Since returning from the winter break, the McGill Martlets have won both of their contests after a shaky start to the season. After the Martlets dominated the Concordia Stingers 75-44 on Jan. 10, they turned their attention to the Laval Rouge-et-Or on Sunday at McGill’s Love Competition Hall. After a hard-fought battle, McGill sealed a 71-62 win, thanks in large part to their steadfast defence and the production of first-year forward Mariam Sylla, who logged a double-double with a game-high of 29 points and 11 rebounds.
From tip-off, it was clear that the two teams were evenly matched. Fans watched as the ball went from one side of the court to the other without a single basket until 7:52 into the game, when Martlet point-guard Dianna Ros tallied the first field goal. McGill’s presence under the rim along with the offensive and defensive rebounding efforts of Hélène Bibeau and Françoise Charest contributed to their unyielding first half lead. They entered the break with a 35-31 advantage.
“[Rebounding] is something we’ve been talking about for a while now… it’s something we’ve looked at and focused on, and I think you can see the fruits of our labour right there, both against Concordia and today,” Head Coach Ryan Thorne said after the game.
McGill began the second half with a 7-0 run, but Laval was able to fight back. A technical foul on Sylla with 2:44 left in the third quarter allowed Rouge-et-Or guard Jannie Jacques to tie the game with two free throws. In the last minutes of the third quarter, the Rouge-et-Or gained the lead; then closed out the third quarter 48-44.
“We got down in the third quarter just by miscommunication,” Thorne said. “They changed up some things; they put four guards out there and so it kind of messed us up on the perimeter and we had to adjust. I think the girls made the adjustment.”
McGill stepped back on the court with renewed vigour in the fourth quarter. After three quarters of excellent play, Sylla further stepped up her game and gave a huge offensive effort. She scored a number of layups and muscled defenders in the paint for rebounds.
“I got a technical foul in the third quarter and I was kind of frustrated, but I just didn’t stop and didn’t get discouraged. I told myself ‘We have to win this game,’” she said.
With the lead changing hands throughout much of the last six minutes of play, McGill finally regained control for good, thanks to a three pointer knocked down by Françoise Charest with 3:46 left in the game. Fittingly, a huge block from Sylla with 1l seconds left in the game sealed the deal for the McGill Martlets, and they claimed the win.
Overall, Coach Thorne was happy with the results of the game but he stressed that the team isn’t exactly where he wants them to be.
“I think we have got to get better at everything every day, and that’s why we practice,” Throne said. “I think we can definitely be better at our shot selection and our ability to guard people one on one without bringing a whole bunch of help and support … and then when we had to double team, we had trouble with out rotation so those are two things defensively that [we need to improve upon].”
The Martlets will be looking to extend their three game winning streak when they travel to Bishop’s on Jan. 16.
Photos by Mike King.
