SEMI-FINAL #2 CIS championship: No. 1 Lancers joins No. 2 Saskatchewan in national final

Courtesy: University of Windsor sports information / Photo credit Edwin Tam
  
WINDSOR, Ont. (CIS) – The top-seeded and tournament host Windsor Lancers are back in the national final for a second straight year thanks to a 56-47 semifinal win over the No. 4 Cape Breton Capers at the CIS women’s basketball Final 8, Saturday night, in front of a capacity crowd of 2,000 at the University of Windsor’s St. Denis Centre.
 
Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wbkb
 
The reigning three-time OUA champion Lancers, who dropped a 77-56 decision to Simon Fraser a year ago in Hamilton in their first-ever appearance in the title match, will battle the No. 2 Saskatchewan Huskies for the Bronze Baby Trophy Sunday at 4:30 p.m., live on TSN.
 
The contest will be a rematch of the 2010 semifinals when Windsor downed Saskatchewan 82-60.
 
The Lancers hope to become the first team in the 40-year history of the CIS tournament to hoist the Bronze Baby on home court, while the Huskies hope to keep the trophy out West for the 20th straight year. The last school from outside Canada West to capture the CIS banner was Laurentian, back-to-back winner in 1990 and 1991.
 
Atlantic conference Cape Breton will play for CIS bronze at 1 p.m. against No. 6 StFX. The Capers had finished fifth at the Final 8 each of the past two seasons.
 
“Before the game I told the girls to leave it all on the floor, that they worked hard all season to play in that national final at home,” said Windsor head coach Chantal Vallée. “Cape Breton is a great team. We knew they’d match up well against us and they gave us all we could handle. It was a great game.”
 
“I thought we did a good job at quieting the crowd. We gave Windsor a great game, maybe even a little more than they expected,” said Cape Breton sideline boss Fabian Mckenzie. “In the end, their experience probably made the difference. That and our poor free throw shooting.”
 
Cape Breton shot only 31.7 per cent from the floor on the night but struggled even more at the free throw line, making only five of 16 attempts (31.3%).
 
Windsor finished with a 37.0 field goal percentage and went 14-for-22 from the charity stripe (63.6%).
 
Reigning CIS player of the year Jessica Clemençon, a 6-foot-3 sophomore from France, paced the winners with a game-high 18 points, while Miah-Marie Langlois of Windsor, also in her second season with the Lancers, earned game-MVP honours following a 13-point, five-assist outing.
 
Bojana Kovacevic, another Windsor native, also scored 13 points in the win, freshman Korissa Williams, also a local product, led all players with 11 rebounds.
 
The Capers received 14 points from rookie Kayla McCarron of Sydney, N.S., and 10 from Nicole Works of Truro, N.S.
 
Cape Breton held a 10-9 lead at the end of a first quarter that featured six lead changes, and subpar shooting. The Capers were good on only four of 14 field goals in the opening 10 minutes, while the Lancers went 4-for-13.
 
While the AUS champs improved in the second period making six of 12 shots from the floor, the OUA champs stayed cold, going 4-for-14. No points were scored in the first three minutes of the frame.
 
The score at halftime was 24-22 Cape Breton with Windsor being shut out on six attempts from three-point land.
 
Clemençon and Miah-Langlois combined for 20 of the Lancers’ 22 points before the break, scoring 10 apiece.
 
Windsor opened a five-point gap early in the third stanza when a three-pointer by Kovacevic made it 31-26 but Cape Breton responded right away with a 5-0 run to tie it at 31 all.
 
A bucket by Raelyn Prince with 55 seconds left in the quarter sent Windsor into the final frame leading 37-35.
 
After being held off the scoresheet in the first half, Kovacevic came alive in the third with nine points.
 
Kovacevic kicked off the fourth with another shot from beyond the arc and following a Clemençon layup, Windsor was suddenly ahead by seven, at 42-35.
 
A pair of Morgan Jean free throws gave the Lancers their biggest advantage of the night, at 48-39, with four minutes remaining.
 
In the final three minutes, McCarron brought the Capers back to within six on two occasions, at 50-44 and 52-46, but the team from Sydney, N.S., couldn’t get any closer.
 
STAT LEADERS
 
WIN 9-13-15-19: 56
CBU 10-14-11-12: 47
 
Windsor
Points: Jessica Clemençon (18), Bojana Kovacevic (13), Miah-Marie Langlois (13)
Rebounds: Korissa Williams (11), Raelyn Prince (6)
Assists: Miah-Marie Langlois (5)
 
Player of the game: Miah-Marie Langlois
 
Cape Breton
Points: Kayla McCarron (14), Nicole Works (10), Jahlica Kirnon (7)
Rebounds: Denisha Haywood (8), Jahlica Kirnon (8), Stephanie Toxopeus (8)
Assists: 4 players with 2
 
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS
 
Friday, March 18
 
Quarter-final #1: StFX 50, Carleton 44
Quarter-final #2: Saskatchewan 58, Wilfrid Laurier 51
Quarter-final #3: Windsor 80, Laval 50
Quarter-final #4: Cape Breton 58, Toronto 49
 
Saturday, March 19
 
Consolation #1: Wilfrid Laurier 56, Carleton 52
Consolation #2: Toronto 82, Laval 79
Semifinal #1: Saskatchewan 58, StFX 40
Semifinal #2: Windsor 56, Cape Breton 47
 
Sunday, March 20
 
11:00 5th place game: No. 7 Wilfrid Laurier vs. No. 5 Toronto (SSN Canada webcast)
13:00 Bronze medal game: No. 6 StFX vs. No. 4 Cape Breton (SSN Canada webcast) *
16:30 Championship final: No. 2 Saskatchewan vs. No. 1 Windsor (Live on TSN)
 
* Televised locally on TVCogeco.
 
-CIS-