LENNOXVILLE, Que -- Jamal Mayali scored a career-high 31 points and Antoney Bell registered a "double-double", as visiting McGill rallied to upset No. 9 ranked Bishop's 81-74 in a hotly contested RSEQ men's basketball game, Thursday, before a hostile crowd at the Mitchell Gym.
 
McGill (2-1) has now won four straight against Bishop's (1-2) since an 86-81 defeat on Jan. 26, 2018.
 
In a back-and-forth game where the largest lead was only eight points, McGill held a 24-19 advantage after the opening quarter. Bishop's reclaimed a 41-37 edge at halftime and extended it to 61-56 after three but collapsed in the final frame as McGill outscored them 25-13. McGill shot 62.5 per cent from the floor in the fourth quarter to turn a 61-56 deficit into victory. Bishop's shot just 29.4 per cent during the quarter.
 
"It's probably one of the hardest places for us to play," said McGill heach coach David DeAveiro, whose troops have now taken three of their last four outings at the Mitchell Gym. "Their fans are great and its a good atmosphere to be in. To come out with a win on the road here, you really gotta be tough mentally. Down the stretch of that game, I thought that was the difference for us. We dug in defensively and kept them to only 13 points in the fourth quarter."

Mayali, a 6-foot-4, 180-pound junior guard from Toronto, shot a dominant 13-for-25 from the floor, sank four of eight treys, and was 1-for-3 on free-throws. He collected six rebounds, three assists, two blocks and three steals in an astonishing 38 minutes of court time. It bettered his previous game high of 28 points, set during his sophomore season in a 76-70 win against Toronto on April 10, 2019. The 21-year-old political science major concluded the soiree with a key free-throw to put McGill ahead by seven with just 30 seconds remaining, to all but put the game out of reach for Bishop's.

"Jamal's been our most consistent and best player since the regular season started and he just continued what he's been doing," said DeAveiro, who improved to his lifetime record to 397-259 overall in 19 years at McGill and Ottawa. "He contributes at both ends of the floor and he's getting rewarded for it."
 
Bell, a sophomore from Kitchener, Ont., added 18 points with a game-high 11 rebounds in 19 minutes of playing time off the bench. He shot 6-for-11 in field-goals and went 4-for-6 from the line.

"He's been fighting some injuries early in the season and finally got a chance to play," noted DeAveiro. "He settled a little early in the first half but really came alive in the second half."

Five Gaiters reached double digits, led by Nervens Demosthene of Terrebonne, Que., and Ibrahim Ngom from Montreal with 15 points each. Contributing 13 points apiece were teammates Joany Castor-Thadal and Jordan Thornhill, while Abdul Kamane added 10. 
 
Bishop's had a 49-46 edge in rebounds but McGill had the upper hand in blocked shots (6-4) and steals (13-6).

"It was great for our guys to come in here and beat Bishop's on their court after a tough loss on the road at UQAM last week," added DeAveiro. "It was important for our guys to learn how to play a tough game on the road. People tend to forget that this is a really young group. This was a good test for them."
 
McGill shot 43.8 per cent from the field (32/73), made nine of 23 attempts from three-point range and went 8-for-17 from the line. Bishop's shot 36.1 from the floor (26/72), went 9-for-32 from downtown and 13-for-23 on free-throws.
 
Both teams return to the court on the weekend as McGill (1-2) hosts Concordia (3-0) in an alumni Homecoming Game, on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 4 p.m. The game will be preceded by a 3-on-3 tournament between McGill hoops alumni, followed by a post-game reception. It will also be the back end of a rare doubleheader split that has the women's game being played at Concordia in a 2 p.m. tip-off.

The next day, Bishop's (1-2) travels to Quebec City to confront winless Laval (0-3).

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