REGINA, Sask. – In a meeting that determined first place in the Pioneer Division, the University of Saskatchewan used a strong finish to take an 81-72 win over the hometown Regina Cougars on Saturday night in Canada West women's basketball action at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport on the U of R campus.
The two teams traded leads 12 times throughout the game, but a 16-3 run by Saskatchewan over the last minute of the third quarter and the first five minutes of the fourth turned what had been a two-point Regina lead into a 71-60 lead for the Huskies. The Cougars scored eight of the game's final 10 points, but it wasn't enough to overcome a Saskatchewan lead that swelled to 15 at one point down the stretch.
Saskatchewan's win gives the Huskies first place in the Pioneer Division, and with it the right to host the Canada West Final Four should they win their home quarterfinal series.
The Cougars were helped on the out-of-town scoreboard by Alberta's loss to Calgary, which gives Regina a second-place finish in the division.
Saskatchewan (18-2) was led by Latvian guard Sabine Dukate, who was 10-for-19 from the field overall and 5-for-11 from downtown to finish with a team-leading 25 points. One night after going off for 35 points, Laura Dally registered 19 points and five assists while Dalyce Emmerson finished with 19 points and a game-high 13 rebounds for a big double-double.
Katie Polischuk piled up 25 points to lead the Cougars, who finish the Canada West schedule with a 17-3 record. Charlotte Kot added 16 points for the U of R, while Alyssia Kajati had 13 points and Sidney Dobner had eight points and dished out a game-high eight assists.
Both teams will have next weekend off as they've earned byes through to the conference quarterfinals. Saskatchewan will host the winner of the Fraser Valley/Victoria play-in series, while the Cougars and Calgary will meet at the CKHS. Both of those series are scheduled to begin Mar. 4.