by David Conlin, Vikes Communication
Photos by Christian J. Stewart, ISN
March 10, 2017, VICTORIA, BC (U SPORTS) – The Saskatchewan Huskies bounced back from their quarter-final loss to Laval on Thursday to stay alive on Friday night, beating Cape Breton 65-51 at the CARSA Performance Gym to book a spot in Saturday’s consolation final.
The Huskies came out hot on Friday, going 53.8 per cent from the field in the first quarter on 7-for-13 shooting. Saskatoon, Sask., native Megan Lindquist led the way with seven first-quarter points to get her team off on the right foot.
The fourth-year forward would go on to finish with 11 points, five rebounds and three assists, earning the nod as Saskatchewan’s Player of the Game.
Second-year point guard Sabine Dukate turned in another solid performance on Friday, knocking down a team-high 19 points and grabbing six boards and three assists. Lindquist and Summer Masikewich also hit double figures, finishing with 11 points each.
The Huskies dominated the rebound totals on the night, out-rebounding Cape Breton 49-28, led by Megan Ahlstrom with 10.
“When we’ve played our best basketball this year, we have had a lot of people contributing and I really liked how the ball moved more today,” said head coach Lisa Thomaidis. “The ball was in and out of people’s hands quickly and that’s how we like to play—that’s how we have to continue to play to be successful.”
After giving Queen’s all they could handle in their quarter-final on Thursday, the Capers couldn’t find the same fire on Friday. They shot 37.5 per cent in the first quarter, before shooting 30.8 per cent in the second. The result was a 33-22 lead for Saskatchewan heading into the second half.
Cape Breton was led in scoring by fourth-year forward Alison Keough, who finished with 12 points. Fourth year Valentina Primossi closed out the game with nine points to go with three defensive rebounds and was named the Capers’ Player of the Game.
For the Capers, the trip to Victoria was far from a wasted opportunity despite the team going winless, and head coach Fabian Mackenzie was quick to point to the positives post-game.
“It’s great for young kids to get experience,” said Mackenzie. “We have a young team and they have to get experience in games like this. We just played the defending national champions who are battle-tested, shoot the ball well and are big.
“That’s who we need to play against to figure out where our weaknesses are and get better.”
The Huskies now move on to play the Regina Cougars , who emerged victorious over the host UVic Vikes 78-64 in the second consolation semifinal on Friday (see related story). That game will take place at 7:00 p.m. PT on Saturday night and will be broadcast live on USPORTS.LIVE .
