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Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference "To be Canada's premiere collegiate athletic conference by developing and inspiring leadership through excellence in academics, sport and citizenship"
Posted: Mar 05, 2026

Host Rustlers too much for Lions

Video Box Score
Game Leaders
AMB
Pts: Paulo Cuesta - 17
Reb: 3 Players (#6, #10, #24) - 5
Ast: Paulo Cuesta - 4
LAKE
Pts: Taleh Wade - 31
Reb: Jordan Horobetz-Simpson - 10
Ast: Seth Johnson - 9
Team Stats
Full stats

Following the opening games on Thursday of the Men's Basketball ACAC Championship tournament, where Keyano, SAIT and Lethbridge emerged victorious, the host Lakeland College Rustlers faced the Ambrose Lions in the last quarter-final match of the day. 

The Rustlers started the first quarter by securing two quick baskets and forcing the Lions into early turnovers. Ambrose called a timeout after five minutes of playing time. The score expanded, and the Rustlers took the lead to close out the first quarter. It was the Lions' defensive press and rebounding that allowed them to close the Rustlers' lead to just 10 points at the halfway point. After twenty minutes, the score was 45-35 Lakeland.

The Thursday night game was drawing an exciting crowd and building an amazing atmosphere for the tournament and the games to come. The end of the third quarter had put both teams into bonus shooting. The Lions were out on the offence and forced the Rustlers to settle, contain fouls, and play defence for the remainder of the third quarter. The Rustlers led 69-53 after 30 minutes of play. 

Quarter four brought the most intensity. The Lions called a timeout with 7:23 remaining in the game and trailing the Rustlers by 16 points. By capitalizing on driving towards the net and making lay-ups, the Rustlers maintained their lead. Lakeland worked to keep the Lions on the perimeter, but every time the Rustlers tried to pull away, the visitors kept the pressure by making three-pointers, keeping the game close. The game speed increased, resulting in missed passes and greater pressure on both sides. The Lions pressured the ball and took an aggressive defensive approach to try to get the game back in their favour in the final minutes.

The Rustlers closed out the game with a win, 93-74. A special note for Home Town Hero #12, Tyler Garter, who was recognized by the crowd with a cheer of, "We want Tyler!" Tyler was then able to debut his first minutes in an ACAC Conference Championship Quarter Final, closing out the final seconds of the tournament on day one. The Player of the Game for Ambrose was Paulo Cuesta, who scored 17 points, had 5 rebounds, and was a key player in running his team's offence. Lakeland's Player of the Game was the North Division Player of the Year, Taleh Wade. A critical member of the Rustlers; Wade scored 31 points and provided a veteran presence on the court today.

Tomorrow, March 6th, Lakeland College will host the following afternoon games:

CUE vs. BC at 1:00pm MST and Ambrosevs. NAIT at 3:00pm MST. The evening games kick off in the Lloydminster Campus Gymnasium at 6:00 pm MST: Keyano vs. SAIT, and Lakeland vs. Lethbridgeat 8:00 pm MST. Catch all the action live or on ACACTV.