MONTREAL – Hermon Tesfaghebriel’s lay-up with 1:58 left was the difference as the Bishop’s Gaiters outlasted the McGill Redmen 62-61 tonight in a Quebec University Basketball League men’s game in Montreal. With the Gaiters trailing 61-60, Tesfaghebriel drove to the net against McGill guard Olivier Bouchard, making the basket but failing to convert the three-point play.

The Redmen had several chances to regain the lead, but the Gaiters’ defence kept McGill off the scoreboard. The Redmen took the ball with just under 24 seconds left, and attempted set up a potential game-winning shot. However, their play came to a premature conclusion when Bouchard was called for a carrying the ball violation in front of the McGill bench with 1.9 seconds to play.

Oraine Green (Toronto, Ont.) led the Gaiters with 18 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter. Onnex Blackwood (Toronto, Ont.) recorded his second double-double of the season, with 13 points and ten rebounds. Tesfaghebriel finished with four points and ten rebounds.

McGill was led by Matthew Thornhill’s 18 points, while Bouchard and David Clark scored ten points each. Nicholas Nishikawa led the Redmen with seven rebounds.

The Gaiters got off to a quick start, and led by as many as 12 points midway through the first quarter, and 23-14 after ten minutes. However, McGill crept back into the game, cutting the margin to 32-27 at halftime, and taking their first lead at 35-34 on a Thornhill three-pointer with 5:12 left in the third quarter. Thornhill’s trey was part of a 12-2 run that saw McGill take a 44-36 lead, their largest of the night.

However, the Gaiters responded with a 10-2 run, as they held McGill without a field goal for nearly four minutes. The lead was down to 46-44 after three quarters, and Blackwood tied the game with 8:22 left in the fourth. From that point, Green took over, as he drained a pair of crucial three-pointers and scored 11 of the Gaiters’ last 14 points.

The Gaiters (7-11, 5-11 CIS, 2-4 QUBL) return to action on Friday, January 15 as they host the UQAM Citadins. Tipoff at the Mitchell Gym is set for 8 p.m.