Fredericton, NB - The Holland College Hurricanes defeated the St. Thomas Tommies in the ACAA Men’s Basketball Championship finals 97-78 Sunday afternoon at the Lady Beaverbrook Gym.

The top-ranked Tommies came out fast to start the match but were unable to sustain the pace as Holland College was able to withstand the pressure and eventually turn the tide. The Hurricanes were down by as much as 12 points in the first half before Chris Cheatham went coast to coast to lay it in as the buzzer sounded, squaring the score at 43-43 going into halftime.

The Hurricanes started the second half with all the momentum, shooting over 50 percent from the field and scoring 38 points in the quarter. ACAA rookie of the year, Kyree Thompson, stunned the Tommies with 13 of his 27 points in the third.

The Hurricanes would go into the final quarter with a 20-point lead over the Tommies.

“We knew coming out of the gates it was going to be a fight. Going into halftime it was tied, if we came out and hit a couple big shots and played defense, we would be able to come out with the win,” said Hurricanes’ first-year guard Kyree Thompson.

The Hurricanes’ backcourt pairing of Thompson and ACAA All-Conference First Team player, Jalen Menzies, combined for 41 points and 12 rebounds in the game.

Hurricanes’ Head Coach, Tim Kendrick, was impressed with his team’s ability to play hard through the end of the second quarter and carry their momentum into the third.

“We didn’t feel like we shot the ball very well through the first two quarters. We thought that eventually our shot would fall, and it did when we came out in the third quarter after a spurt at the end of the second,” Kendrick said.

The Hurricanes will head to Calgary, Alberta to face Canada’s best in the CCAA National Championships from March 15-19.