MONTREAL – Junior Mercy scored a game-high 17 points as division-leading Concordia defeated McGill 72-51 in men's basketball, Thursday, to capture the sixth annual George Lengvari Cup rivalry game before a near-capacity crowd at the John Dore Court.
 
The result halted McGill's string of four consecutive Cup victories and was Concordia's second-ever win in this annual grudge match and the first since taking the inaugural game in 2019.
 
The game also featured the final collegiate confrontation between a pair of siblings on opposite sides, both of them point-guards from Gatineau, Que. Alec Phaneuf, a starting Concordia senior, finished with four points to get the upper hand over his younger brother Matt Phaneuf, a McGill sophomore who was kept off the scoresheet. Both were called upon to perform the ceremonial tipoff, which was won demonstrably by Matt.

The Redbirds frittered away an early seven-point lead and found themselves trailing 23-15 after the opening quarter.

The second stanza proved to be disastrous for the visitors who were outscored 22-4 as the Stingers took a 45-19 advantage into halftime. The four points was the team's lowest offensive quarterly output in league play since Feb. 23, 2013 when McGill scored four in the opening quarter of a 59-44 loss at UQAM. The Redbirds bounced back to win the third quarter 20-11 but Concordia took the final period 16-12.
 
Noah Sincere and Georges Lefebvre scored 15 and 14 points, respectively, to pace the Redbirds.
 
The annual game pays tribute to George Lengvari, Jr., a benefactor for both basketball programs and for whom the Cup is named. He overcame the burden of being raised in a refugee camp, emigrated to Canada and played varsity basketball for both schools while earning a business degree at Loyola and a law degree from McGill. A Hall of Fame inductee at both institutions, Lengvari had a very successful business career, serving as a financial advisor for numerous athletes, including hockey's Jean Beliveau and baseball's Gary Carter.
 
The Stingers (13-2), who wore "Loyola" branded jerseys in recognition of one of their co-founding institutions, will conclude their schedule on Feb. 22 at fourth-place Laval (4-11). Meanwhile, the Redbirds (2-13) will look to halt a nine-game losing streak when they close out their season on the road against third-place UQAM (5-10) in the regular season finale, on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3 p.m.
 
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SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
McGill Athletics and Recreation
(514) 983- 7012
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
www.mcgillathletics.ca