Box Score In its first game since being named January's OUA team of the month, the McMaster men's basketball team defended homecourt and beat the Brock Badgers 106-61 on Thursday night.

Brock grabbed an early 12-10 lead in the first quarter, but from then on it was a blur of maroon as the McMaster transition game got into high gear. By the end of the opening period, McMaster had taken a 25-16 lead.

The Marauders continued to use their defense to fuel the offense and attacked the basket relentlessly. The second quarter saw McMaster double up the Badgers 36-18 midway through the period, and by halftime the Maroon advantage had swelled to 48-27. Joe Rocca had 13 points to lead McMaster while Taylor Black had already grabbed 11 rebounds by intermission.

With McMaster sharing the ball well, the third quarter was a similar story as the Marauders outscored Brock 31-14, making the lead 76-41 with 10 minutes remaining.

McMaster went deep into its bench players in the fourth quarter, as the big lead provided some playing opportunities for the entire team. The young Badgers continued to play hard for new coach Charles Kissi, resulting in McMaster winning the final quarter by seven to reach the final score of 106-61.

11 of 12 Marauders ended up hitting the scoresheet and the team made 10 of 31 three-point attempts, which resulted in free french fries for everyone in attendance, courtesy of McDonald's.

McMaster had five players in double figures, led by Black with 20 points and 12 rebounds; Trevon McNeil was next with 18, including making the final three-ball that rewarded the crowd. Rocca finished with 17, while Rohan Boney and Aaron Redpath each scored 11. Brock was led by its outstanding rookie Dani Elgadi, who scored 20.

McMaster is now 16-3 and holds first place in the OUA West. They travel to Windsor for a weekend clash with the second-place Lancers on Saturday afternoon.