LONDON, Ont. – Fourth-year guard
Mackenzie Puklicz poured in a game-high 23 points to lead the Western Mustangs to a 58-45 win over the Waterloo Warriors on Wednesday night at Alumni Hall.
"Every win is a building piece and every win is important, but I think this one is especially important given the time of the season and the zero-sum nature of the game, meaning if we win we push Waterloo down [the standings], if they win they push us down," said Mustangs head coach
Brian Cheng, noting the impact of this game on playoff positioning. "We were fortunate to get on the good side of that zero-sum game, and give them credit; they played desperate, they played hard, and they made us go for forty minutes."
With the win over the Warriors, the Mustangs record will improve to 7-10 with three games left in the season, while Waterloo falls to 5-11 on the year. The victory was an important one for the purple and white, with Western entering this week in the final playoff spot in the OUA with Waterloo directly in front of the Mustangs.
Puklicz not only led the game in scoring, but her defensive efforts also helped lead her team to an essential victory. Along with eight rebounds, Puklicz recorded eight steals to help hand the Mustangs a key win.
Puklicz was the only Mustang to score in double-figures in the victory, but second-year forward
Julia Curran and fourth-year forward
Victoria Heine grabbed eleven and nine boards, respectively, to help bolster Western's rebounding advantage. Big shots from rookies
Sarah Coulthard and
Jade Codinera were also essential in sealing the win.
"She's fantastic. The stats show it; she works so hard and she's so great. She's an amazing teammate to have," said Puklicz, praising the consistent production from Curran this season.
Western began the opening quarter with persistent pressure on the defensive end, forcing the Waterloo offence into a series of turnovers. Despite the early energy from the Mustangs, the Warriors' offence quickly got on track, beating Western on the boards and knocking down a trio of first-quarter threes leading to a 14-7 Warriors advantage to end the frame.
Waterloo was aggressive driving to the paint to start the second quarter, helping to extend their lead, but the interior defence would tighten up quickly for the purple and white, led by the efforts of Heine and Curran.
The Mustangs countered the Warriors with an impressive scoring display of their own sparked by seven quick points from Curran in the second frame along with a strong all-around performance from Coulthard off the bench. The 21-9 second-quarter run carried Western to a 28-23 lead at halftime.
Puklicz continued to hound the Warrior ball-handlers as she kept the Waterloo offence out of rhythm and helping to force six turnovers in the quarter. But, after strong long-range marksmanship from Western in the second frame, the third proved to be a different story for the purple and white as they shot 1-6 from beyond the arc in the quarter. The shooting woes allowed the Warriors to equal the Mustangs at 12-12 in the frame, giving Western a 40-35 lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
The final quarter saw a return to form for the Mustangs as they knocked down five three-pointers in the first five minutes to help extend their lead. Western continued their production throughout the final frame and prolonged their possessions through their ability to draw fouls as Western ended up cruising to a 13-point victory.
"Waterloo has always been one of those teams that all of us play our hardest. I don't know if it's because they're close or what it is, but they're one of our rivals," said Puklicz. "I don't lose those games, we don't lose those games."
The Mustangs will be back in action this Saturday, February 11, as they will travel to Waterloo to take on the Laurier Golden Hawks in an OUA West Divisional matchup. The game is set to begin at 1:00 p.m. and fans can catch the action live at OUA.tv.
