Guker-Wickie scores 20 in loss

HALIFAX, NS – The U SPORTS #7 ranked Saint Mary's Huskies (7-2) defeated the Dalhousie Tigers (0-10) 92-63 on Friday night at the Homburg Centre in Halifax. It was a balanced scoring night for the Huskies, with 11 of 12 active players scoring, led by 17 points and five assists from fifth year guard Alaina McMillan. 

The Huskies started off strong in their first action of 2024, with guard Courtney Donaldson (Kelowna, BC) scoring on a steal and lay-up followed by a three-pointer to put the home team up 7-0 just over a minute into the action. The Tigers responded with some strong play from guard Sydney Guker-Wickie (Kitchener, ON), who scored nine first quarter points.  

The story of the first quarter was the Huskies three-point shooting as guards Alaina McMillan (Brantford, ON) and Donaldson each hit a pair of triples, with guard Aliyah Fraser (New Glasgow, NS) adding one of her own to extend the Huskies lead to 25-13. That opened up the interior for the Huskies offence, as forwards Katelyn Power (Bayside, NS) and Chloe Wilson (Dartmouth, NS) scored easy lay-ups, and Saint Mary's took a 31-16 lead into the second quarter. 

The second quarter saw the Tigers come out determined, as a three from Guker-Wickie cut the lead to 31-21. Donaldson continued to pace the Huskies with five points, but the Tigers guard duo of Guker-Wickie and Kaitlyn Ferrier (Calgary, AB) kept the visitors hanging around, as Ferrier's lay-up cut the lead to 39-30. That would be as close as the Tigers would get for the rest of the night, as Huskies first year guard Julia Black (Halifax, NS) hit back-to-back threes, and Aliyah Fraser hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer to extend the lead to 54-39 at the half.  

The Huskies balanced scoring saw nine different players score in the first half, with Donaldson's 13 points leading the way, while Aliyah Fraser chipped in 10 off the bench. As a team, the Huskies hit 10 of 26 three-pointers attempted in the first half, with Alaina McMillan leading the way with a trio of triples. 

Dalhousie's Sydney Guker-Wickie led all scorers with 18 first half points, while guard Simona Matic (Belgrade, Serbia) chipped in eight points and three assists. 

The Huskies long distance attack continued in the second half, with Clara Gascoigne (Dartmouth, NS) and Alaina McMillan (Brantford, ON) hitting back-to-back three's to extend the score to 60-39. Once again, the Huskies ability to hit from the perimeter opened up easy baskets down low, with forwards Lucina Beaumont (Fredericton, NB) and Marlo Steenbakkers (Ottawa, ON) benefitting from great passes by guards Gascoigne and McMillan. Steenbakkers went on a personal 7-2 run, with a pair of lay-ups capped off with a corner three-pointer.  

The Huskies dynamic offence continued to put pressure on the Tigers, with McMillan hitting her fifth three-pointer of the night, before a textbook pick-and-roll from Donaldson and Wilson gave the Huskies a commanding 76-47 lead heading into the final frame. 

In the fourth quarter, the Tigers continued to get consistent scoring from Ferrier, who scored eight fourth quarter points, while guard Eva Widmeyer (Dartmouth, NS) hit a pair of threes. The Huskies went a bit deeper into their bench for the final quarter, receiving contributions from first year guards Julia Black (Halifax, NS), Georgia Bell (Miramichi, NB) and McKenna Dunn (Hollis, NH), as well as second year forward Emily Dikdan (Exeter, ON) who hit a free-throw for her first career AUS regular season point. The Huskies would win with a final score of 92-63.  

Player of the Game Alaina McMillan led the Huskies with 17 points, including five three-pointers, and added five assists, three steals, three rebounds and a block. 11 of the 12 Huskies who played in the game scored, with Courtney Donaldson adding 13 points, while Aliyah Fraser and Chloe Wilson each chipped in 12 points off the bench. 

The Tigers were led by guard Sydney Guker-Wickie with a career-high 20 points and eight rebounds, while Kaitlyn Ferrier chipped in 19 points and nine rebounds. 

The Huskies win improved their record to 7-2 on the season, while the Tigers loss dropped them to 0-10. The teams will face-off against each other again on Saturday night, this time at the Dalplex, with tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m.