MONTREAL -- Alex Kiss-Rusk of Beaconsfield, Que., recorded a massive "double-double" as No.3 McGill toppled Concordia 93-66 in RSEQ women's basketball before a boisterous crowd of 788 in the third annual Pots & Pans game, at Love Competition Hall on Saturday. It was the largest McGill hoops gate since March 11, 2016 when a school record of 1,023 attended the men's conference semifinal.

The 93 points marked the Martlets' highest offensive output in a span of 214 games, since a 93-68 victory at UQAM on Jan. 22, 2011 and prior to that, a 93-42 victory at Bishop's on Jan. 24, 1997.

The Martlets took a 26-19 lead after the first quarter, improved that to 52-31 at halftime and carried a 75-45 advantage into the final frame.

"We have an advantage inside and we used it, so we played good inside-out basketball," said McGill bench boss Ryan Thorne, who improved his career coaching record to 241-188 in 428 games overall with the Martlets. "If they're going to collapse on Alex we're going to have some good opportunities to shoot the ball. And if they're not, then Alex is going to be able to score on most people one-on-one. So that was the advantage."

The Martlets shot a spectacular 56.3 per cent from the field (40/71) -- including a 4-for-11 performance from three-point range -- and were 9-for-11 on free throws.

"We've got good shooters on the team," noted Thorne, whose troops are shooting at a lofty 43.5 per cent clip on the season. "It's just being ready to shoot. Sometimes we defer to each other too much. Because people were going to have to double-team Alex, we were going to get good open shots if we moved the ball, and that's what happened. It was just because they were unselfish that they got open shots."

Kiss-Rusk, a 6-foot-4 centre, scored 27 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, including a dozen in the defensive zone, in 27 minutes of court time. The fifth-year senior -- now studying social work after graduating last spring with a BA in a psychology -- shot 12-for-23 from the field, sank all three free-throws, and also had three assists.

"She's got a size advantage over both of their post players so you'll definitely notice her more and we key in on that more (against teams like Concordia)," offered Thorne. "When she doesn't have a size advantage she's got to work a little harder, do a little more, and then we kind of just play with more spacing. So that was the big difference."

Stephanie Guinois-Cote, a 5-foot-7 junior winger from St. Jacques le Mineur, Que., followed with 19 points in 22 minutes in her first start of the season. She shot a sparkling 9-for-10 from the field and was perfect on her only three-point attempt, nabbed two rebounds, had one assist and stole one ball.

"Marie-Love Michel was out sick today so Steph Guinois was inserted into the starting line-up and she did a phenomenal job," praised Thorne. "That's just what we need, someone to step up and be ready to play when their number's called, and that's what she did."

Frederique Potvin of Ste. Julie, Que., recorded 15 points and grabbed six rebounds. She shot 5-for-10 from the field, including 1-for-4 from beyond the arc, and was 4-for-5 on free-throws. The social work senior also managed four assists and blocked one shot. Gladys Hakizimana of Montreal rounded out McGill's double-digit scorers with 11 points. The junior guard shot 5-for-10 from the floor, including 1-for-3 from downtown, and corralled five rebounds. She also had a game-high six assists.

Caroline Task paced the Stingers with a game-high 30 points.

Concordia, which entered the game with a 2-0 record, dressed just eight players – instead of the standard dozen – of which only six saw the court and the Martlets took full advantage of.

"There were some things that we tried to do that we thought would be important," Thorne revealed. "We tried to keep them running, tried to keep them moving and not allow them opportunities to sit and rest. They play fast already and sometimes what people look to do is slow down in that situation, which allows them to control that tempo and rest on defence. We tried to make sure they weren't able to rest."

McGill had a 44-32 rebounding advantage and the only blocked shot of the game. The Stingers allowed six turnovers compared to nine by the hosts, while both teams had four steals.

Concordia shot 30.6 per cent from the floor (22/72), was 7-for-22 from beyond the arc, and 15-for-24 from the charity stripe (62.5 per cent).

The Martlets (2-1) will closing out the first semester against Bishop's (2-1) in Lennoxville on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 6 p.m. Concordia (2-1) hosts UQAM (0-2) that same day.

FACES IN THE CROWD: Among the large throng on hand to witness the noisy Pots & Pans hoopla were Esther and Louis Silver, parents of recent Martlet grad Jenn Silver, a fifth-year medical school student who hung up her sneakers after helping the Martlets win their first national championship last spring. "Where was Jenn?" they were asked. "In the library studying, where else would she be?" was the response.

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2017-18 RSEQ Women's Basketball Standings • Classement de la saison régulière du RSEQ

Pos	TEAM	GP	W	L	PF	PA	PCT	GBL	PTS
1	McGill	3	2	1	210	176	0.667	0.0	4
2	Concordia	3	2	1	203	201	0.667	0.0	4
3	Bishop's	3	2	1	212	214	0.667	0.0	4
4	Laval	3	1	2	178	180	0.333	1.0	2
5	UQAM	2	0	2	113	145	0.000	1.5	0