Queen's at Toronto January 19, 2008

Two late quarter runs, sink Gaels
Queen's 56 Toronto 71
by Dave Wilson

We opened this game with a level of intensity that was no where to found the previous night. Defensively, we were able to keep U of T off balance in the quarter court, forcing numerous turnovers or poor shots. On the offensive end of the floor, however, U of T was able to do the same to us. At the end of the quarter, U of T led 17-14. The second quarter continued in the same fashion, each team trading hoops, often as a result of the defense leading to a transition hoop. But then the last 3 minutes of the half changed things. Without a time out at my disposal, U of T pressed in the half court and caused a series of turnovers leading directly to lay ups. What was a tie score, quickly became a 9 point deficit heading into the change room, 28-37. We started the third quarter much stronger again, but at the end of the quarter, a quick series of turnovers led to easy Toronto scores. They opened an 18 point lead, outscoring us 19-10 in the quarter. We spent the entire fourth quarter trying to pry our way back in the game, closing the gap to as few as 9, but could not sustain the run. In the end, we outscored Toronto 18-15 in the quarter, well short of what we needed.

Sarah Barnes returned to stellar form, connecting for 16 points, including 3 for 3 from 3 pt. land, and hauling down 7 boards. Anne Murphy added 13 points and 7 boards, while Alaina Porter finished with 10 points and 5 rebounds.