MONTREAL -- Sirah Diarra of Longueuil, Que., registered a "double-double" with a career-high 24 points as the McGill University women's basketball team defeated UQAM 68-58 at Love Competition Hall, Saturday.
 
The Martlets has swept all three confrontations with the Citadins, with one more meeting on Feb. 21. With the result, McGill improved to 8-5 on the season and is now tied with second-place Concordia (8-5) in the five-team Quebec league and only three season-games remaining.

"UQAM is smart, they're tough and they battle," said Martlet head coach Ryan Thorne. "They ran some junk defence, a triangle in two, we had some trouble dealing with it and after that, we understood, had some better opportunities and I was pleased with that. "
 
McGill led the first quarter 17-6, had a 31-22 advantage going into half-time and a 46-40 edge after three.

"We started talking about a playoff mentality a couple weeks ago and just looking to win every game in front of us. It's always tough when you have a matchup against Laval," noted Thorne. "Home court advantage for a semifinal game is something important to play for so that was the focus for the players, I think they did a good job going after that and I'm pleased with the position we stayed in."
 
Diarra, a 6-foot-1 centre, registered 12 rebounds, shot 10-for-18 from the field and went 4-for-9 from the free-throw line. The first-year social work major also contributed three blocks and a steal in 33 minutes of play. The NCAA transfer who played three seasons at Clemson University is currently ranked fifth in the nation for rebounding with an 11.9 average per game.
 
"We had a conversation after that loss at Laval (on Feb, 2), about understanding roles," said Thorne, who implied that Diarra's role was under the basket. "In previous games, you saw a lot of players stepping up and shooting threes and that wasn't really helping us."
 
Montrealer Gladys Hakizimana and Shayann Laguerre from Laval, Que., both scored eight points for the Martlets. Hakizimana also tallied four rebounds, three steals, and an assist. Laguerre contributed a rebound and two steals.
 
Martlet forward Kamsi Ogbudibe of Calgary, Alta., registered seven points to go along with five rebounds, three assists, and a block.
 
"We asked them to get back to what they thought what was their essence in the game and that's what they've done," added Thorne. "Kamsi has done a great job over the past two games, Shayann has done an (excellent) job battling and giving us extra opportunities on the glass. They stayed within their wheelhouse and gave us opportunities. We are really happy about that."
 
The Citadins were led by Clara Blachier (24 pts) and Veronique Boivin (14 pts).
 
McGill connected on 41.7 per cent of their attempts from the field (25/60), went 5-for-17 from the arc and drained 13 of 21 attempts at the charity stripe. UQAM, which shot 32.7 per cent (17/52), drained two of 15 treys and made 22 of 29 from the line.
 
The Martlets return to the court on Thursday, Feb. 14 against Concordia to battle for second place. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. at John Dore Court.
 
"(Concordia) is another tough squad that is well coached," noted Thorne. "We have to be ready, I think it's going to be a playoff environment."

UQAM (2-11) travels to Quebec City on Feb. 16 to play undefeated Laval (13-0).