Dina Fanara
Assistant News Editor
Former McMaster basketball player, Mouctar Diaby, age 26 has been arrested and charged with “one count of weapons trafficking, four counts of possession of drugs under $5,000, three counts of trafficking and one count of possession for the purpose of trafficking,” according to the Hamilton Spectator.
Diaby played for the McMaster basketball team from 2008 to 2010.
Following his arrest on Jan. 24, Diaby remains in police custody, in Hamilton’s Barton Street jail.
Diaby’s family was able to post $10,000 in bail and Frank Lostracco, fomer McMaster coach offered $2,000 in bail however, given the current circumstances, the court decided that bail would only be considered with a minimum of $20,000.
If convicted of these charges, Diaby could face four to five years in prison.
Police suspicion surfaced in July of last year, when Diaby was initially contacted by an undercover officer from the Toronto Police drug squad who arranged to purchase $700 worth of cocaine from Diaby.
The deal was carried out in Oakville.
Later that same month, Diaby was contacted by another undercover officer who claimed to have $9,000 worth of cocaine to sell to him, a deal which was made near Main St. and Dundurn St. in Hamilton, but completed at Diaby’s apartment located at 200 Bay St. S.
Another dealing, which occurred on Jan. 12, involved the sale of $700 of powdered cocaine as well as a handgun.
It was following this meeting, that Diaby was arrested. Diaby has been ordered back to court on Feb.1 to establish a trial date.
Brandon Meawasige
Assistant Sports Editor
With a sizeable lead in the third quarter of Saturday’s game against the Waterloo Warriors, the Marauders looked all the part of an 8-2 OUA basketball team who, fresh off a disappointing loss to Windsor, were poised to defend their home court.
An enthusiastic turn out at Burridge Gymnasium and solid performances from key players Cam Michaud and Joe Rocca, who both scored 20 points in the game, made it difficult to notice that despite the victory, the young Marauders are still learning some of the finer aspects of the game that will make them a CIS contender.
This critique is at least according to McMaster’s head coach Amos Connolly, who made sure his team remembered his message during a third quarter timeout.
After his team had taken a double-digit lead and looked to be poised to run away from the overmatched Warriors, the Marauders gave up an offensive rebound an easy basket at the end of the third frame – a play that did not please the second year coach.
“I said defend and box out five times at the top of my lungs,” recounts Connolly of the not-so-pleasant message he had for his team. “They haven’t had that from me in a timeout yet. I really wanted to shock them and see if they responded.”
That injection of intensity seemed to at the very least close out the game for the Maroon and Grey who eventually defeated the visiting Warriors by a score of 97-84.
Inconsistency in rebounding and on defense has been a concern for Connolly all season, but he shies from blaming the inexperience of his team.
“It’s not a coincidence that there are inconsistencies as a result of the youth on our team, but what it comes down to is as a coaching staff, are we going to accept that as an excuse? We don’t” says Connolly.
Although the team may not exactly be struggling in the OUA West standings, currently sitting third behind Laurier and Lakehead, the upcoming schedule is cause for some concern.
Success down the stretch is going to be indicative of the work put in by the coaching staff to iron out all of the wrinkles in the Marauders game. Scoring is not the issue for this team, so it is the fundamentals on defense and without possession.
“There needs to be some evaluation. The higher the level you get to, it becomes like chemistry equation, when really it comes down to fundamentals. To me it is just how do we teach it? And how do we make it stick?” Connolly asks somewhat philosophically.
Helping shoulder some of the load for his young team, Connolly questions his own involvement in helping make sure that this team continues to develop while making a push to contend.
“What I am questioning is what I need to do as a coach to get us playing back to the same level defensively as we were earlier in the season. All of a sudden we’re giving up 15 more points a game and it’s all about how were playing on defense.”
After a few days of practice and a game against Brock, this weekend will give the Marauders a chance to not only put their focus on fundamentals and turn up the intensity but also avenge their loss against the Lancers, who will visit Burridge on Saturday, Jan. 14.
In their Jan. 4 loss to Windsor, the Marauders had difficulties with their one on one defense, which Connolly pinpoints as the main area of need. “If we contain our guys one on one, it makes it easier on the rest of the defense and it will bring us closer to being a complete team. It’s all about being a complete fundamental basketball team,” says Connolly.
With twelve games remaining in the schedule, including two against Lakehead and Laurier, there is still a possibility for this season to go either way for this young Marauder squad. For Connolly, that success depends not only on the fundamentals of his team, but his own coaching attitude in teaching them. 
Ben Orr
Sports Editor
Consistency continues to be elusive for the McMaster women in the early stages of their OUA season.
The Marauders played to yet another weekend split, losing to Queen's on Nov. 25 before rebounding against RMC the next night.
They continue to stay glued to a .500 record at 3-3, good enough for six points and fourth place in the OUA West division. However, with division leaders Brock sprinting out to a 6-0 record, the Maroon and Grey will need to find their rhythm soon if they wish to compete for a division crown.
Mac began the weekend against the Queen's Gaels, who came into the game with a 3-1 record and a whole lot of offensive firepower. The Gaels dominated early, scoring 29 points in the first quarter alone. They would take a 49-29 lead into half thanks in part to their effective 58 per cent shooting from the field.
The second half would see much of the same, as the Marauders struggled to get anything going against a stingy Queen's defence. Shooting an impressive 63 per cent from three-point land, the Gaels would cruise to a 94-65 win. McMaster coach Theresa Burns was not thrilled with her team's effort.
“We just mentally weren't there from the start. We let them get very comfortable, and they just took off and we couldn't reel it in.”
Against the Paladins, the Marauders came out flat again, falling behind 16-13 early. McMaster appeared to be shell-shocked, as the deficit increased to 31-24 by halftime.
The second half, however, was the Taylor Chariot show. The fifth-year senior and team captain would take charge, leading her team back to the lead in the third quarter. The nail was hammered into the coffin as the Marauders outscored the Paladins 20-8 in the fourth quarter, taking the game by a final score of 61-48.
Chariot would go on to score a game-high 27 points, adding eight rebounds for good measure. Isabel Ormond was also effective for her team, finishing two boards and a basket away from a double-double.
“It was pretty disappointing. Not what we were looking for out of the weekend,” said Burns sum up the road trip.
“Against RMC I thought our first half was not a great effort either, so we definitely looking for a better effort right from tip off in any of the games we play and hopefully we have that this weekend, because we've got two tough games coming up.”
The Marauders will host the Toronto Varsity Blues and the Ryerson Rams at Burridge Gym. Burns knows something will have to change to collect four points this weekend.
“We're not playing consistently, we're not putting a 40 minute game together, we're not putting two back-to-back good games together,” said the Mac bench boss.
“Not to make excuses but we still haven't had a full lineup out on the floor yet, we've had various people in and out of the lineup with injuries. I think we're got such a young lineup that when you take that experience out there's just not enough experience at this level to be able to put that consistent play together.”
Still, the coach praised the efforts of Chariot, who carried her team on her back in Kingston.
“Against RMC I don't think Taylor had a great start for what she's capable of doing. At half time we regrouped the whole team and I think she realized she had to step up. On any given night she can take over a game when she wants to. That's what she's capable of doing.” 
