Box Score The McMaster men's basketball team fought to the end, but it was still a bitter conclusion, as they lost a 101-97 overtime decision to the visiting Ottawa Gee-Gees in Hamilton Saturday night.

 Bouncing back from an offense-challenged effort the previous night , McMaster came out with some swagger and took the game to the Gee-Gees in the first quarter grabbing a 22-18 lead after 10 minutes. 

The Marauders started the second quarter well and held a 33-27 lead midway through the period, when the momentum took a  sudden turn.  Ottawa went on a 19-0 run to take a 46-33 lead and entered the halftime break, in front 50-39.

The third quarter saw the Gee-Gees maintain control, and by the end of 30 minutes the Ottawa lead had expanded to a comfortable 69-54.

In the fourth quarter it was cue the comeback time for McMaster as the Marauders ripped off a 9-0 run in the first 90 seconds to close within six points and force an Ottawa timeout.   Powered by the inside-outside duo of Matt Quiring and David McCulloch, McMaster kept up the pressure and ignited the home fans by taking a 76-73 lead with about five minutes left.   The team's then jockeyed back and forth for the rest of the quarter, until an Ottawa miss at the end of regulation left the teams tied at 87-87 after the full 40 minutes. 

Overtime saw Ottawa's Brandon Robinson step into the hero role as he made two huge treys to put his team in front.   McMaster tried to keep pace, but a late dagger three-pointer  by Mackenzie Morrison and some clutch free-throws from Sean Stoqua allowed Ottawa to close out the win.

McCulloch was sensational on the night, scoring a career high 34 points, including a perfect  11 of 11 from the charity stripe, when Mac needed every point.  Quiring scored 21, including some big shots in the big fourth-quarter comeback.  

Ottawa got 27 from Stoqua, and 20 from Robinson who were key players in the win.

The first-term break comes at a good time as McMaster can now get some rest, focus on upcoming exams, and then look toward ending its current nine-game losing streak when OUA play resumes on January 3, 2018 when Windsor comes to Hamilton.