LENNOXVILLE, Que. --
Alex Kiss-Rusk of Beaconsfield, Que., notched her eighth "double-double" of the season as second-ranked McGill defeated the Bishop's Gaiters 49-35 in RSEQ women's basketball at the Mitchell Gym on Saturday.
It was the Martlets' lowest-scoring victory of the season and marked their 17th-straight triumph over Bishop's, which remain winless with a. 0-10 record.
Kiss-Rusk, a psychology junior, tallied 16 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, 10 of them in the defensive zone. She shot 7-for-18 from the floor, where her 56.8 field-goal percentage ranks fifth in the country, and sank half of her four free-throw attempts. She was also with a pair of blocks and a steal.
"With (so many lineup scratches), we've got to rely on her," said McGill head coach
Ryan Thorne of the 6-foot-4 centre. "She now understands that she's a focal point and got to give us something when people are out of the lineup. It's a great learning opportunity for her going forward."
Martlet co-captains
Mariam Sylla and
Dianna Ros were among a plethora of lineup scratches as they continued to rest hamstring and ankle injuries, respectively. Freshman
Fredericke Laflamme also did not make the trip to deal with a personal matter.
Jennifer Silver of Montreal contributed 13 points to McGill's victory. She also collected six rebounds and blocked a shot. The 5-foot-11 medicine junior, went an impressive 7-for-8 from the charity stripe and 3-for-6 from the floor.
Despite this being a matchup of two teams at the opposite ends of the RSEQ standings, the Gaiters kept the game uncharacteristically close and the teams finished the first quarter tied at 11-11. The lead changed eight times in the first half, which ended 25-22 in McGill's favour. However, the Martlets pulled away in the second half, dominating the third quarter 17-8 to enter the final frame with a 42-30 advantage.
"We weren't aggressive and that led to us focusing on opportunities and not really attacking," explained Thorne. "(The tight score was a result of) the adjustments that they were able to make based on where we were successful in our last game and we weren't able to adjust in-game as much as we should have."
The match featured just a trio of treys, with two coming from the Martlets. Freshman
Geraldine Cabillo-Abante of St. Laurent, Que., -- who scored five points, added a block, a steal and a rebound -- netted one of two chances from beyond the three-point arc, while teammate
Stephanie Blais from Sherbrooke, Que., was 1-for-5 from downtown. Blais, who tallied six points, also sank her only free-throw attempt and collected a pair of offensive rebounds.
Freshman
Charlene Pettigrew of Montreal led the Gaiters with nine points and a half-dozen rebounds, alongside teammate
Ashley Milhomme of Repentigny, Que., who added eight points and six rebounds. Bishop's starter
Mara Marchizotti, a 6-foot-4 junior from Argentina, fouled out with 45 seconds left in the game.
The Martlets shot 30.5 per cent from the field (18/59), only 18.2 from the three-point range (2/11) and sank 11 of 15 free-throws for 73.3 per cent. Bishop's shot 31.7 per cent (13/41), a meagre 1-for-7 from beyond the arc and went 8-for-16 from the line.
McGill had a 32-31 edge in rebounds, a 22-10 advantage in turnovers, a 7-4 difference in steals and a 6-1 margin in blocked shots.
With six contests remaining before post-season play, the division-leading Martlets improved to 9-1 and sit two points ahead Laval (8-4) and hold two games in hand. McGill will host third-place UQAM (7-3) on Thursday, Feb. 4 at 6 p.m.
The cellar-dwelling Gaiters sit four points behind fourth-place Concordia (2-8) and can still catch the Stingers but will need at least three wins in their final six contests, beginnning on Thursday when the Gaiters visit Concordia (2-8) in a must-win game.
FOR MORE INFO CONTACT:
Kirsten Whelan or
Earl ZukermanMcgill Sports Info Office
(514) 398-7012
