Griffins can't dig out of early hole after ultra slow start as they fall 95-64 to Bisons
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
8 | 22 | 16 | 18 | 64 |
|
|
28 | 20 | 28 | 19 | 95 |
Team Stats
Manitoba
| Game Statistics | MacEwan University | Manitoba |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (22-67) | (36-68) |
| Field Goal % | 32.8% | 52.9% |
| Rebounds | 34 | 47 |
| Assists | 18 | 25 |
| Turnovers | 17 | 17 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 15 | 23 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 11 | 14 |
| Pts in the Paint | 26 | 44 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 4 | 8 |
| Bench Pts | 0 | 0 |
Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
WINNIPEG, Man. – There are slow starts and then there's what the Manitoba Bisons did to the MacEwan Griffins in the first quarter of their men's basketball contest on Friday.
The Griffins found themselves already down by 20 after just 10 minutes in a nightmare start of the opening game of the weekend series between the two Canada West combatants.
It's tough to play from behind and make a game of it, but they certainly tried before falling 95-64.
"Credit to Manitoba," said Griffins head coach David Kapinga. "They punched first and had our guys playing on pretty much our back foot. We didn't really get back into rhythm until probably the second half of the second quarter. Credit to Manitoba for being prepared and executing their game plan to a T."
The Bisons led 28-8 after one quarter and still held a sizable lead at the half – 48-30 – before salting it away by outscoring the Griffins by 12 points in the third quarter.
Daren Watts had 22 points to pace Manitoba, while both Ramogi Nyagudi (18 points, 12 boards) and Mason Kraus (14 points, 10 assists) posted double doubles. Taven Vigilance chipped in 10 points off the bench.
MacEwan was led by captain Job Janda, who had 12 points and five rebounds, while both Marcus Moore and Favour Igbinyemi had 10 points each.
"I think Job showed great leadership today, showed great fight today," said Kapinga. "I'm really proud of him and what he did today. Job did amazing."
He also pointed to the fight of others that will be something they can lean on in Saturday's rematch (6 p.m. MT, Canada West TV).
"I would say there were a few guys who were able to bring us back up in terms of execution, in terms of fighting, in terms of pressuring and just finishing the ball," he said. "That's the bright side of it, I'd say."
Khushal Shukla with some nice work to put the @umbisons D off balance before draining a key third quarter shot in Winnipeg.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/q8BeG4gm5s
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Basketball Team (@Griffins_MBB) January 24, 2026
With the result, the Griffins are now 3-12 and are starting to run out of runway in their pursuit of a playoff spot (needing to fi tnish top seven in their division) as they're three wins back of seventh-place Lethbridge with both Regina and Saskatchewan in between and two up.
It all starts with Saturday, though, which is a fresh slate for the squad.
"I think it's just about our guys playing with confidence," said Kapinga. "It's not Xs and Os, it's our guys understanding 'I belong on this court' and I don't think we really showed that very well today.
"Our job tomorrow is just to make sure they understand that they're good basketball players and to play as such."
