The Windsor Lancers looked to finish their final weekend of the OUA regular season strong on Friday night and came from behind, outscoring the visitors 46-13 in the second half to come out on top with a 73-44 win over the Algoma Thunderbirds at the Dennis Fairall Fieldhouse.
 
STATS
Julia Chiarot had a standout game for the blue and gold, leading the team with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Reine Ndome also had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Maggie Denys contributed 11 points and Noor Bazzi had 10.
 
Algoma was led by Megan Looney with 17 points and a game high 13 rebounds.
 
GAME FLOW
In the first quarter, things got off to a slow start for both teams with little scoring to get the game going. The Lancers took multiple attempts on the offensive side to take shots however, they struggled to finish off plays. With under 5 minutes left, Bazzi and Harriet Carey helped close the gap with a triple each but offense still remained critical if Windsor were to hold on. Algoma started to find their rhythm and pick up the pace in the last few minutes of the quarter and led 17-10 over the Lancers into the second quarter.
 
The second quarter had Algoma maintain possession and dominance over Windsor. Bazzi showed off another 3-pointer to slowly bring Windsor up on the board. Algoma would not make it easy with their quick defensive play and put in good work to respond back to the Lancers shots. The Lancers were able to score seven consecutive points in the last few minutes of the quarter but they would still need to continue to find opportunities to catch-up to the Thunderbirds. The blue and gold went into the half down 31-27.
 
After the intermission, Windsor started to pick up the tempo and find the motivation to take better possession of the ball. Chiarot's clean three forced the Thunderbirds into a timeout to try to regain their ground. With the enthusiasm of the Lancer fans, Windsor was looking to finish strong and was able to outscore the Thunderbirds into double digits, leading 49-37.
 
In the 4th quarter, the Lancers would put it all on the court as they increased the intensity and physicality with multiple technical fouls against the Thunderbirds. As Algoma would focus on the defensive side, Windsor took the opportunity to continue their running streak and make plays. Denys made a fast break and shot a smooth three and a spin to a layup. This would be the largest margin of victory in the Lancer's season coming out on top with a 73- 44 win over the Thunderbirds.
 
UP NEXT
The two squads will meet again on Saturday afternoon in the final game of the OUA regular season. Tip-off is schedule for 4:00pm at the Dennis Fairall Fieldhouse, and can also be seen live at oua.tv.