OSHAWA, Ont. - In the last game of the season's first half, the Rams men's basketball team crushed the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks on the road, taking an easy 111-76 win. For the Rams, it was their third straight victory and second consecutive against Ontario Tech. 

With a full bench and home court advantage, the Ridgebacks came out solidly, thwarting the Rams' early attacks and holding them in check during the game's first five minutes. Still, Aaron Rhooms notched nine points in the first 10 minutes, with Tyler Sagl and Ankit Choudhary adding back-to-back three pointers en route to a 21-21 tie after the first quarter. 

In the second quarter, Eli Farrakhan and Liam O'Leary-Orange gave the Rams a quick lead with a pair of swift layups, an advantage that stuck and was further strengthened by another stellar drive by O'Leary-Orange, who added seven in the quarter. To cap off a 16-3 run, Sagl drained another glorious three-pointer to bring his first half point total to 10. 

At the half, the Rams led comfortably by a score of 52-36, leading handedly in both offensive and defensive rebounds and puzzling a trailing Ridgebacks defence. 

The Rams played a decidedly more subdued third quarter, moving the ball well early in the half and relying on the steady offensive contributions of Sagl and Choudhary to counter the momentum of Ontario Tech's Graddy Kanku, Ammar Hassan, and Levi Ogbonna, who combined to account for 36 of the Ridgebacks' 54 points after three quarters.

The fourth quarter was much of the same for both teams, with the Rams bombarding the fragile Ridgebacks defence with a slew of high-percentage shots, including a pair of three-pointers from Choudhary (who finished with 26 points) and a stellar block from the always discreet Nick Hamilton. Though Ontario Tech managed to bury a few floaters in the game's final minutes, the Rams had padded their already large lead and ran away with the victory.   

All in all, the Rams head to the holidays with a burst of energy and an even 3-3 record. With a dominant, 35-point victory against their OUA East rivals (and their best performance of the year under their belts), the wind is blowing in their direction as the calendar's pages turn. 

The Rams kick off their 2022 year with a weekend series in Ottawa against the Gee-Gees on January 14 and 15. Tip off is at 8 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.