Halifax, NS – In mid-week basketball action, the Dalhousie Tigers hosted the StFX X-Women at the Dalplex. A strong defensive third quarter made the difference for the X-Women as they took a 58-46 win on the road.
The X-Women found success early by creating space with ball movement and working the ball inside for Briar MacDonald (Antigonish, NS) who picked up her team's first eight points of the game in the opening minutes.
After getting off to a hot start from the field with Chelsea Slawter-Wright (Dartmouth, NS) knocking down an early three, the Tigers also elected to push the ball inside to play through Chloe Wilson (Dartmouth, NS) with strong back to the basket play to earn trips to the line.
At the end of a physical first quarter, the Tigers held a slim lead at 16-15.
The Tigers continued to push the ball inside, but the size of StFX in the paint was challenging and the Tigers shooters went cold in the second quarter.
On the other end, the X-Women were sparked by the outside shooting of Marley Bonnick (Brampton, ON) to start to build their lead in the back end of the half.
The Tigers brought up their defensive intensity in the late minutes of the quarter, forcing the X-Women into tough, late-clock situations, but the X-Women were still making them pay on slashing drives to the hoop to earn trips to the line.
Heading into the half, the X-Women held a 30-22 lead.
That X-Women run extended into the second half, with Bonnick and MacDonald combining for six points before Kimberly Kingsbury (Nepean, ON) knocked down a shot from deep to extend the lead.
The Tigers were working their way back into the game with Morgan Gause (Baltimore, MD) earning trips to the line to save time with a dead clock, but a big and-one play from MacDonald stopped the run short and gave the X-Women a 44-33 lead heading into the final quarter.
The Tigers shooters were still struggling in the fourth, dipping below 20% from the field in the opening minutes of the quarter.
Despite their shooting struggles, the Tigers kept themselves in it by earning trips to the line, and a few key misses from the X-Women as with three minutes to go the Tigers were in striking distance, down to single-digits at eight.
Once again, as the Tigers were mounting a run, Marley Bonnick pulled up for a big three to stop the bleeding and force the Tigers to play the foul game.
With the Tigers missing transition baskets, Bonnick was clutch from the line in the dying seconds, and she was able to ice the 58-46 win for the X-Women.
Chloe Wilson led the attack for the Tigers with 13 points and 7 rebounds, while Briar MacDonald finished with a game-high 19 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double performance and the Subway Player of the Game title in the win.
The Tigers are back on home court on Sunday when they take on Cape Breton, while the X-Women are at home on Saturday for a four-point game against UNB.
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Courtesy Kirk Jessome, DAL Sports Information