SASKATOON - With a comeback victory, the No. 3 ranked University of Saskatchewan Huskies defeated the University of Calgary Dinos 72-68 Saturday night at the PAC in the final Canada West women's basketball game of the season.
With the win, the Huskies finish the season 17-3 and tied for top spot in the Canada West Pioneer Division. Saskatchewan also closes the season on a 13 game win streak. Calgary finishes 9-11. Both teams will advance to playoffs.
After tie-breaking with the UBC Thunderbirds, who also finished at 17-3, the Huskies will finish in the second position. Calgary will finish 10th after seeding for the playoffs.
The Huskies will host the Winnipeg Wesmen in a Canada West quarter-final series, while Calgary will travel to the to Victoria to meet the Vikes in the Canada West play-ins. The winner of the Calgary-Victoria series will advance to a quarter-final against the Thompson Rivers WolfPack, who finished first in the Explorer Division.
Calgary led 18-15 after the first quarter and at halftime 41-35. Saskatchewan began a bid for a comeback in the third quarter pulling within two but Calgary was able to break away again leading 55-48 at end of the third.
Saskatchewan found its stride in the final frame outscoring the Dinos 24-13.
Tied at 64, a Dalyce Emmerson layup gave Saskatchewan a two-point lead. Calgary tied the game on the next trip up the court. Huskie Laura Dally hit a long three-pointer from the top of the arc with 1:10 left to give Saskatchewan a 69-66 lead. After Calgary missed a three-pointer, Dally drew the foul at the other end of the court sinking one of two free throws for a four-point lead with 40 seconds left.
Calgary scored on their trip down the court, forcing a Saskatchewan timeout. Kelsey Trulsrud hit both free throws for a Saskatchewan four-point lead out of the timeout. On Calgary's trip down the court, a Calgary pass went out of bounds to give Saskatchewan back the ball with 4.4 seconds left and the 72-68 win.
Dally led the Huskies with 24 points in the game and six rebounds, while Trulsrud finished the night recording a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Emmerson added another 10 points for Saskatchewan.
Kristie Sheils led the Dinos with 15 points, while Anmol Mattu added another 13 for Calgary. Jessica Thielen led the Dinos on the boards with five rebounds.
The Dinos will head out to Victoria to take on the Vikes in a play-in series, Feb. 20-22. Should they win the series, they will advance to the Canada West quarterfinals.
