Recap The Court

Jacob Smith

In terms of record, there’s no closer matchup you’ll get in the first round than the eighth seed McMaster Marauders hosting the ninth seed Laurier Golden Hawks. McMaster at 15-7 and Laurier at 13-9 matched up at the start of the season where the Marauders took it 80-75, and now they meet again this time in Hamilton, with everything at stake.

The only matchup between these two teams this season left a lot to be desired for both sides, which is a jumping off point into the first key, starting with McMaster. The Marauders are always among the top teams in the league in threes. They take a lot of attempts and they have shooters like Jenna Button and Sophia Urosevic who can make them at a very efficient clip. When the threes arent dropping, or in this case they go against a team that can match their perimeter shooting like the Golden Hawks did in their matchup where Laurier shot 36 per cent to the Marauders 33 per cent, what sets them apart is the opportunistic defence, and taking advantage of opportunities.

The Golden Hawks turned the ball over 31 times in their matchup at the start of the season, with 16 of them being forced by the Marauders starters specifically five steals from Amy Stinson and five from Deanna Mataseje. Forcing steals and creating extra possessions, especially if they don’t have the edge in their shooting, creates a safety net for the Marauders to gaining momentum and snowballing their lead like they have in games before.

To counter the extra possessions the Marauders forced with their steals, Laurier found second chances on the glass, to the tune of a 20-9 advantage on the offensive glass, and it’s not too much to say it can and probably should repeat in this playoff game. Both Laurier and McMaster aren’t afraid to take a bump inside the paint if it means securing a rebound, and with the size advantage Laurier has with Janet Enge and Kathryn White, and the gang rebounding of Miranda Campbell, Dylann Mazzuchin and Cassidy Hirtle, Laurier has rebounding from all five on the floor, creating problems for the Marauders trying to match the energy on the glass.

Laurier being able to get everyone on the court to play the physical style on the glass and put emphasis on offensive rebounding will give the Golden Hawks an upper hand in this matchup that features two teams who aren’t afraid to put up a high volume of longer range shots. A couple more kick out threes off offensive rebounds, or put backs through Enge or White could be the difference in a game that went down to the wire in their first meeting.

Both of these teams are fighting to go on to the second round and see the defending champions Carleton Ravens. Any momentum gained from their run to end the regular season and this first round game will be vital not just to advancing through the playoffs but gaining some more confidence going into the first seed’s building. Cleaning up mistakes and areas of improvement is really important for both sides.