Box Score Numbers were certainly an issue for the McMaster men's basketball team as it dropped a 77-66 decision in its Saturday night matchup against the York Lions.
 
Having dressed 11 in their game from the night before against Queens, coach Patrick Tatham and the Marauders faced the Lions with only eight players dressed. A key piece missing from their line-up was the team's leading scorer in Miles Seward, who suffered a lower body injury on Friday.
 
In the opening half, the Lions unleashed Prince Kamunga and Ricky Hudson upon McMaster, and they threw a block party. The forward pairing would combine for nine of the Lions' eleven rejections on the night.  York was able to feed off of their strong play at the defensive end of the court and took a 50-36 lead into intermission.
 
In the third quarter McMaster showed signs of a comeback, by driving to the net and pulling the trigger on kick-outs from beyond the arc. The Marauders made five treys in the period and pulled within 66-60 heading to the final quarter.
 
The fourth quarter would see the pace slow, as a total of just 17 points would be scored over the course of the final ten minutes. York would create enough of a spread between them and the Marauders to pull away for the victory and improve to 2-1 on the season. The Marauders fall to 1-2 after failing to pick up a win during their first weekend on the road of the regular season.
 
The Lions were led by the scoring of Josiah Riley and sixth-man Gianmarco Luciani, who both registered 17 points against the Marauders.
 
As a result of the short roster, David McCulloch got the start for the Marauders, was the top shooter with 22, including 7 of 11 from the field.
 
The Marauders will be back in action next weekend when they return to Toronto to take on the Ryerson Rams on Friday, November 10, and then the Toronto Varsity Blues the following night. Both games are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. and can be streamed live on OUA.tv.
 
By Ethan Ready