Vikes’ defence faces ultimate test
Familiarity will permeate the best-of-three Canada West second-round women’s basketball playoff series beginning today between the University of Victoria Vikes and host Winnipeg Wesmen.
UVic tried to match the run-and-gun Wesmen basket for basket when the teams met in the final weekend of the regular season two weeks ago on Ken and Kathy Shields Court in CARSA gym.
That was a mistake.
The Wesmen won 88-76 and 80-69.
“We scored quite a bit on them,” said Vikes coach Dani Sinclair.
But the Wesmen scored more, as teams built this particular way, tend to do.
“They are high-powered offensively and so athletic and quick,” added Sinclair.
“We tried to beat them at their own game. They ran on our turnovers. We need to protect the ball better. And we need to pick our opportunities to run.”
The Wesmen had the best record in the Canada West regular season at 18-2 and are ranked No. 6 nationally in U Sports.
The Vikes (12-8 in conference in regular season) are the sixth seed and swept the MacEwan University Griffins 2-0 in their best-of-three opening round of the playoffs while the Wesmen earned a first-round bye.
Five-foot-six guard Antoinette Miller of the Wesmen, from Phoenix, led Canada West in scoring with an 18.7 points-per-game average. There is a lot more at stake for Miller and the Wesmen than for the Vikes because UVic knows it is guaranteed a host berth in the 2017 U Sports national championship tournament March 9-12 at CARSA gym.
“Our players want to earn their way into the nationals,” said Sinclair.
“So we also play with a sense of urgency.”
The Vikes feel their trio of graduating fifth-year players, Jenna Bugiardini, Nicole Karstein and Jenna Krug, have built their careers to this moment.
“We have a veteran group that has stepped up . . . and did again last weekend against MacEwan in the opening round,” said Sinclair.
“We are going into this weekend with confidence.”
The second game of the Vikes Wesmen series is Friday and the third game, if necessary, will be played Saturday.