After his first year at the helm of the Windsor Lancers men's basketball program, head coach Chris Cheng has the blue and gold back in the OUA playoffs after a one year hiatus.
 
In year one, the Lancers picked up some impressive wins, including two against U SPORTS top 10 teams in Laurentian (7)  and Lakehead (8).  The season represents a solid foundation for coach Cheng's program, but the work isn't done as the Lancers head to Sudbury for a post season battle against the Laurentian Voyageurs.
 
GAME DETAILS
WHAT: OUA First Round vs Laurentian Voyageurs
WHEN: Wednesday, February 19, 2020 – 8:00pm
WHERE: Sudbury, ON
LIVE STREAM: www.oua.tv
 
"It's great to be back in the playoffs after a one year absence," noted Cheng. "it feels good to get the program back to the standard of making the post season."
 
The Lancers have their work cut out for them if they want to do more than just show up in the post-season though. The Lancers have a long road trip north and when they get there, they'll have to deal with the No. 8 Voyageurs as well as the OUA's leading scorer, Kadre Gray (23.8ppg). The blue and gold did it once, earning coach Cheng his first OUA win with the Lancers, but he knows things are different now.

"I think that was our first OUA win," reminisced the coach before quickly turning back to the present. "That was a long time ago, we're looking forward now. Laurentian is a very different team. Their rotations are tighter and they're much more aggressive."
 
Tighter rotations aren't the only thing the Lancers have to worry about, it's also how to defend the province's best scorer.
 
"We've got a big task at hand," explained Cheng. "He (Gray) is a very good player, he scores a lot but he's also a willing passer and makes those around him a lot better. I think if we can force him to pass that will be good for us, but he's so talented at that, we'll have to worry about who he's passing it to as well."
 
The Lancers like their group heading into the game though. Windsor haa a league leader on the boards in Thomas Kennedy, who leads the OUA with 11.7 rebounds per game. Kennedy, standing at 6'9 and being the tenacious rebounder he is, fits perfectly into the Lancers favourite lineup, the small one.
 
"I'm really happy with our roster," said Cheng. "the guys we have here have allowed us to play smaller. We've been able to play smaller and open more driving lanes that way, we can go inside and out."
 
The Lancers will try and take down Gray and his Voyageurs on Wednesday, February 19th at 8:00 p.m. in Sudbury. Catch the playoff action live at www.OUA.tv.