By Mike Gange for CIS
FREDERICTON (CIS) –The score clock told one story. The Saint Mary's University Huskies 56, the McGill University Martlets 43, in the bronze medal game of the 2016 ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS Women's Basketball Championship. The faces of the two coaches told another story.
For Ryan Thorne of McGill, the loss for the number one ranked team was disappointing. "We didn't play well at all. You battle all year, for the chance to be here, and we didn't give our best today. We played the best teams in the country, and they took advantage of our gaps," he said."It's not disappointing to play for bronze, it is disappointing to lose in the bronze game. Our university sent us here, and today is not how we should have played. I feel badly for the team, and our five graduating players. We should have done better," he said.
For Huskies coach Scott Munro the outcome was positive. "It's a good way to finish up," he said. "We rallied today, after our loss earlier. We have been to four nationals, and come away with 3 medals, so that says a lot about the players. They are an experienced group, and they knew what to do today."
With only two players graduating – Rachelle Coward and Laura Langille – Munro feels his program is going in the right direction. "I'll be on the phone today, talking to our recruiting class. They will know what we can do, this year and next year too," he said.
Saint Mary's opened up a smothering defence in today's game, and an explosive transition game. The Huskies led by ten at the end of the first quarter, withstood a McGill attack in the second to go into the half up by three, at 32-29. The Huskies outworked the Martlets in the third, going into the break with a 48-37 lead. The fourth quarter was a much more spirited affair, with the Huskies winning 11 rebounds and the Martlets winning 7.
Rachelle Coward, with 18 points, was the player of the game for the Huskies. Alex Kiss-Rusk, with 16 points, was the player of the game for the Martlets.
STAT LEADERS
SMU 24-08-16-08 56
McG 14-15-08-06 43
Saint Mary's
Points: Rachelle Coward (18), Angelina Carvery (10), Laura Langille (9).
Rebounds: Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse (8), Lauran Langille (8), Shanieka Wood (8).
Assists: Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse (4)
Player of the game: Rachelle Coward
McGill
Points: Alex Kiss-Rusk (16)
Rebounds: Alex Kiss-Rusk (11), Gabriela Hebert (6)
Assists: Gabriela Hebert (5)
Player of the game: Alex Kiss-Rusk
SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times ATLANTIC)
Thursday, March 17
13:00 Quarter-final 1: No. 7 Ottawa 62 vs. No. 2 Saskatchewan 73
15:00 Quarter-final 2: No. 6 Alberta 52 vs. No. 3 Saint Mary's 53
18:00 Quarter-final 3: No. 8 UNB 52 vs. No. 1 McGill 58
20:00 Quarter-final 4: No. 5 Ryerson 73 vs. No. 4 Regina 70
Friday, March 18
18:00 Consolation 1: Ottawa 60 vs. Alberta 69
20:00 Consolation 2: UNB 56 vs. Regina 68
Saturday, March 19
12:00 Semifinal 1: Saskatchewan65 vs.Saint Mary's 58
14:30 Semifinal 2: McGill 72 vs. Ryerson 87
17:00 5th-place game: Alberta 74 vs. Regina 73
Sunday, March 20
10:00 Bronze Saint Mary's 56 vs. McGill 43
13:00 Final (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) *