MONTREAL – Alexis Messier of Gatineau, Que., paced McGill with 12 points as the Redbirds outlasted UQAM 59-53 in men's university basketball at the Centre Sportif, Thursday.
 
The game featured a whopping 49 turnovers, including 27 by UQAM. McGill, which had a 50-40 edge in rebounding, led 19-12 after the opening quarter, 36-28 at halftime and 51-43 after three. The Citadins narrowly won the last frame by a 10-8 margin.
 
"It's been a tough start to the season, based on what we've been through thus far, so we're definitely happy to get a win tonight, but not really (pleased) with the way we won," said McGill head coach Ryan Thorne. "I don't think that we were hungry enough."

Messier, a 21-year-old economics sophomore who led the Redbirds with 33 minutes of court time, was 5-for-11 from the floor and 1-for-2 from the line. The 6-foot-2 shooting-guard added four rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
 
His points total was the lowest for a high scorer in a regular season or playoff victory by McGill in 150 games, dating back to Feb. 16, 2017, when Jenning Leung tallied a team-leading dozen in a 72-45 conquest at Concordia.
 
"Alexis is shooting the ball well and playing with confidence," Thorne said. "He's a second year player who's coming into his own. He understands his role and is committed to it. Most importantly for me is that he's really working hard on the defensive side as well. He is trying and fighting hard. He's going to make a few mistakes but his effort has been the thing that has stood out the most to me."

Other leading McGill scorers included Joshua Soifer (9), Sean Herscovitch (8) and sniper Georges Lefebvre, who was held to a season-low seven points but pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds.

McGill had 26 points off the bench, compared to 18 by the Citadins.
 
"We've got a good young corps and they are talented," said Thorne, whose rebuilt roster features six freshman, 10 sophomores, one junior and only one senior. "The issue is our youth and building chemistry, so we're going to have some mistakes and gaps in what we're supposed to do in certain situations. Our bench is capable and now we have to come together more as a group."

Leading the way for UQAM was Karl-Tommy Laforest, who registered a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Teammate Yiscovakis Hilaire added 11 points.
 
McGill shot 32.9 per cent from the floor (23/70), went 5-for-16 from the arc and shot 8-for-16 from the charity stripe. The Citadins connected on 37.5 per cent from the field (21/56), went 6-for-27 from long distance and 5-for-13 on their freebies.
 
The result avenged a 66-61 loss to UQAM in their last rendezvous and improved McGill's lifetime record against the Citadins to 53-38 in 91 meetings overall. It also halted a four-game losing streak in league play for the Redbirds, who hadn't won since their season-opening victory over Laval. McGill improved to 2-4 in the RSEQ conference. They have now moved into a three-way tie for third place with both Laval (2-4) and UQAM (2-5).
 
The local rivals have now split their first two meetings and will tango again on Saturday (Jan. 11) with a 6 p.m. tip-off at Love Competition Hall.
 
BOXSCORE
 
RSEQ STATS & STANDINGS
 
U SPORTS STANDINGS & STATS
 
 
SOURCE
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
TEL:514-983-7012
E-MAIL: earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca