WILSON, DOMINGO LEAD WAY IN 16-1 HAWKS TWELFTH STRAIGHT WIN
In a dead heat with Mohawk for the Western Division's top spot and just two regular season games remaining, the Women's Basketball Team went into Wednesday night's home finale against Redeemer as winners of eleven straight and aiming to get one step closer to the Division crown.
Before opening tip, two Hawks were recognized for standout careers at the college. Assistant Coach Paul Pearson, who has spent the past ten years on the Hawks sideline and became one of the most impactful and respected coaches in Etobicoke, was acknowledged for his contributions. Guard Melissa Szilagyi, a tough nosed point guard and big part of the team's success over the past two seasons, was also recognized with a pre-game ceremony.
In the early going it was forward Aleena Domingo who set the pace with six points in the first four minutes to go along with a pair of forced turnovers. Humber's perimeter defence was the story for much of the first quarter with the Royals largely unable to get decent looks at the basket. On the offensive side of the ball Humber was out of sync. Shooting guard Shan Wilson was unable to finish at the rim on several plays down the left wing where contact was clear but no call made and the rest of the Hawks outside looks weren't falling. Despite shooting just a tick over twenty percent on the quarter, Humber held a four point lead after ten minutes largely thanks to five forced turnovers and active arms on the defensive end.
The fast break kick started Humber's offense kick in the second as a two on one led to a Domingo and-one courtesy of guard Ceejay Nofuente. Nofuente kept the helpers coming with another dish to Domingo that extended the lead to eight. Humber's sixth fast break point of the quarter's first three minutes had Redeemer's defense scrambling. Then a nice finish from small forward Natalie Hagopian made it 24-12. After a back and forth final few minutes, the Blue and Gold went to work on the offensive glass. First, forward Llyandra Kerr went for the r and b followed by a triple from guard Sasha Bertusa as the half came to a close. Through twenty it was the home side's 28-14 rebounding edge that was the biggest reason for a 39-27 lead and control of the game's pace.
Redeemer opened the second half in a zone but despite the packed paint Humber continued to own the boards. A put back finish with the foul from Domingo pushed the lead to sixteen and the visitors appeared over matched. Bertusa's pull up was followed shortly by a Domingo lay in and the lead had ballooned to twenty-two with Redeemer forced to call timeout. The Hawks interior defense, led by the duo of fprward Courtney Boyes and Kerr, continued to protect the rim and strong play on the break led to a Wilson three. With Humber pulling away, Wilson's second triple of the quarter at the buzzer extended the lead to 69-41 after three; Humber lit it up for thirty points in the frame.
The pounding on the glass continued into the fourth as centre Ruth Holland's offensive board led to another easy two. Holland and forward Jill Semple had consecutive buckets at the rim and Wilson continued her work inside with a board and finish. At the final buzzer the score read 83-54 and Humber's dominance over the final three quarters extended their win streak to twelve. Wilson was named Hawks Nation Player of The Game for a great two-way performance.
With the win Humber improves to 16-1 on the season and sets up what is likely to be a showdown for the Western Division's top seed on Feb. 20th at Mohawk.
For full season standings, schedules, stats and more please visit http://ocaa.com/sports/wbkb/2014-15/standings-include.
