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Inexplicably dropped from the Top-10 rankings in provincial senior AAA high school girls basketball, the Okanagan Mission Huskies had something to prove on the weekend at a tournament in Abbotsford.
Mission accomplished.
By winning a pair of games at the Robert Bateman Timberwolves Classic and giving No. 5-ranked Brookswood Bobcats of Langley all they could handle in a two-point loss, OKM moved up to No. 10 in this week’s rankings.
Up against honourable-mention Centennial Centaurs in the tournament opener, the Huskies, led by the smothering defence of Melania Corrado, defeated the Coquitlam representatives 81-45.
Not only did Corrado frustrate and subdue Simon Fraser University-bound Grace Killins, but the Grade 11 guard also scored 12 points while posting four assists, three steals and a block. Lily Pink led OKM with 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight steals to earn player-of-the-game status while Jordan Bury added 11 points and seven boards to go along with Jenna Robinson’s 10 assists.
In their encounter with Brookswood, the Huskies surprised the Bobcats with their speed and took an early 12-7 lead. The two teams were tied 20-20 at the quarter while OKM held a 35-32 lead by the half.
OKM fell behind by seven points early in the second half only to battle back for a 51-50 lead after three quarters. It was 60-56 for the Huskies late in the game but four free throws pulled the Bobcats into a tie and they took the lead by two points with less than a minute remaining.
With 3.5 seconds left, OKM ran a play to get Robinson open on the three-point arc for the win, but the shot hit the rim and bounced out at the buzzer in a 64-62 loss.
Makenna Jacklin (Grade 10) came through with one of her best performances of the season, netting 13 points and grabbing nine rebounds while sinking a pair of three-pointers.
Robinson was named the player of the game for scoring 15 points, pulling down four rebounds and recording three assists and three steals. Grade 10 Devon Felt added eight points and seven boards while Stefanie Young pitched in with eight points and 10 rebounds.
The Huskies closed out the weekend with a 59-44 win over unranked Lord Tweedsmuir Panthers of Surrey.
Despite Jacklin rolling her ankle early in the game and Young sitting it out with a knee issue, the Huskies cruised to the win in a game that saw them subbing freely throughout.
With 19 points, including five three-pointers, Felt earned player-of-the-game honours. She also hauled in three rebounds and recorded two assists. Pink added 16 points and 16 rebounds while Corrado chipped in with nine points and five assists.
Only half-jokingly, OKM assistant coach, Cassidy deVeer, said: “ You may not like us, but you will respect us”, referring to her team being dropped in the rankings a week earlier despite defeating two teams seeded above them.
“Our defence was so intense that players on the other teams were getting very frustrated,” she added. “We don’t need to make friends out there, we need to go and play hard until the buzzer goes.”
Head coach, Meghan Faust joined in.
“We demonstrated we do indeed belong in the Top 10. The girls responded to the challenge and did what they needed to do. Our defence has really stepped up and I’m excited to see where it can go from here and heading into the last bit of the season.
“Multiple players contributed in different ways, solidifying our belief that while we may be young and limited in numbers at times, we still have the depth.”
Meanwhile, the Huskies are back in Okanagan Valley league action Feb. 9 when they take on the Kelowna Owls at Kelowna Secondary School beginning at 3:30 p.m.
The Owls, ranked No. 6 (down one spot from the previous week) in the province, saw league action on Tuesday, defeating the Penticton Lakers 100-37. Kennedy Dickie scored 29 points to lead the Owls’ offence, hitting four three-pointers in the process. Jaeli Ibbetson added 22 points while Rylee Semeniuk and Kassidy Day both scored three treys for their nine points.
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