EDMONTON - Marisa Haylett nailed a three-pointer with less than 15 seconds left to tie the game at 66-66 and then made four straight free throws to ice the game in overtime to lead her Alberta Pandas to an 80-74 victory over the UBC Thunderbirds in the first game of their best-of-three Canada West quarterfinal series.
"Marisa, who is a fifth-year for them, really stepped up late and made a pair of big shots," said UBC head coach
Deb Huband. "We need a little bit more from our leaders if we want to come into their gym and win these next two games. Some of the match-ups are positive us and we need each and every player to step up. We have a little bit of work to do but we know what needs to get done."
It was a back and forth battle on Thursday night, reminiscent of the 2010 CW quarterfinal series between these two teams that saw Alberta take game one in overtime and game three by two points.
Alex Vieweg, who led UBC with 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting, put the T-Birds ahead 63-60 with just under two minutes remaining. Haylett responded with a three on the Pandas next possession to draw the hosts even.
After a pair of misses from both teams, Vieweg got to the line with 27 seconds remaining and made her first attempt to push UBC ahead by one. She missed her second, but an offensive rebound and lay-up by
Lia St. Pierre gave UBC a 66-63 lead. Haylett kept her Pandas in it once again and Vieweg missed the game winning shot, her first miss of the night, as time expired.
In overtime, the Pandas opened with a 6-0 run and held the T-Birds without a point for over three minutes. UBC put the pressure on as time wound down in the five minute extra period but Haylett was perfect from the line over the last 30 seconds to seal the win.
Haylett tallied a game-high 29 points and was an impressive 13-of-14 from the line for the Pandas. Sally Hiller was lethal from downtown, finishing 4-of-7 from beyond the arc to chip in 12 points. Georgia Popvici (12) and Katie Arbuthnot (10) also hit double figures.
UBC relied heavily on their starting five, with each player seeing at least 30 minutes of court time. That group supplied 66 of the 'Birds 74 points. In addition to Vieweg, rookie
Kris Young had an impressive night with 18 points (9-of-12 field goals), a team-high six rebounds and four assists. St. Pierre (12) and Huntley (10) also broke double digits in scoring.
"Kris did a really terrific job as a rookie. She had a strong defensive game which may not show up in the stat sheet. On offence, she was able to take advantage of some opportunities and finished really well," added Huband. "For the third straight weekend, Alex brought a lot of energy, focus, and determination. She has been tremendous for us over the last few weeks."
Game two is scheduled for a 12:00 p.m. PT start on Friday.
-30-
