MONTREAL -- Montrealer
Gladys Hakizimana scored a game-high 17 points and
Sirah Diarra registered a "double-double" as McGill defeated Bishop's 57-39 in RSEQ women's basketball at Love Competition Hall, Thursday.
It marked McGill's 10th win in their last 11 confrontations against the Gaiters.
The Martlets held a 11-5 lead after the opening quarter that dwindled to 22-19 by halftime. However, they controlled the third quarter 19-10 and took the fourth 18-10
"We had a lull in the second quarter where we weren't doing some good things," said head coach
Ryan Thorne, who improved his overall record behind the McGill bench to 262-202 in 464 games over nine seasons. "The Bishops coaching staff did a really good job of scouting and preparing against what we do. They presented us with a challenge in going small when we know our advantage is big."
The Martlets, whose roster features four six-footers, had a whopping 51-29 margin in rebounds, a 4-1 edge in blocks and a 12-6 advantage in steals.
Hakizimana, a 5-foot-7 social work senior, shot 4-for-10 from the floor, including 3-for-7 from beyond the arc, and went 6-for-8 from the free-throw line. She added seven rebounds, three assists and one steal.
"She is one of our top scorers," noted Thorne. "If we likened it to an NBA situation, she's one of our Big 3 and we need to make sure she is getting shots. We made an effort to get her some more shots and to not settle for drive and dish... She's still a pass-first point-guard, so she's always looking for her teammates and sometimes it's a detriment to herself. Today she did a better job (of choosing to shoot)."
Diarra, a 6-foot-1 NCAA transfer from Clemson University, scored 12 points and pulled down a game-high 19 rebounds. She shot 4-for-15 from the field and a near perfect 4-for-5 from the free-throw line. The first-year social work major also contributed a pair of blocked shots and an assist.
Gaiters guard
Ashley Milhomme tallied 12 points on 5-for-14 shooting from the floor and 2-for-4 from behind the arc.
McGill shot 30.6 per cent from the field (19/62), 30.4 from beyond the arc (7/23) and 80.0 (12-15) from the free-throw line, compared to Bishop's, which shot 27.8 per cent (15/54), drained three of 18 treys and made six of 12 attempts from the line.
The two teams will tango again on Saturday (Jan. 26) in Lennoxville, Que. The Martlets sit third in the five-team Quebec conference with a 5-3 record, while the fourth-place Gaiters dropped to 2-9. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m., followed by the men's game. Saturday night is the Gaiters' Bell Let's Talk night for mental health awareness.
| 2018-19 RSEQ Women's Basketball Standings • Classement de la saison régulière du RSEQ 2018-2019 |
|
|
| 1 |
Laval |
8 |
8 |
0 |
591 |
423 |
1.000 |
0.0 |
16 |
| 2 |
Concordia |
10 |
7 |
3 |
648 |
588 |
0.700 |
2.0 |
14 |
| 3 |
McGill |
8 |
5 |
3 |
465 |
457 |
0.625 |
3.0 |
10 |
| 4 |
Bishop's |
11 |
2 |
9 |
622 |
763 |
0.182 |
7.5 |
4 |
| 5 |
UQAM |
9 |
1 |
8 |
557 |
652 |
0.111 |
7.5 |
2 |
