The Canisius men’s basketball team started its 2023 summer Canadian tour on Sunday with a 79-66 victory over Carleton in Ottawa, Ontario. Sophomore Tahj Staveskie led all scorers with 23 points, while junior guard Tre Dinkins added 20 points and three rebounds.
Canisius led the entire way in the game, taking a 27-17 lead after the first quarter of play. The Blue and Gold shot 50.0 percent (16-for-32) from the field in the game’s opening half, with five of those makes coming from 3-point land, to give Canisius a 46-36 lead at the halftime break. Staveskie and Dinkins each had 13 points in the opening stanza, while junior TJ Gadsden added 12 points before halftime.
In the third quarter, the Griffs shot 43.8 percent from the field and 50.0 percent (5-for-10) from 3-point range to stretch their lead to 68-48. In that frame, Staveskie scored eight of the team’s 22 points. Canisius closed out the game by forcing 25 Carleton turnovers, which the Griffs turned into 48 points on the afternoon.
Gadsden finished the contest with 15 points, while junior Frank Mitchell grabbed a team-high eight rebounds in his first action in a Canisius uniform.
Canisius will continue its foreign tour in Canada on Monday night when the team plays at Concordia in Montreal, Quebec. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
