Women’s Basketball News

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The Saskatchewan Huskies were named tournament favourites on Sunday, while the Calgary Dinos earned the at-large berth, as the seeding and quarterfinal matchups were announced for the women’s tournament at the 2020 U SPORTS Final 8 Basketball Championships.

The women’s tournament, hosted jointly with the men’s championship for the first time in the nation’s capital by the Carleton Ravens, Ottawa Gee-Gees and the Ottawa Sports & Entertainment Group, tips off on Thursday and concludes Sunday with the gold medal game at 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT.

All championship bracket games (quarterfinals, semifinals, medal round) from both the men’s and women’s tournaments will be played at The Arena at TD Place, while the consolation brackets will be played at the Ravens Nest on the campus of Carleton University.

Livestreaming in English is available for free worldwide on CBCSports.ca, CBC Gem, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, with French digital coverage carried on USPORTS.LIVE.

TEAM PROFILES

No. Team Playoff Finish Records
(Regular Season / Playoffs)
Last / Total Titles Team Offence
(PTS/Game)
Team Defence
(PTS Against/Game)
1 Saskatchewan CW Champions 18-2 / 3-0 2016 / 1 83.0 / 1st 49.5 / 1st
2 Brock OUA Champions 17-5 / 3-0 Never 70.9 / 20th 61.0 / 10th
3 Ryerson OUA Finalists 18-4 / 2-1 Never 76.2 / 5th 57.6 / 5th
4 Laval RSEQ Champions 12-4 / 2-0 Never 56.9 / 40th 53.8 / 2nd
5 Alberta CW Finalists 16-4 / 2-1 1999 / 1 70.4 / 21st 58.0 / 7th
6 UPEI AUS Champions 17-3 / 2-0 Never 72.5 / 14th 61.9 / 12th
7 Calgary CW Semifinalists / At-large berth 18-2 / 1-1 1989 / 1 73.8 / 9th 57.4 / 4th
8 Carleton OUA Quarterfinalists / Hosts 15-7 / 1-1 2018 / 1 68.1 / 24th 57. 9 / 6th

TEAM LEADERS

No. Team Points/Game Rebounds/Game Assists/Game
1 Saskatchewan Summer Masikewich, 17.4 Summer Masikewich, 9.1 Libby Epoch, 4.6
2 Brock Melissa Tati, 18.5 Samantha Keltos, 8.0 Melissa Tati, 6.6
3 Ryerson Marin Scotten, 17.0 Bronwyn Williams, 7.4 Hayley Robertson, 6.0
4 Laval Khaléann Caron-Goudreau, 11.2 Khaléann Caron-Goudreau, 10.8 Maude Archambault & Carrie-Ann Auger, 2.6
5 Alberta Vanessa Wild, 18.0 Vanessa Wild, 6.0 Morgan, Mudge, 3.0
6 UPEI Jenna Mae Ellsworth, 20.5 Carolina Del Santo, 12.0 Reese Baxendale, 3.7
7 Calgary Liene Stalidzane, 14.8 Erin McIntosh, 5.6 Clara Tapia Palcio, 3.3
8 Carleton Alyssa Cerino, 16.3 Alyssa Cerino, 7.5 Kali, Pocrnic, 3.0

No. 1 Saskatchewan Huskies

CW Champions

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With an 18-2 record this year, the Huskies tied the program's record for fewest losses in a single season. Saskatchewan matched their two-loss 2015-16 campaign, where they went on to win their first national championship in school history.

But Saskatchewan's path to the national championship was anything but smooth. Playing at home, Saskatchewan held off a late drive by Victoria in the quarter-finals for an 80-75 victory, then had to rally from a late six-point deficit to defeat UBC in the semis and advance to the conference final. With their win over UBC, the Huskies punched their ticket back to U SPORTS Final 8, which will be their 12th appearance in the national championship in the last 13 seasons.

No. 2 Brock Badgers

OUA Champions

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Brock manufactured a great regular season by posting a 17-5 record, and though the team didn’t dominate the box scores on a nightly basis, they did show an ability to hit from deep, finishing third in the OUA with 179 made three-pointers.

Third-year post player Samantha Keltos (15.4 ppg), a second team all-star, and senior guard Jessica Morris (11.0 ppg) were two of three Badgers to score double digits on the year, but fifth-year guard and conference Player of the Year Melissa Tatti was the team’s relentless motor, helping Brock maintain its poise when it mattered most, especially throughout an incredible postseason run.

No. 3 Ryerson Rams

OUA  Finalists

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It was just a season ago that the Ryerson Rams hosted the U SPORTS Final 8 Championship on home court and their experience at the national level has left them hungry for more in 2019-20.

The Rams spent the entire season in the national rankings, peaking as high as No. 2 following an 18-4 campaign to top a competitive OUA Central division. Key victories came against Western, Carleton, and Brock while never losing back-to-back games and stringing together multiple four-game win streaks.

Junior guard Marin Scotten stepped up to lead the team in scoring with 17 PPG en route to second team all-star honours. Her play proved invaluable after talented junior guard Jama Bin-Edward went down injured with just 10 games played. Scotten also grabbed 7.3 RPG, finishing right behind senior forward Bronwyn Williams at 7.4.

No. 4 Laval Rouge et Or

RSEQ Champions

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After seven seasons without a title, the Laval Rouge et Or won its second RSEQ championship in a row after defeating the UQAM Citadins 62-54 in the final at home.  

Laval came in the playoffs as the favourite after posting a RSEQ-best 12-4 record in the regular season. It was head coach Guillaume Girouxès fourth regular season title in five years as the Rouge et Or bench boss. Led by RSEQ Defensive Player of the Year, Khaléann Caron-Goudreau, Laval gave up only 925 points in 16 games. Caron-Goudreau, a former Texas Longhorn, also finished the year with the best offensive production within the team (11.2 points per game), in front of Maude Archambault and Carrie-Ann Auger, who were both named RSEQ Second Team All-Stars.  

No. 5 Alberta Pandas

CW Finalists

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Despite losing one of their best players to injury in the pre-season, the Pandas still finished fourth in Canada West with a 16-4 record, including upset wins over nationally-ranked Calgary and Saskatchewan in the final month of the season. The Pandas carried that play into the post-season, defeating Fraser Valley in the quarter-final, before upsetting the Dinos again in the Canada West semifinal in Calgary. 

Canada West First Team all-star Vanessa Wild finished fifth in Canada West averaging 18.0 points per game, including a 39-point performance against Mount Royal in November, which set a new Pandas single-game scoring record.  

This will be the Pandas first trip to the Final 8 since three-straight appearances from 2014 to 2016.

No. 6 UPEI Panthers

AUS Champions

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Led by the potent back court duo of Jenna Mae Ellsworth (20.5 points per game) and Reese Baxendale (19.0 points per game), the UPEI Panthers finished with the AUS’s best record at 17-3 and captured their first championship in 22 years after taking down their rival, the Acadia Axewomen 78-59.

Two-time AUS Defensive Player of the Year Carolina Del Santo missed the final three games before the Christmas after injuring her knee in a game against StFX. Ellsworth also injured her knee the following day and was out until the New Year, as the Panthers managed their way to a 5-2 record.

Upon their return in a Jan. 4 game against Acadia, UPEI reeled off eight straight wins before running into the Axewomen, who ended their streak in the rematch. But the resilient Panthers finished the year with four straight victories, including two big wins at Memorial, where they outscored their opponent by scores of 91-72 and 103-78.

Ellsworth was named an AUS all-star for the fourth consecutive year and was named the conference’s MVP and top defensive player. Baxendale was named an all-star for first time, while Lauren Rainford earned a spot on the All-Rookie Team.

No. 7 Calgary Dinos

CW Semifinalists / At-large berth

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All season long, the Dinos' powerful offensive strategy have led the team to consistent victories, with an 18-2 record and their only losses coming to Saskatchewan and Alberta.  

Leading the front are third-year guard Liene Stalidzane (14.8 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 46.3 FG%), fourth-year wing Bobbi-Jo Colburn (13.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 43.5 FG%), and fifth-year wing Erin McIntosh (12.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 42.0 FG%).

In the post-season, the Dinos beat the UNBC Timberwolves in the CW quarter-finals, before falling to the Alberta Pandas in the semis, but their strong campaign earned the team at-large berth.

No. 8 Carleton Ravens

OUA Quarterfinalists / Hosts

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The season started with a new leader at the helm of the Carleton Ravens, as long-time head coach Taffe Charles made the move to the Ravens men’s program. Brian Cheng was brought in as the interim head coach to lead the Ravens in 2019-20. The first half of the campaign saw the Ravens near the top of the OUA East with only two losses.

The Ravens began to stumble in January and February, adding five more losses to their total including a dramatic loss to the uOttawa Gee-Gees in the Capital Hoops Classic. Carleton finished the season seeded No.7 heading into the playoffs. A third loss to the Gee-Gees was their undoing, as the Ravens fell to their rivals in the OUA Quarter-final matchup.

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

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Date Event Time (ET) Time (PT) English French
Wednesday, Mar. 4 All-Canadian Awards Gala 7 p.m. 4 p.m. N/A N/A
Thurs. Mar. 5 No. 3 Ryerson vs.
No. 6 UPEI
1 p.m. 10 a.m. CBCSports.ca
CBC Gem
CBC Sports App
USPORTS.LIVE
No. 2 Brock vs.
No. 7 Calgary
3 p.m. 12 p.m.
No. 4 Laval vs.
No. 5 Alberta
6 p.m. 3 p.m.
No. 1 Saskatchewan vs.
No. 8 Carleton
8 p.m. 5 p.m.

Full championship schedule available here.