Rob Paris tallied 28 points to lead the University of Toronto Varsity Blues men’s basketball team to an 82-72 victory over the Laurentian Voyageurs on Saturday, February 13 at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym.

Paris of St. Catharines, Ont. went 5-of-5, including 4-for-4 from beyond the arc, to tally 15 points as the Varsity Blues built a commanding 36-6 lead after the first quarter.

With only two regular season games left – both versus the Ryerson Rams – the Blues improve to 10-10 and are in a three-way tie for third place in the OUA East with the Rams and the Queen’s Gaels.

As a team, Toronto shot 63% from the floor on 19-of-30 shooting and were 67% from beyond the arc in the first half alone. The Voyageurs struggled throughout the first two quarters, going 23% from the floor and only connecting on 2-of-12 three-point attempts.

The Blues held a 31-point lead at halftime.

The Voyaguers rallied throughout the last two quarters to outscore the Blues 51-30. Laurentian went on a 20-8 run, led by Matas Tirilis’ (Mississauga, Ont.) 11 third-quarter points, to narrow the gap to 14 (65-41) going into the fourth quarter.

Toronto rallied back to extend their lead to 20 with just over three minutes remaining, however, Voyageurs first-year guard Manny Pasquale of Victoris, B.C. put up 12 points to lead Laurentian on a late 17-5 run to bring the game within 10.

However, the Voyageurs late comeback attempt was cut short by the sound of the buzzer as Toronto came away with their 10th victory of the season.

Paris was named the Varsity Blues player of the game for his 28-point performance. Andrew Wasik (Burnaby, B.C.) had another big night with 14 points and 10 boards, while Drazen Glisic of Sarajevo, BIH ended the night just shy of a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds.

The Varsity Blues face the Ryerson Rams this week in a crucial home-and-home series that will ultimately decide home court advantage in the first round of playoffs. The Blues play at Ryerson on Wednesday night before hosting their last regular season game on Saturday, February 20 at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym. Game time is scheduled for 8 p.m. on both days.

For more information, scores and highlights on your favourite Toronto teams, please visit the home of the Varsity Blues at http://www.varsityblues.ca.