Titans turn heads in loss
Aud rockin’ as league’s top team wins with buzzer-beating shot
KITCHENER — Hockey took a holiday on Friday night.
And so, it was basketball night in Kitchener as the expansion Kitchener-Waterloo Titans took over the Aud for a contest against the defending National Basketball League of Canada champs, the Halifax Hurricanes.
Since the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers were out of town on a business trip, the Titans moved into hallowed Rangers’ Friday night territory at the Aud. And the results were impressive as 2,071 fans turned out to watch a head-turning 102-100 Titans’ loss.
Titans centre Paul Cooper’s put-back with five seconds left tied the contest to bring the house down. But Mike Poole’s long-range, buzzer-beater delivered the Hurricanes their 15th win in 18 games this season.
On this night, Halifax staged a secondquarter rally to overcome an 11-point K-W lead, as the visitors held a 53-50 edge at the break.
But scrappy K-W responded with a spirited 11-0 run to start the third. And the lead changed hands a total seven times before Poole’s dagger.
“It was a tough loss, you know. Both teams fought like dogs,” said Cooper after his gameleading 23-point performance.
“We picked ourselves up. We held together. We will stick with it.”
K-W went without a pair of starters on Friday, as point guard and leading scorer Ricky Tarrant rested (bruised kneecap) as did Adam Wing (pulled groin).
Jamell Harris (lower body) also missed Friday’s game for the short-staffed Titans.
The defending champs were as advertised.
“Halifax is in first place for a reason,” said Titans coach Serge Langis. “They execute extremely well.”
Poole led the charge for the Hurricanes with 18 points. Billy White and Tyrone Watson scored 14 each for Halifax.
Jason Calliste and Kevin Foster scored 17 and 16, respectively for the hosts.
The Titans, who fall to 7-11, were well aware they were playing before a largely borrowed crowd. And they intended to leave a lasting impression.
“Friday could be a key date. Once the K-W community sees us for the first time, things could really turn a corner,” Langis said before the game. His Titans have averaged about 1,000 fans for home dates so far.
The Hurricanes blew into Kitchener Friday for the first of their three-game sweep through the Central Division in four days.
The Titans’ biggest crowd so far, an audience of 2,238, took in the team’s opener on Boxing Day, as the hosts fell in their inaugural regular-season game 110-105 to the Orangeville A’s.
Stingy on defence, Halifax sits atop the loop in team defence, allowing a league-best 98.6 points per outing.
“We get back to it tomorrow,” said Cooper, of Auburndale, Fla., who added a game-high 10 rebounds in a losing cause.
With the Kitchener Rangers on a weekend road swing, the Titans take to the court at the Aud again on Sunday for a 2 p.m. start against fellow expansion team, the Cape Breton Highlanders.
In other NBLC action Friday, Prince Edward Island dumped Saint John 113-109 and Cape Breton absorbed a 113-92 loss in Windsor.