LONDON, Ont. – The Gryphons women's basketball team travelled to London on Saturday night (March 12) for the last game of their regular season. With a playoff spot already in their grasps, the Gryphons were battling the Western Mustangs for the 2
nd seed in the OUA West, which would earn them a bye and the right to host a quarter-final game next Saturday. The game against Western was the second time in 4 days that the two teams would meet, with the Gryphons winning the previous matchup 77-62 at home in Guelph. With a bye on the line, Saturday night's game felt like a playoff matchup and the Gryphons went up early on the Mustangs, leading after the first half. After a tight second half, that saw the Mustangs fight back from every Gryphons lead, the two teams needed overtime to see who would leave with the bye to the quarter finals. Thanks to some timely shooting, the Mustangs were able to pull away from the Gryphons in the overtime period, earning them the 2
nd seed in the OUA West.
The Gryphons opened up Saturday's game with the same defensive prowess they showed on Wednesday against the Mustangs, but the aggressive play led to some foul trouble for multiple Gryphons players, and gave the Mustangs ample opportunity to stay in the game at the free throw line. A strong team effort in the 1
st quarter helped the Gryphons pull ahead early, 6 different Gryphons scored in the 1
st quarter and they were an efficient 9-11 from the field, Trinity Papamandjjari also had 4 rebounds in the quarter as the Gryphons were ahead 22-16 after 1.
After Ariane Saumure and Ashley Wheeler controlled the Mustangs offense in the first quarter, scoring all 16 of their points, Madalyn Picton chipped in with 8 points in the second quarter to help the Mustangs get back into the game. Western continued getting chances at the free throw line but their failure to convert kept the Gryphons on top. Western would go on a 3-minute 9-0 run towards the end of the first half to tie up the game, but a Trinity Papamandjari 3-pointer put the gryphons back on top heading into halftime, by a score of 36-33.
The third quarter showed much of the same back-and-forth play as the first half. The Gryphons maintained the lead for much of the quarter but by a very slight margin.
Burke Bechard had 7 points and 4 rebounds in the quarter, while
MacKeely Shantz had 9 points and 4 rebounds, to lead the Gryphons efforts in claiming the 2
nd seed. With Western right on their heels, the Gryphons were able to hold off the Mustangs, leading by a score of 59-54 after 3 quarters.
The 4th quarter saw
Burke Bechard take over for the Gryphons, scoring 8 points in the final quarter, and the Gryphons found themselves up by 5 points with 1:20 left on the clock, thanks to a
Skyla Minaker layup. But, just like the rest of the game, the Mustangs had a response for the Gryphons. Ashley Wheeler would pull Western to within 3, followed by a Madalyn Picton 3-pointer to tie the game up, sending the two teams to overtime.
The Mustangs were able to carry their momentum from the final minute of play into the overtime period, going on an 8-0 run to kick it off which included back-to-back 3-pointers. The Gryphons battled to find a way back into it, but the early push from the Mustangs proved to be too much, as the Mustangs outscored the Gryphons 13-5 in overtime to take the game 91-83 and claim the 2
nd seed heading into the playoffs.
The Gryphons were led by
Burke Bechard's 27 points. She also contributed 7 rebounds and 3 assists, while
MacKeely Shantz was close behind with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals. Trinity Papamandjari put together an impressive double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, while
Skyla Minaker led the team in assists with 5.
The Gryphons loss means they finish the regular season in 3
rd place with a 10-4 record. They will host the Windsor Lancers Wednesday evening at the Gryphons Athletic Centre in the first game of their OUA playoffs.
