By Bobby Mihalik
Humber Athletics Sports Information
ETOBICOKE, Ont – Day Two of the 2018 OCAA women’s basketball championship at Humber College Athletic Centre in Etobicoke, Ont. continued Saturday afternoon with the Durham Lords (9-8, 3rd East) facing off against the George Brown Huskies (15-2, 1st East) in a consolation round matchup. Outscoring their opponents in every quarter, the Huskies defeated the Lords 92-74 to advance to the consolation final.
While the Lords put themselves on the scoreboard first, the Huskies quickly took the lead. The Lords stayed right on the Huskies’ heels throughout the quarter, tying the game twice but never pulling back ahead. Trailing by 12 late in the quarter, the Lords scored nine points in the final minute to keep the game close as the Huskies led 32-29 after the high-scoring first.
The start of the second marked a change from the explosive offence in the first as the Huskies fought to maintain their lead over the resilient Lords. Holding another big late-quarter lead, this time the Huskies did not yield, fending off the Lords and taking a 10-point lead into the second half with a 55-45 score.
The pace of the game slowed dramatically in the third, with the teams combining for only four points in the first five minutes. The Huskies then picked up speed, capitalizing on numerous free throw attempts and scoring ten straight points. The Lords tried to fight back but saw their deficit grow to 17 points, entering the fourth behind 71-54.
The Huskies continued their dominance in the fourth, denying the Lords any chance of a comeback. While the Lords would make up for the Huskies point surge earlier in the fourth, the Huskies emerged victorious by a score of 92-74 and advanced to the consolation round final.
The Huskies shot 37.8 percent (28-of-74) from the field, made 62.8 percent (27-of-43) of their free throw attempts and converted 36 percent (9-of-25) of their three-point shots. The Lords went 28.9 percent (24-of-83) from the field and shot 25.9 percent (7-of-27) of their three-point attempts.
Tianna Sullivan led the way for the Huskies, leading in points with 29. Merrissa Moore, who had 15 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double, was named the Player of the Game for George Brown. Aprille Deus and Sherral Wilson both contributed 12 points for the Huskies.
The Lords were led in scoring by Keisha Arthurworrey, who had 21 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double. Maddie Dender, who was named Player of the Game for Durham, had 13 points, and Jaslin Khera had eight points.
The Huskies will move on to face the St. Clair Saints in the consolation finals. The scheduled start time is 12 p.m. Sunday.
