KAMLOOPS, BC – Third-year guard Taylor Randall led the way with 23 points, as the University of Manitoba Bisons trounced the Thompson Rivers WolfPack on the road on Friday at the Tournament Capital Centre, 81-56.
Randall's 23 points came on just 19 shots, as the Dundas, Ontario product's efficient night was a microcosm of Manitoba's team as a whole. The Bisons shot 44.6% from the field, compared to just 25.0% for the home WolfPack, on their way to their biggest margin of victory this season.
Nicole Konieczny had 15 points, ten rebounds, and three assists in support, while Emma Thompson made four threes to get to 12 points on the night.
"I thought in the first half that Taylor and Nicole did very well keeping composed," said Bisons head coach Michele Sung. "We worked a lot on quality scores. I thought they bought into that in the first half."
It didn't take long in this one for the Bisons to build a lead, as they went up 20-8 in the first quarter on their way to a 15-point halftime lead. Randall had 17 of her 23 by halftime, but got a lot of help. Four Bisons would finish in double figures, with nine players in the scoring column overall.
"In the second, I thought Emma and Claire [Harvey] came on strong. We talked about balanced attack and I thought through 40 minutes we got that today," said Sung.
Thompson Rivers was led by 13 points from Michelle Bos in the loss. Jordon Haggerty had 12 points.
The win improves Manitoba to 7-10 on the season, as they hold onto 11th in Canada West — one game up on rival Winnipeg who have the 12th and final playoff spot. The WolfPack fall to 4-13 with the loss.
The Bisons and WolfPack meet again tomorrow at 7 p.m. CST. The game can be watched on CanadaWest.TV.
