2-for-4 overall, including 1-for-3 from downtown, and was a solid 5-for-6 from the line. He also grabbed two rebounds and was credited with an assist and a steal.

"It was important for them to play today and get a taste of what it's like on the big stage," DeAveiro explained. "I thought they were very good today and a big part of why we were able to come back and make it a game. The future looks good for those kids. This summer will be an important summer for all our guys in terms of how we progress and how we get better, but it leads to promise next year."

Francois Bourque of Terrebonne, Que., rounded out an impressive showing from third-year mainstays, with eight points, seven rebounds and three steals. The 6-foot-6 masked marvel, who suffered two broken noses during the season, was 3-for-7 overall, netted his only trey attempt of the game and was 1-for-2 from the charity stripe.

The Redmen had a 37-34 rebounding advantage, a 13-7 lead in steals and a 25-17 margin in turnovers, while the Thunderbirds held a slight 2-1 edge in blocks. McGill shot 35.5 per cent from the floor (22/62) and went 9-for-27 from three-point range but faltered from the free-throw line in the second half to finish 15-for-23 overall (65.2 per cent), after having shot 8-for-9 in the opening half. The T-Birds shot 49 per cent (24/49), made four of 14 from beyond the arc and sank 17 of 24 opportunities from the stripe.

"We were pretty good this year," offered DeAveiro, the RSEQ conference coach of the year who guided the team to a 22-11 record overall, including a sparkling 22-7 mark against CIS opponents and a 12-4 division-leading performance in league play. "I think we're getting closer. We played against two very good teams out west (at this tourney) and we had a chance to win both games. I was proud of what we're doing and I expect us to be competing for a provincial championship next year and back at Nationals in Halifax."

It marked the final contest in a McGill uniform for Tychon Carter-Newman of Brampton, Ont., who tranferred to McGill this season -- after four years at Laurentian University -- to do a master's degree in urban planning. Also putting a bookend on his collegiate career was team captain Vincent Dufort, a fifth-year physical education senior and four-time all-star guard from Smiths Falls, Ont.

Fifth-year senior David Wagner, a 6-foot-8 forward from Kamloops, B.C., was named player of the game for UBC with 21 points and six rebounds. He succeeded on a remarkable 75 per cent of his 12 chances from the field, was perfect on three opportunities from the line, and added two assists with a steal. Teammate Conor Morgan of Victoria, followed with 16 points. He shot 6-for-13, including 1-for-6 on three-pointers, and went 3-for-6 on freebies. He chipped in four rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals.
 
The Thunderbirds (1-1) will now play the Ottawa Gee-Gees (1-1) for fifth-place in the national tournament on Saturday.

SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times PACIFIC)

Thursday, March 17
Quarter-final 1: Carleton 91, Thompson Rivers 75
Quarter-final 2: Dalhousie 87, Ottawa 83
Quarter-final 3: Calgary 72, McGill 69
Quarter-final 4: Ryerson 109, UBC 101 (OT)

Friday, March 18
Consolation 1: Ottawa 78, Thompson Rivers 77
Consolation 2: UBC 69, McGill 68

Saturday, March 19
12:00 5th-place game Ottawa vs UBC (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
15:00 Semifinal 1: Carleton vs. Dalhousie (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) *
17:30 Semifinal 2: Calgary vs. Ryerson (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) *

Sunday, March 20
14:00 Bronze (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
17:30 Final (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) *

* Webcast of the semifinals & final are on pay-per-view basis.