The St. Denis Centre was rocking Saturday afternoon as the Windsor Lancers tipped off their 2017-18 season against the Guelph Gryphons. The Lancers were able to start off 1-0 with a 90-80 victory over the Guelph Gryphons on Mike Rocca's 33-point performance.
 
GAME STATS
Third year guard Randy Oriakhi recorded a double-double, netting 12 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in 23 minutes of action, while senior point guard Mike Rocca shot 50 per cent from beyond the arc, going 8/16 on the game and also hitting a double-double with 11 rebounds.
 
The Gryphons had five players hit double digits and were led by starter Taylor Boers with 15 points. Daniel Dooley and Aaron Nugent both hit 12 points, while Banky Alade had 11 and Andrew Grant chipped in 10.
 
The Gryphons held the Lancers to 42 per cent shooting while scoring on 47 per cent of their shots. Windsor finished the game with 21 assists on 82 shots while Guelph assisted only four of 71 field goal attempts.
 
GAME FLOW
The game started off quick with both teams trading field goals, showing all the energy and excitement you'd expect in a season opener.  The Lancers were lead early by Rocca's impressive first half. Rocca shot 6/10 from three-point land and led all scorers with 23 at the half. Guelph was paced by Banky Alade who led the Gryphons in points at the half 11, shooting 5/7 from the field in 14 minutes of action. The Lancers lead 51-41 at halftime.
 
The third quarter started much slower and calculated with the Gryphons opening the second half on a 7-0 run to trim the lead. The Gryphon also made a concerted effort to slow the three-point barrage of Rocca, holding him to 2/6 from beyond the arc in the second half.  Despite this Rocca was able to hit a dagger three with just under a minute left.
 
Strong interior play by Randy Oriakhi allowed the Lancers to bleed out the clock with a 90-80 lead to move to 1-0 on the young season.
 
UP NEXT
Windsor is back home next weekend for a pair of games against the Ryerson Rams and Toronto Varsity Blues. Windsor tips off against the Rams on Friday November 3rd at 8:00pm and 4:00pm on Saturday November 4th against the Blues. Both games can be seen live on www.oua.tv, while the Friday night contest can also be viewed LIVE on YourTV.