RAMS OVERCOME McMASTER FOR SECOND WIN AT HOME
Written by: Ryan Bacic; Photos by: Alex D'Addese
TORONTO, ONT. – It was a victorious night for the Ryerson Rams women’s basketball team, as they pulled off their second win on home court, overcoming the McMaster Marauders 83-71 in front of a packed Mattamy Athletic Centre.
While the first quarter of play ended with the Rams on top, the course of play certainly did not showcase that result. Throughout the first ten minutes, the home team made effective use of their forwards, specifically Sofia Paska (Etobicoke, Ont.) to penetrate a lack lustre Marauders baseline defense. This was coupled with an initial Rams defensive effort that prevented zone-penetration from the visiting team.
Unfortunately for the Rams, the Marauders would provide problems from the perimeter and beyond. On the defensive end, McMaster had found a formula for stultifying the Rams offensive pushes, through the utilization of an extended three-two defensive formation that began off the in-bounds and collapsed into a perimeter-concentrated effort that worked to stop lane-drives from the three point line. Offensively, the Marauders seemed at home beyond the three-point line, taking advantage of open looks on the perimeter.
Much like the first, the second quarter saw Ryerson both dominate and falter in the span of ten minutes. As the quarter began, it seemed as though the Rams were still unadjusted to the full-court defensive pressure provided by the visiting team; making it up the court was still a challenge and once on the offensive, turnovers were abundant. The Rams were eventually able to find a solution to this however, and seemed to prioritize quicker ball movement to advance beyond the half-court line. On top of this, the Rams showcased a greater degree of offensive connectivity, acquiring points from everywhere on the court.
However, the Marauders were relentless in their pursuit of a win on the night. Throughout the second and third quarter of play, McMaster outscored the Rams 19-15 and 23-20 respectively, forcing the home team to put away the contest early in the fourth quarter.
“I thought we were pretty sluggish defensively for three quarters of the game,” remarked Head Coach Carly Clarke adding, “they were able to get the ball where they wanted, and we were not communicating very well. Offensively I thought we were pretty good throughout the night, but on rebounds we definitely need to clean that up in games to come.”
And thankfully for the fans in attendance on Friday night, the Rams were able to do just that. As the quarter began, it seemed as though nothing that the Marauders threw at the home team seemed to phase them. Throughout the final quarter of play, the visiting team attempted to pick up their full-court defensive pressure, but to no avail as the Rams had made the adjustments necessary to combat this. Additionally, the Rams offensive connectivity only intensified in the final quarter of play, as they made half of all of their three-point and field goal attempts.
One Ram who really stood out tonight, was freshman guard Leyki Sorra (Toronto, Ont.) who finished the night with twelve points, two rebounds, and two assists.
“I definitely rely on my team a lot,” said Sorra on her performance on the night, adding “their ability to get the ball into the post, allows me to be open, and me driving into the lane allows them to be open, it’s definitely more of a team effort.”
The Rams will be back in action on Wednesday, November 15, at 6:00 pm as they take on the Guelph Gryphons at the Guelph Gryphons Athletic Centre. Fans will be able to catch all of the action live on OUA.tv, and by following the Ryerson Rams @ryersonrams.
