GUELPH – For a young squad, the Guelph Gryphons basketball team shows little fear. Even when a nationally-ranked team comes to town. The Gryphons absorbed some big runs but ultimately fell 72-64 to the No. 9 Windsor Lancers at the GGAC Saturday night.
 
Windsor produced some huge stretches that would've buried a lesser team. And Guelph almost always had an answer – until they went cold for parts of the third and fourth quarters.
 
"We don't have enough of those spurts and they don't last long," said head coach Mark Walton. "We certainly had opportunities and a number of times, we just missed the shot. Those are the kind of poise plays we need to be able to make."
 
Skyla Minaker had team-highs of 13 points and 6 assists for Guelph (6-8), while Megan Brenkel added 12 points shooting 5-of-7 from the floor. Ivana Vujadinovic and Haley Belyk added 11 points each.
 
Windsor's 6-4 rookie Olivia Osamusali was a problem for the Gryphons, scoring 13 points and grabbing 8 rebounds. And the Lancers' other big Emily Provost had game-highs of 18 points and 13 rebounds. Guelph has struggled defending in the post because of a lack of size.
 
"She's very long," Walton said of Osamusali. "We don't really have a matchup for her."
 
Guelph was right there with the powerhouse Lancers in a competitive third quarter and trailed 51-47 with 1:48 left. But Windsor finished the quarter on a 9-2 run to go up by 10 points.
 
They would extend that lead in the fourth, going up by as many as 19 points as the Gryphons had a hard time finding any consistent offence. Burke Bechard and Brenkel hit back-to-back three-pointers and Bechard followed that up with another three-point play after a hard drive to the basket to cut the lead to 70-62 with 40 seconds left.
 
Despite the cold start, the Gryphons outscored Windsor 17-15 in the fourth quarter.
 
"We have to learn how to play at that level," said Walton. "If we want to a ranked team, that's the process we have to go through."
 
"I said to them before the game, 'many of you have never beaten Windsor.' This was a good opportunity to do it."
 
The Gryphons didn't look phased against the OUA West leaders and kept pace offensively in the first quarter, with Belyk hitting her first three shots. Guelph had trouble with Osumasali, who dominated inside and scored 8 of Windsor's first 12 points.
 
The Lancers went on an 11-0 run to take a 21-12 lead before Bechard finally snapped the Gryphons' offensive drought with a jumper from the elbow. But Windsor started the second quarter off with another 5-0 run to take a 26-14 lead.
 
Guelph was in danger of going down big but the hosts played some tough defense and responded. The Gryphons stole the ball and Minaker dribbled from her own end to lay it in. The rookie point guard then found Bechard underneath the basket for another lay in and Vujadinovic scored to slash the Windsor lead to 37-32 with under two minutes left in the half.
 
Brenkel would add a huge three-pointer from the left wing to cut it to a single basket but Windsor had a late layup to go into halftime up 39-35.
 
Guelph is back in action Wednesday, Jan. 17 when they go to London to face the Western Mustangs. Tip time is 6 pm.