Huskies bounce back with commanding 86-61 win over Tigers 

HALIFAX, NS - The Saint Mary's Huskies had four players score in double-figures as they bounced back into the win column with a commanding 86-61 win over crosstown rival Dalhousie Tigers on Wednesday night in Halifax.

Saint Mary's used their aggressive defence to come out of the gate strong. They managed to force the Tigers into turning the ball over a handful of times in the first quarter and quickly turned their turnovers into points on the other end. Dalhousie's shooters kept the game close, as Lindsay Black (Moncton, NB) and Emma Ward (Moncton, NB) drained a couple of threes to make the score 22-18 at the end of the first.

Dalhousie made a run at the start of the second quarter to tie the game up, but Huskies guard Alaina McMillan (Brantford, ON) responded by picking up the slack on offence for Saint Mary's. With McMillan's help, the Huskies extended their lead to eight by halftime as they led 43-35.

Saint Mary's added to their lead in the third as McMillan and Clara Gascoigne (Dartmouth, NS) forced their way to the free throw over and over again. The Tigers got some help from Andrea Hebert (St. Catharines, ON), who managed to knock down her own fair share of freebies and crashed the boards hard to give Dalhousie some extra possessions. The Tigers would still need more, as Saint Mary's led 62-42 at the end of the third quarter.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

Drive and kick leads to a Clara Gascoigne three! Huskies lead 48-39 in the third quarter. pic.twitter.com/vGo7rXw3mc

— SMU Huskies (@SMUHuskies) February 8, 2023

Despite their best efforts, the Tigers could not close the gap as Saint Mary's grew their lead even more in the fourth quarter.  The Huskies kept getting to the line and forced Dalhousie into 30 turnovers on their way to a 86-61 win.

Huskies guard Courtney Donaldson (Kelowna, BC) was named Subway Player of the Game, scoring a game-high 19 points off the bench and adding six rebounds, four assists and four steals. 

Alaina McMillan added 17 points and moved into seventh place all-time in Huskies career regular season scoring with 1053 points (passing Laura Langille 2011-16), while Clara Gascoigne (Dartmouth, NS) added 14 points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals, and Sophia Widmeyer (Dartmouth, NS) chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds.

The Tigers were led by forward Andrea Hebert's 13 points and nine rebounds, while guard Emma Ward scored a season-high 10 points off the bench.

The Huskies win improves their record to 12-5 on the campaign, while the Tigers loss drops their record to 1-17.

The two teams will face off in a rematch on Saturday night, this time at the Homburg Centre, with tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m. GET TICKETS

Recap by Allan April / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics
Photos courtesy: Trevor MacMillan / Dalhousie Tigers Athletics