The Martlets entered Love Competition Hall on Friday evening in support of Shoot for the Cure— a fundraiser for breast cancer research— in the annual “Pack the House” game. McGill was looking to extend their seven game winning streak into February against the Concordia Stingers. However, despite a strong showing by point guard Diana Ros and forward Mariam Sylla, the Martlets fell to the Stingers 71-66 for the first time since November.

The first quarter was quite competitive, as both teams appeared evenly matched. Concordia had made tremendous adjustments since the last time the two rivals met, when the Stingers were blown out 75-44. On the other side of the court, McGill played with tenacity on offence, crashing the offensive boards, and running the floor every chance they had. The quarter finished an even 16-16.

While the Martlets focused on pushing the tempo in transition and pounding the ball down low to star rookie Sylla, the Stingers sniped from beyond the arc. Concordia’s shooters recorded an outstanding 61.5 per cent field goal efficiency from three-point range in the first half.

The second frame, however, was all about Ros, as the secondyear point guard put on a clinic. She scored the first five points for the Martlets and scored he remaining 10 points in the second quarter, including an ankle-breaking crossover on a Stinger defender. She teamed up with Sylla to put the team up by seven at the 7:09 mark.

Unfortunately, Ros was the lone bright spot for McGill in the second. The team proceeded to collapse, allowing Concordia to come roaring back with a barrage of threes. The Stingers entered halftime with a 42-34 lead.

“[In the second quarter], we slowed the pace down [and] started walking,” Martlets Head Coach Ryan Thorne said. “And then, [Concordia] was able to do different things; they ran a good ball screen action, got some open shots. We didn’t play it properly, so they got good looks out of it, and that was it.”

McGill unravelled further in the final half, as Concordia came out of the locker room on fire. The Martlets continued to struggle to defend the three-point shot, and could not convert on offence. McGill’s turnovers added to their troubles, and they trailed 61-45 by the end of the third quarter.

The Martlets huddled up before the start of the fourth, when Coach Thorne helped his team regroup.

“Coach just [told] us that we had to communicate; that we have to play with more character, and that we are better than what we are doing. Everyone got pumped up and we started to do what we do best,” Sylla said.

This motivation appeared to work its magic, as McGill played with incredible energy in the final quarter and got back to what gives them offensive success—namely, their inside-out passing, transition baskets, and offensive rebounds.

The hard work paid off, as the Martlets made a comeback behind Sylla and veteran forward Helene Bibeau. Following an 18-2 run, Sylla put McGill up by one with three minutes remaining in the game. Ultimately, Tamara Pinard-Devos and Kaylah Barrett kept composure down the stretch for Concordia, and helped the Stingers seal the 71-66 victory.

Despite Friday’s loss, the Martlets remain in first place in the RSEQ, with a conference record of 8-3. However, Coach Thorne does not want McGill’s position atop the standings to affect his team’s approach.

“We won the conference last year, so we’ve had a target [on our backs] since the season started,” he said. “We have to take the approach, which is to go out there and play everyone as tough as we can. … We’re going after another championship.” Ros added that the team will continue to work hard before the playoffs.

“We’ve been working since the beginning of the season [to stay] first,” she said. “We’ve been here before so we just want to stay here and work as hard as we can [to] have home court advantage [in the playoffs].”

The Martlets battle Laval on Feb. 7 in Quebec City, before returning home to play UQAM on Feb. 9. The RSEQ playoffs begin at the end of February.