OSHAWA, Ont. – The Ontario Tech men's basketball team is off to their first 2-0 start in program history after beating the Nipissing Lakers 81-77 in overtime Sunday night.

The Ridgebacks came out to an early 19-17 lead, but fell behind in the second quarter, taking a 41-32 deficit into the half. Ontario Tech begin to chip away the Lakers lead with a complete team effort, including 20 points and six points from Zubair Seyed (Cambridge, Ont.) and an 18-point, 10 rebound double-double from Keon Baker (Pickering, Ont.)  Ayub Nurhussien (Hamilton, Ont.) also contributed 14 points and five rebounds.

With seconds remaining, the Ridgebacks trailed by two, but a spinning off-glass fade away from Caleb Kassa, who had 12 points and nine rebounds on the night tied the game up at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime where the Ridgebacks sealed the game with several clutch defensive stops, and a key basket from Levi Ogbonna (Toronto, Ont.), who had nine points and four rebounds.

The Ridgebacks will look to replicate their home success as they head out on the road next weekend for return games against Nipissing and Laurentian on Nov. 10 and 11.