Day 2 of the 2024 ACAA Basketball Championships are in the books and it featured four highly competitive games at the McMillan Centre in Charlottetown.
Here is a full breakdown of the four semi-final games on Saturday.
1pm (W) | MSVU vs Holland WBBALL Semifinal Recap
The top-ranked Mount Saint Vincent University Mystics were challenged hard by the fourth-ranked Holland College Hurricanes in an electric semi-final match on Saturday afternoon, but a late clutch performance earned them a spot in Sunday’s championship game.
The Hurricanes experienced a fantastic start, keeping a close lead for most of the first quarter with strong efforts by Robyn Driscoll, Lauren Armstrong, and Player of the Year Alexa Rancourt. However, late momentum from MSVU forced Holland to call a timeout. It looked like the Hurricanes would head into the second quarter with the lead, but a late three-pointer by Gwen Ettinger-O'Leary gave the Mystics an 18-17 lead.
MSVU had the stronger start in quarter two, but rookie Sarah Nyhouse stepped up with a three-pointer and a layup, giving the Hurricanes a 28-26 lead before a Mystics timeout. MSVU rebounded to gain a 33-30 lead before a Hurricanes timeout. The Mystics maintained a close lead and were up 38-36 at halftime.
The third quarter was filled with chaos in the first few minutes, as both teams swapped leads. MSVU gained control around the halfway mark, leading 53-45 and forcing a Hurricanes timeout. Holland stormed back to close the gap to one point at 57-56 at the end of the quarter.
Unfortunately, their luck would slowly dwindle in the fourth quarter as the Mystics began pulling away. Down 71-63, the Hurricanes called a timeout, and despite a valiant effort all game, they couldn’t find the luck they needed.
Gwen Ettinger-O'Leary was named MSVU’s Player of the Game after recording 21 points, three assists, and one foul. Lauren Armstrong was named Holland’s Player of the Game after recording 11 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and two fouls.
3pm (W) | UKC vs Mount Allison WBBALL Semifinal Recap
The third-ranked University of King’s College Blue Devils moved on to Sunday’s championship game with a chaotic 73-62 semi-final win against the second-ranked Mount Allison Mounties.
The Blue Devils immediately proved to be the superior team, never giving up the lead (albeit a few ties) throughout the whole first quarter. The Mounties called a timeout while down 14-10, but that wouldn’t do much as UKC pulled away to lead 21-15 heading into the second quarter. Their dominance was halted by a sudden rally by Mount Allison, who tied the game 24-24 and forced a Blue Devils timeout. The rest of the way, UKC held a close lead and was up 35-34 at halftime.
The Mounties briefly turned things around in the third quarter, but the Blue Devils retook the lead and held it 51-50 at the buzzer. In the fourth quarter, a close battle at the start was slashed by momentum that sent UKC sailing away from Mount Allison for the remainder of the way. Several timeouts were called, but none were enough to shift the momentum.
Emma Garagan was named UKC’s Player of the Game after recording 20 points, six rebounds, two assists, and one foul. Danielle Alexander was named Mount Allison’s Player of the Game after recording 26 points, five rebounds, three fouls, and two assists.
5pm (M) | Mount Allison vs STU MBBALL Semifinal Recap
In what was easily the most stress-inducing game on Saturday afternoon, the top-ranked St. Thomas University Tommies avoided an upset by the fifth-ranked Mount Allison Mounties with two late three-point shots in an entertaining 81-80 semi-final win, advancing to Sunday’s championship game.
The first quarter featured constant momentum swings, with both teams experiencing dominant phases. STU had a better ending as they scored nine points and plenty of jump shots versus Mount Allison’s four within the last four minutes, leading 19-13 into the second quarter.
The Tommies dominated the early half of quarter two, but after the Mounties called a timeout while down 27-20, they burst out of the coach’s huddle with 14 points within five minutes, forcing STU to call a timeout. The Tommies failed to capitalize as Mount Allison piled on nine more points, most from three-point range, to lead 43-32 into the third quarter.
After STU called more timeouts early in quarter three, they finally recruited their first-quarter luck and came back from down 52-41 to lead 58-56 into the fourth quarter. With each team’s season on the line, the game went down to the wire and got more aggressive every minute. It looked like Mount Allison had an upset for the ages in hand as they led 80-75 with 1:36 remaining. However, STU’s Noah McCarty and Vincent Lyttleton refused to allow such a scenario, as they each contributed three-point shots in the final minute to steal the game in front of an electric Tommies fan base.
Evan Valanne was named STU’s Player of the Game after recording 16 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Jonas Munroe was named Mount Allison’s Player of the Game after recording 25 points, nine rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block.
7pm (M) | MSVU vs Holland MBBALL Semifinal Recap
The second-ranked Mount Saint Vincent University Mystics survived an early scare to then dominate the third-ranked Holland College Hurricanes 83-63 in semi-final action, clinching a spot in Sunday’s championship game.
The Hurricanes came storming right out of the gate with energy, sending the McMillan Centre into a frenzy as they jumped out to a 12-4 lead. The run didn’t last long as the Mystics fired back with a nine-point run, taking the lead and never looking back the rest of the first quarter. MSVU extended their lead further throughout the second quarter, while Holland ran into consistency problems. After a Mystics timeout with 5:17 remaining, the Hurricanes closed the gap to two, but couldn’t find a way to tie the game as MSVU led 43-35 at halftime.
The third quarter was the definition of terrible luck for Holland, especially with three-point shots. Meanwhile, the Mystics continued to pull away, scoring 11 points within seven minutes. The Hurricanes finally found luck with eight points in the last two and a half minutes, but MSVU held a 15-point lead going into the fourth quarter. Their dominance continued for the rest of the game, averaging a 20-point lead for most of the final quarter to seal the deal and clinch an opportunity for regional gold.
Chase Tynes was named MSVU's Player of the Game after recording 16 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists, two steals, and one block. Aaron Simmons was named Holland's Player of the Game after recording 24 points, four steals, three assists, two rebounds, and one block.
Championship Sunday
The final day of the 2024 ACAA Basketball Championships will feature two title games taking place in Charlottetown at the McMillan Centre.
1pm (W) | (1) MSVU vs (3) UKC
3:30 (M) | (1) STU vs (2) MSVU
For more information on the 2024 ACAA Basketball Championships, visit www.acaa.ca.
Watch all championship games from the event live at www.acaa.tv.
Connect with the men's and women's basketball Hurricanes at www.x.com/caneswbball, www.x.com/canesmbball, and www.instagram.com/hurricanesbball.
For more information on the Holland Hurricanes please visit www.hollandhurricanes.com, www.facebook.com/hollandhurricanes, www.x.com/hc_hurricanes and www.instagram.com/hollandhurricanes.
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For more information about this release, please contact:
Daniel Cudmore, Athletics Development and Communications Coordinator
Tel: (902) 894-6870
Date: Saturday, March 02, 2024
