Stunning the Waterloo Warriors on Wednesday in the first-round of the OUA playoffs, the McMaster Marauders women's basketball team will look to keep the script going as they take on the No. 1 nationally ranked Brock Badgers on Saturday at 12pm.
Looking to improve on 2020's results where the team fell short in the OUA quarterfinal round, the Marauders will look to upset the defending national champion Badgers.
Game Day Details
McMaster Marauders vs. No. 1 Brock Badgers
Date: Saturday, March 19th
Time: 12pm
Watch: OUA.tv
It's been a rollercoaster of a season for the team that sports a 9-6 record in the OUA West Division, capturing the fifth seed heading into playoffs. Closing the fall portion of their season with a 5-1 record, courtesy of a pair of victories over the Lakehead Thunderwolves and Algoma Thunderbirds, while splitting their series with the Guelph Gryphons, the young teams' prospects looked bright.
But the extended winter break due to a pause in the schedule brought some adversity to the Maroon, who ended the second half of their season with a 4-5 record. Two of the losses came by way of the Badgers, who the Marauders stayed in contention with, but fell short in the third quarter in both games.
Much can be said of this young team that has been lights out from three-point range, leading the OUA in three-points made and attempts per game with 9.1 and 31.2, respectively. This is in due part to their ball movement, and OUA fifth-best 13.9 assists per game.
Offensively, Sarah Gates has been a force for the Marauders capturing the OUA scoring title and re-writing the Marauders record books, averaging 21.6 points per game – Gates is the first Marauder to eclipse the 20-point average barrier for an entire season.
Defensively, Clare Sharkey has come into the playoffs as an unstoppable force in the paint, tying a program playoff best for blocks in a single game with five against the Warriors on Wednesday in 32 minutes of play.
It's win or go home with a spot on the OUA West Division Final on the line. Winner of Saturday's matchup will go on to face the winner of Guelph vs. Western next Wednesday.
