SFU Clan vs Concordia University Cavaliers (Oregon)
SFU - Last night, the SFU Clan Women’s basketball team played the Concordia University Cavaliers of Oregon in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference(GNAC) game that could have huge implications for both team’s playoff chances. The SFU Women currently sat at 4-8 in GNAC play good enough for 7th place, however only the top six make the playoffs. The Cavaliers of Concordia hold onto the 6th spot with a 5-7 record entering the game.
The game was also titled as the “Celebrate Diversity” Game, an initiative that was driven by student-athletes which would showcase many different types of diversity ranging from age, race, culture, religion and more throughout the game. A number of t-shirt tosses with SFU Rainbow coloured logo t-shirts were to be given away at the stoppages in play as diversity and different groups from campus were celebrated.
As of 2015, women’s NCAA basketball games play four quarters moving away from the two halves they used to play. With a roster that features mostly local players, The Clan came out strong and opened a 5-0 with buckets from Jessica Jones of Richmond and Tayla Jackson of Surrey. In the last half of the quarter however, the Clan would be outscored 15-9 which allowed the Cavaliers to grab a 28-18 lead after one quarter.
The Clan were playing another game with a short bench, with only eight players dressed and ready to see the court. As such, the Clan relied on a quick substitution routine that aimed to keep players constantly fresh and able to work their hardest in short bursts before getting a quick break. In the second quarter the scoring slowed as the teams combined for only 21 points scored in the frame. For the Clan it was Sophie Swant, of North Vancouver, leading the way with 11 points and a pair of triples, but Concordia still led 38-29.
To begin the third quarter, SFU Super Fan Cedric had relocated from his courtside spot to directly above the Concordia bench on the upper balcony, doing everything he could to give the home team the edge. Unfortunately for the Clan, they would only score six points in the crucial third quarter which really opened up the Cavalier lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Clan played even with the Cavaliers and won the quarter by two points. Nicole Vander Helm had a massive swat in the quarter and the Clan would score 20 points. But, the damage was done and Concordia took a 72-55 win at SFU.
SFU is back on the court at West Gym this Saturday against Western Oregon University in a must-win game if they want to keep their playoff dreams alive. Tip-off is at 7:00pm.
Good luck to the SFU Clan as they hunt for a playoff spot in the GNAC with seven games in the regular season remaining.
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