Panthers head back to the AUS final after 80-65 win over Tigers

(HALIFAX, N.S.) - For the second season in a row, the UPEI Panthers are playing in the AUS title-deciding game.

The Panthers (2nd seed) broke through in the second half for a 80-65 win over the Dalhousie Tigers (3rd seed) in the 2023 Subway AUS Men's Basketball Championship semifinals. 

After being limited to one basket in the first quarter, Subway player of the game, the Panther's Elijah Miller (Rexdale, Ont.) showed why he was recently named the most valuable player of the regular season. Miller finished the game with 29 points, four assists, and four rebounds. 

UPEI's Dakelle Brooks (East Preston, N.S.) started off the scoring in an entertaining first quarter, with both teams going back and forth early on. A pair of Dalhousie three-pointers from Samuel Maillet (Moncton, N.B.) and Malcolm Christie (Fredericton, N.B.) got the hometown Halifax crowd into it early. 

It was the Panthers with a one-point lead through the first quarter, with third-year guard Kamari Scott (Malton, Ont.) leading the way with five points and four rebounds.

After a lull in baskets late in the second quarter, both teams picked up the tempo with a slam dunk from Christie immediately followed by UPEI with an end-to-end layup from Elijah Miller, then a return layup by DAL from Shamar Burrows (Nassau, Bahamas). 

The Panthers gradually built an 11-point lead, helped out by Miller displaying his game-changing attributes with back-to-back three-pointers. But the Tigers responded with 10 unanswered points at the end of the half to once again make it a one-point game. During that push, Joshua Koulamallah (Gatineu, Que.) had five points and finished the half with a team-high 12 points. 

The Panthers went to the Scotiabank Centre dressing room with a 36-35 lead at halftime. 

UPEI controlled play early in the third quarter with 13 unanswered points to once again build a lead. Miller picked up where he left off in the second quarter, eight points in the run. Another Malcolm Christie dunk brought the rush of points to a stop but the Panthers kept the pressure on, helped by a pair of baskets by Kamari Scott (Malton, Ont.).  

After 30 points in the third quarter, UPEI went into the final quarter with a 66-48 lead. Dalhousie's first team all-star Nginyu Ngala (Montreal, Que.) provided a late spark for the Tigers, with eight points in the fourth quarter as the Tigers outscored then Panthers 17-14. 

UPEI faces the top-seeded STFX X-Men in the final, Sunday, February 26 at 4 p.m. The X-Men secured a berth in the final with a 94-68 win over CBU on Saturday. Watch both finals of the 2023 Subway AUS Basketball Championships on AUStv.ca.

Source: Jonathan Briggins