Box Score It's always an intense battle when McMaster and Brock tangle in OUA basketball and the Marauders started the New Year with a solid 72-56 road win over the Badgers on Wednesday night.

The frigid temperatures outside did not seem to impact McMaster's Hailey Milligan as she was hot from the floor right from the opening tip. Brock's Nicole Rosenkranz matched Milligan in the early going and led by their all-star post who scored 14 points, the Badgers held a 21-19 lead after one quarter.

McMaster bounced back in the second quarter and did a nice job of moving the ball and finding Milligan in good position. By halftime, the Marauders had taken a 36-33 lead with Milligan draining 18 points in the opening 20 minutes.

The third quarter saw McMaster open on an 11-2 run, forcing Brock into a timeout as the Maroon advantage went to 47-35. The Badgers brought the cold to their shooting this night, while the Marauders got some scoring from Jaklynn Nimec, Vanessa Bonomo, and Danielle Boiago in support of Milligan's efforts. Heading to the fourth quarter, McMaster was in front 54-44.

In the final period, McMaster again carried the play to start the action and another 11-2 run saw the Mac lead swell to 65-46, forcing Brock to call another timeout to stem the Maroon tide. While the Badgers continued to struggle offensively, McMaster got some clutch hoops from Milligan and Nimec and closed out the important win.

Top shooter for McMaster was Milligan, who dropped 31 points while grabbing 11 rebounds. Bonomo flirted with a triple-double with 9 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Rosenkranz finished with 17 for Brock.

McMaster comes home for the annual Marauder Weekend this Saturday, January 11th to face the national champion Windsor Lancers in another important OUA West division clash. The game will tip-off at 2 p.m.