UPEI Panthers Basketball puts on great show at AUS championships in Halifax
UPEI’s basketball teams gave fans plenty to cheer for this weekend, as they put on a show at the AUS Championship in Halifax.
The women kicked things off Thursday afternoon when they took on the Dalhousie Tigers. After a slow start offensively, the Panthers erupted in the fourth quarter and took the game 69-50 to advance to the semi-final. Rookies Grace Lancaster and Alicia Bowering provided the offensive spark they needed. Lancaster scored eight of her 15 points in the first half, while Bowering put up nine of her game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter. Fifth-year centre Carolina Del Santo was named the Player of the Game, finishing with 23 rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks.
Friday night belonged to the men’s team as they defeated the Cape Breton Capers 95-80. In his first game under the bright lights, sophomore point guard Elijah Miller went off for a career-high 37 points to go along with five assists and five rebounds. Defensively, the Panthers contained reigning MVP Osman Omar and held him to just 5-of-17 shooting.
Saturday was a bit of a mixed bag of emotions. That afternoon, the women struggled against a tough Capers squad, coming up short 74-54. Cape Breton’s two bigs, Kiyara Letlow and Hailey MacLeod, recorded a combined 43 points and 32 rebounds and were simply too much to handle.
Led by Miller once again, the Panthers put together another great effort and upset the St. FX X-Men 105-88 Saturday night. Miller approached a triple-double with 34 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds. By halftime, UPEI led 63-42 and never looked back as they punched their ticket to the finals.
On championship Sunday, the Panthers drew a matchup with the perennial powerhouse Dalhousie Tigers. The first half was very promising, as they stormed in front 49-35. But the experienced champions, led by Keevan Veinot and Alex Carson, took control of the second half and propelled the Tigers to an 84-78 win.
