A packed home crowd welcomed men's basketball back to Kenyon Court on Thursday afternoon, as the 8-4 Mount Royal Cougars hosted the 5-5 Manitoba Bisons in their first game back from the semester break.

Both teams entered hungry for their first win of the new year, looking to set the tone for the second half of the season.

The Cougars got off to a strong start, fueled by and-one conversions from Sam Barnie, Kole Scott, and DJ Roberts to take an early 15-10 lead. The Bisons responded with perimeter shooting, as forward Mangyang Tong knocked down two early three-pointers.

The back-and-forth battle continued through the remainder of the first quarter, before a late floater from first-year guard Jacob McLellan put the Cougars ahead 27-22.

Fifth-year Bisons guard Daren Watts and second-year guard Taven Vigilance helped keep Manitoba within striking distance, giving the Bisons a 33-29 edge late in the second quarter. A timely three from Desmond Ducheck cut the deficit to one, with the Cougars trailing 37-36 heading into the halftime break.

The Cougars came out swinging on both ends to open the second half, as Barnie and McLellan helped push the lead to six in the opening minutes of the third quarter. Both teams found themselves in foul trouble early in the frame.

Manitoba showed resiliency behind fifth-year guard Tito Obasoto and Mason Kraus, trimming the Cougars' lead to just one in the closing minutes of the third quarter. Two buckets from second-year guard Kuach Gajak extended the Cougars' advantage to 63-61 heading into the final quarter of play.

With just over five minutes remaining, Tong sparked a momentum shift with a fastbreak layup followed by a three-pointer to regain the lead for Manitoba. McLellan later knocked down two key free throws to cut the deficit to 71-69.

Late three-pointers from Brandt Lenz and Watts helped the Bisons extend their lead to 10 with under two minutes remaining. The Cougars battled until the final buzzer, but Manitoba held on for an 86-77 victory.