MONTREAL -- Alex Kiss-Rusk, a junior from Beaconsfield, Que., produced her fifth "double-double" of the season as third-ranked McGill defeated No.6 Laval convincingly with a 74-52 decision in CIS women's basketball at Love Competition Hall, Thursday.

The win was McGill's 19 straight conquest over their provincial rivals, since a 74-68 setback in Montreal on Nov. 12, 2011. It was also a crucial victory for the Martlets, who improved to 4-1 in the RSEQ standings and sit two points behind second-place Laval (5-2), with two games in hand. They will cross paths again -- for the third of four scheduled meetings this season -- on Saturday, in Quebec City. That contest is scheduled to be webcast on Rouge et Or TV at 6 p.m. 

The Rouge et Or scored a startling number of points in the opening quarter to take a 20-16 lead but McGill answered their wake up call in the second stanza, outscoring the visitors 18-9  to lead 34-29 at halftime. They turned it into overdrive after the break, outscoring Laval 23-9 in the third quarter for a 57-38 advantage. At one point late in the final stanza, they led by as much as 25 points.

"Laval was knocking down a lot of shots and executing well in the first quarter," said Ryan Thorne, who improved his record to 190-172 in 382 contests overall during his 13 seasons as head coach at McGill. "We started to contest those a little more in the second, forcing them to make an extra pass and that happened the rest of the way, so our girls really buckled down from there."

Kiss-Rusk, the 6-foot-4 daughter of McGill hoops grads Annette Kiss and Rick Rusk, scored 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in a team-high 29 minutes of court-time. The third-year psychology major shot an impressive 9-for-13 from the field, went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line, blocked two shots and had a pair of steals.

"We expect those type of games from Alex and I told her after the game that the buckets might not always fall in but the effort has got to remain consistent," said Thorne. "As long as she gives us that effort, we will have a great chance to win."

Other top contributors to the McGill offence were starters Dianna Ros and Mariam Sylla.

Ros, a fifth-year point-guard from Montreal and one of three co-captains on the squad, tallied a season-high 18 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field. She was 2-for-3 from three-point range, 6-for-8 from the foul-line and was also credited with four rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocked shots.

"Dianna's getting back into a rhythym and one of the things that we did is make sure that we didn't overplay her," noted Thorne of his two-time MVP who saw 26 minutes of court-time. "Often you'll see her playing 30+ minutes but if we're looking long term, we have to give some confidence to other players. By playing her in and out, she benefits from fresher legs (as the game winds down), more opportunities and good looks (at the basket)."

Sylla, also a co-captain, collected 14 points, seven rebounds, two blocks and a pair of steals. The 6-foot-4 pharmacolgy senior from Guinea, was 4-for-7 shooting and went a perfect 6-for-6 from the line.

The McGill bench outscored Laval's 14-5, led by seven points from Stephanie Blais of Sherbrooke, Que.

Leading the way for the Rouge et Or was Gabrielle Girard and Genevieve Derome with 14 points apiece, while Raphaelle Cote added eight points and nine rebounds.

The Martlets had a 14-11 advantage in turnovers, a 37-33 edge in rebounds and a 7-4 difference in blocks. Laval held a slight 7-6 margin in steals.

"It was especially nice for us to maintain that turnover ratio against Laval," added Thorne. "They're quick, scrappy and all over the place. We had a couple of plays where we just threw the ball away but we were also lucky on a few of them where we ended up maintaining possession. But overall, I think we did a really good job and I was happy with that part of our game."

McGill shot 48.2 per cent, sinking 27 of 56 attempts from the floor, including a 4-for-10 effort from the three-point arc. They also impressed from the line, draining 16 of 20 attempts. Laval was the complete opposite, connecting on just 26.9 per cent (18 of 67), while going 4-for-17 from the arc and 12-for-20 from the charity stripe.


SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-398-7012 (Tel.)
E-MAIL: earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
McGILL VARSITY COMPOSITE CALENDAR:
www.mcgillathletics.ca/calendar.aspx