Race to the top: Prairies edition

Going into last weekend, three universities sat at the top of the Canada West Prairie Division in women’s basketball: the University of Regina Cougars, University of Saskatchewan Huskies, and the University of Alberta Pandas. This weekend, fans saw the match up between the Cougars and the Pandas.

Friday’s game on January 31 saw a strong presence on the court from Claire Signatovich, Annacy Palmer, and Jayden Tanner. Between rebounds, blocks, and three pointers, these three were sure to dominate the court. On the other hand from the Cougars, Cara Misskey and Jade Belmore had multiple power plays. 

First and second quarter

The first quarter saw the Pandas starting off strong with a big lead and controlled passes and baskets. The Cougars fell behind with passes too strong and several easy shots missed. 

The Pandas started the quarter by scoring first and ended it by scoring last. Palmer held a strong presence throughout the first period with three pointers and good positioning for passes. 

Signatovich also had several two pointers. She was a dominant force when it came to points scored, blocks, and being a constant force during rebounds. 

The second quarter started with a strong pass between Palmer and Tanner, leaving the Cougars to follow. While the Pandas are one of the strongest in defence across the country, the Cougars were lacking in this second quarter. 

Belmore from the Cougars was a powerhouse in this game, with strong plays in the second quarter which she went into after playing the full first. The second did see some slowing down, by both teams who played it safe.

Towards the end of the second, the Cougars picked up their speed and power, starting to close that gap between them and the Pandas. The Pandas were strong with threes this game. The Cougars tried to respond, but they just weren’t on the same level when it came to scoring threes. 

Reaching six minutes, fouls were back-to-back for both teams, seeing a lot of stops in gameplay and forcing a slow end to the second. During the last stretch, Tanner from the Pandas was setting up fouls for herself by being in the perfect position. 

While the Cougars were the aggressive ones in the first, the roles seemed to have swapped with the Pandas taking the uncontrolled aggression in their passes and scoring. This quarter ended with Maddy Seida scoring a three pointer for the Cougars, as if making it clear they were in it for the long run.

The third, fourth and overtime

The third saw a lot of catch up from the Cougars, but an otherwise steady flow of points from both teams. This quarter saw the evenly matched up teams start to really battle it out for the top spot in the Prairies Division. 

During the third, Belmore from the Cougars started to dominate the court. She ultimately became a powerhouse through the last quarter and in overtime. She truly carried the cougars for those last 15 minutes.

The Cougars ended that third quarter with final possession, giving them a strong start in the fourth. 

The fourth started slow and steady but quickly picked up with the Cougars catching up to the Pandas. The scoreboard read 61 to 60 with four minutes left in the game. This was the closest that the Cougars have ever been to the Pandas throughout the whole game, and in the next minute the Cougars took the lead. 

With another three and a two, the Pandas took the lead. This was short-lived because with just 30 seconds remaining, the Cougars got a three pointer and Belmore received a two shot foul. She scored both, placing them at a tie right at the buzzer. 

Going into overtime, the Pandas took charge and Belmore seemed to be the only one left fighting for the Cougars. With a few layups and threes, the game ended with a score of 78 to 72 for the Pandas. 

This makes the Pandas’ twelfth win in a row. Saturday evening, the Pandas dominated the Cougars with an end score of 75-50, placing the Pandas at the top of the Prairie Division in Canada West.