(By University of Regina Sports Information)
REGINA – It wasn't pretty at times, but the University of Regina's women's basketball team took a 71-51 victory over the Victoria Vikes on Thursday night in Game 1 of a best-of-three Canada West quarterfinal series at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.
The Cougars trailed by two at the half, but went on a 24-2 run in the third quarter to seize control of the contest.
"We got a little frustrated early and didn't handle it well, but I figured we were going to be okay in the third quarter and we got enough points there," Cougars head coach Dave Taylor said. "We shot ourselves in the foot a little bit by turning the ball over too much, but our half-court defence was outstanding."
Kyanna Giles and Angela Bongomin both had double-doubles for the Cougars. Giles had 13 points and 11 rebounds, while Bongomin had 12 points and 12 rebounds in 16 spirited minutes off the bench. Christina McCusker fell just short of registering a third double-double for Regina, finishing with eight points and 10 rebounds to go along with a game-high four blocks.
�� | A few highlights and some comments from @RegCougarCoach following tonight's 71-51 win over Victoria in Game 1!
— U of R Cougars (@ReginaCougars) February 15, 2019
Second game of the best-of-three quarterfinal series goes Friday night at the CKHS! Start time is 7:00. #WeAreUofR
��️ » https://t.co/pdfAIOZlwY pic.twitter.com/BTWsR4DjaG
Amira Giannattasio finished with 13 points to lead Victoria. Ashlyn Day (12 points, 9 rebounds) and Aleah Ashlee (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Vikes.
The two teams will now prepare for the second game of the series, set for Friday night at the CKHS.
"The toughest game to win is an elimination game, and even moreso when the other team's best player is in their fifth year," Taylor said. "We fully expect Amira (Giannattasio) to come out firing tomorrow and she's going to be a handful to deal with."
Friday's game will tip off at 7:00.