Jaxon Smith led Mystics as they defeated Blue Devils

(Halifax, NS) The Mount Saint Vincent Mystics beat the University of King's College Blue Devils 88-79 at the A. Garnet Brown Memorial Gymnasium Saturday evening. 

Jaxon Smith (Beechville, NS) stuffed the stat sheet for the Mystics, as he finished with a game-high 25 points, five rebounds, three steals, and two assists. Isaac Matheson (Bedford, NS) finished with a near triple-double as he tallied 20 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists. Demeric Mercer (Halifax, NS) came off the bench for the Mystics and led all players with 14 rebounds, to go with his 15 points. 

Kevahn Taylor (Hamilton, ON) led all Blue Devils scorers, as he scored 17 points, while he had eight rebounds. Caleb Rennie (Ajax, ON) chipped in with 16 points. Kibrom Kefte (Hamilton, ON) rounded out the Blue Devils' offence of their bench, as he finished with 14 points and four rebounds. 

The visiting Blue Devils opened up the scoring with a quick five points as Kevin Ofime (Winnipeg, MB) connected from range, followed by a lay-up from Taylor. The Mystics responded with a deep triple from Jax. Smith to cut the lead to 6-5. He would continue to execute from the court, as he would knock down another triple, followed by mid-range jumper that tied things up at 12. Teams would go back and forth for the remainder of the quarter as the game was tied up at the end of the first quarter 18-18. 

When the second quarter opened up, Blue Devils would strike first when they took the ball in transition, and Rennie trailed the play and hit a crucial three to give them a lead. Kalon MacDonald-Wood (Charlottetown, PE) would knock down a three-pointer which led to a Mystics timeout early in the quarter. A few possessions after the timeout, MacDonald-Wood hit another three to extend the Blue Devils lead. The Mystics would attempt to narrow the gap, as Jax. Smith made a driving lay-up as his teammate, Adam Callaghan (Sydney, NS) found him with the assist. The Blue Devils would continue to extend their lead in the quarter but the Mystics would go on a run midway through the quarter as Jax. Smith hit a tough spinning floater, followed by a drive by his brother, Jaydan Smith (Beechville, NS) where he drew the contact for the and-one finish. Mercer would have an important steal and lay-up which led to a Blue Devils' timeout. The Mystics would turn to Matheson for consecutive clutch plays late in the quarter. His first play was a transition lay-up where Isaiah Cromwell-Wright (Dartmouth, NS) found him with the baseball outlet toss over the Blue Devils' defence which was followed by another transition lay-up where Jay. Smith found him for the finish that gave the Mystics a 1-point lead. The Mystics would end up closing the half with all the momentum, as they took a 41-36 into the break. 

As the second half commenced, the Blue Devils looked to close the gap when Ofime would knock down another three. As both teams would execute from the field, it was the Mystics who would knock down consecutive threes from Cromwell-Wright and Matheson. The Blue Devils looked to Rennie, who would make a transition lay-up. Marco Cvitanovic (Zadar, Croatia) aggressive took the ball to the basket and would knock down a tough lay-up through contact. The Mystics would close out the quarter when Matheson made a transition lay-up as Cromwell-Wright found him through the Blue Devils' defence. The Mystics held a 66-56 lead going into the fourth quarter. 

The Mystics turned to Keigan Feron (Bedford, NS) as he crashed the offensive glass and put back the rebound for an easy lay-up. Jax. Smith would follow the play with a transition lay-up, assisted from Mercer. Taylor would respond for the Blue Devils as he would clean up the glass for the offensive rebound that led to his own lay-up. He would follow this play with a transition lay-up which drew the foul call as he completed the and-one play. The Mystics would provide an answer to the Blue Devils run - Jax. Smith's third triple of the game. The Blue Devils continue to fight with the Mystics in their attempt to give the Mystics' their first defeat but their effort was unsuccessful. The Mystics ended up closing out the game as they defeated the Blue Devils 88-79. 

It was Senior Night as the Mystics recognized their seniors - Jaxon Smith, Jaydan Smith, and Sam Gillett. 

The Mystics finished the regular season 18-0 as they will have the top seed in the ACAA championships in Saint John, NB, which take place Friday, February 28th through Sunday, March 2nd. The Blue Devils dropped 3-14, as they finished the season in sixth place. Their next game is to be determined after the regular season play is completed this weekend.