By Rowan Halpenny — Contributor

Aug. 2 marked the first time the Gaiters basketball team played a meaningful game since their RSEQ championship game five months prior. Their opponent was a solid NCAA division team, the Golden Griffins of Canisius College from Buffalo, New York. 

Many Gaiters, players and staff stayed in Lennoxville over the summer working hard on their craft. Having an opportunity to play a big game in August was significant. The players who weren’t in town during the summer came to campus to partake in a mini-training camp for six days to prepare for Canisius. 

Ultimately, Bishop’s came up just short against Canisius, losing 79-74. While the average loss is normally not something to be proud of, within the mind of this team, there were many positives in the game, and the Gaiters were left with a lot to be excited about for when the season kicks off. 

Before this game, Canisius had beaten the Gaiters’ RSEQ foes, Concordia and UQAM. They also beat the defending national champion, Carleton, by an average of 22 points. Bishop’s was also missing a couple of key players who will be back in the fall. 

Bishop’s grabbed an early 10-2 lead over Canisius thanks to some tenacious defense and good offense. 

Being an experienced team, Canisius woke up and was able to weather the early storm. By the end of the first quarter, the Gaiters’ lead had been shrunk by three points. Canisius started to get into their groove in the second quarter and had a nine-point halftime lead after a three-pointer buzzer-beater. 

The third quarter started in a nightmarish way for Bishop’s, and they quickly found themselves down 20 points. Whenever a team is losing, it shows a lot about their character. Bishop’s could have stayed down and felt sorry for themselves, but instead, they chose to trust their system and brought the lead back up by four points at the end of the quarter. 

Unfortunately, the Gaiters couldn’t erase the deficit in the fourth, and Griffins walked away with the win. The Gaiters’ failure to knock down big shots from three-point line throughout the game was one factor that hurt them. Canisius also hit some big shots which were demoralizing for the Bishop’s defense. 

The Griffins’ sophomore guard Tahj Staveskie was outstanding, finishing with a game-high 34 points. For the Gaiters, Charles-Andre Robert had a team-high of 20 points. This is a great sign for the team, as Robert missed many important games during the final stretch of the 2022-23 season due to various injuries. Having him back healthy will be a win for the Gaiters who want to reach their full potential this year.

Zachary John, a sophomore guard for the Gaiters, brought high energy on both ends of the floor and finished with 15 points of his own. The Gaiters look forward to their next game on Sept. 23 where they will take on Guelph University in Brockville, Ontario.