MONTREAL -- Sebastian Beckett of Georgetown, Ont., scored 15 points as sixth-ranked McGill defeated UQAM 74-57 to close the regular season of RSEQ men's basketball, Saturday, at Love Competition Hall. In an emotional pre-game ceremony, the Redmen paid tribute to a half-dozen graduating seniors.

The red-hot Redmen swept the season series with the Citadins and will ride a seven-game win streak into the playoffs. They wrap up the campaign with a 14-2 record and the top post-season seeding. McGill's record matches the team mark accomplished in 2013-14, which was their highest win total since going 16-5 in 1971-72.

McGill led 21-15 after the first quarter and 44-21 at the intermission but gave up ground in the second half, and was outscored 19-15 and 17-15.

"UQAM came in with a very solid game plan, changing up their defence," explained Redmen head coach David DeAveiro, who improved to 165-106 in 271 games overall at McGill, including a 95-33 mark in regular season play.  "We struggled with it a little bit. We didn't have much time to prepare for these guys. They gave us some problems and it's a good tape to go back and watch and learn from.

"With everything going on and the emotion today I don't think our focus was at its best," he added. "It's understandable. We wanted to make sure that we did a good job with the seniors (celebration) today and their presentations. But if we're going to have a game like this, it's better to have it now than in the playoffs."

Beckett, a 6-foot-6, 226-pound centre, shot 5-for-6 from the field, including a perfect 2-for-2 mark from three-point range, and was 3-for-8 from the charity stripe. He also pulled down seven rebounds, stole one ball and had an assist.

Daniel Pieper, a 6-foot-6, 195-pound forward from the Netherlands, followed with 13 points. He was also credited with one rebound, an assist, one block and a steal.

Francois Bourque, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound forward from Terrebonne, Que., earned nine points. He also collected four rebounds, one blocked shot and a pair of assists.

Beckett, Pieper and Bourque were three of the graduating seniors who were honoured, along with Jenning Leung, Dele Ogundokun and former Redmen player Jonathan Telfort, who was forced to retire midway through his sophomore season after a near-fatal collapse during a team practice with what was discovered to be a congenital heart defect.

"These guys all arrived at relatively the same time," said DeAveiro of the group. "And they came at a time when the program was starting to build. We had just won our first (league) championship and these young kids came in and made an impression right away by helping us win the next year, with three starting freshmen. They've kind of established a culture and a tradition here. The expectations for us when we go on the floor and how we play, they've created this culture. For them it's about leaving their legacy behind and making sure that when they graduate, the program's in good hands and the kids who are coming up know how we play and what our expectations are like.

"Here at McGill, our expectations are to win a championship every year. They don't change because our leaders graduate and move on. If anything, these young kids are taking over to make sure that they continue to carry that, the seniors and their legacy."

UQAM was led by Ibrahima Sylla's 15-point performance.

The Redmen shot 43.5 per cent from the field (27/62), including a 7-for-25 effort from downtown. They were a disappointing 13-for-31 on free throws (41.9 per cent). The Citadins shot 30.4 per cent from the field (21/69), 31.8 per cent from beyond the arc (7/22), and were 8-for-14 from the charity stripe.

UQAM had a 13-7 advantage in steals and a favourable 21-20 margin in turnovers. McGill had a 2-1 edge in blocks, while both teams corralled 42 rebounds.

The Redmen host Bishop's (5-11) at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 28 at Love Competition Hall in the single-elimination RSEQ conference semifinal.

"I think every coach as a few wrinkles that they haven't shown each other this year," said DeAveiro of the upcoming playoff match-up against the Gaiters, who handed McGill one of their two losses this season. "They're well-coached and they'll be well-prepared. I'm expecting a battle. They've got some good players and they shoot the ball fairly well, so they're going to be difficult to play against."

Laval (8-8) and Concordia (11-5) will tip-off that same evening. The winners of both games will compete in the final on March 3.

REDMEN RAP: Freshmen J.J. Hamel-Carey, a first-year transfer from the Victoria Vikes, dressed for the first time this season and only saw three minutes of action before being shaken up midway through the second quarter. He took a fall when driving to the basketball and UQAM's Heman Toussaint accidently fell on him. Hamel-Carey was down for nearly three minutes before walking off to the clinic. He did not return... Among the faces in the crowd for the game were a number of former Redmen all-stars, including Rick Rusk, Simon Bibeau and Vincent Dufort.