Algonquin College women’s basketball dominates first game back against Durham

The Algonquin Wolves beat the Durham Lords 61-44 on Oct. 31 in the Jack Doyle Athletics and Recreation Centre, with hopes for another strong season with a fresh roster.

The crowd enthusiastically cheered the Wolves’ victory, but coaches and players suggested the team hasn’t shown its full potential.

“It’s a win, not the strongest performance we wanted, but it’s a win regardless. First game back, we get the ‘W.’ That’s a good way to start. We gotta keep pushing our tempo, pushing our energy level. Compete’s not quite there yet but we’ll get there,” said head coach Jaime McLean after the game.

Last year, the Wolves ended the regular season undefeated before they lost in the semifinals of the OCAA championship tournament. This game, they walked back onto the court with eager ambitions to reclaim that title once again.

The hometown crowd saw many new faces, with 11 of last season’s players graduating. The new Wolves squad put up a strong defence, made seamless passes and ran strong offensive plays, even though it was their first regular season game.

“You got to see everybody today, so that was nice. Got some new girls getting some minutes that they wouldn’t have gotten with previous teams, so it’s good for them to get in and get some opportunity,” said McLean.

Taryn Mitchell, a fifth-year guard for the Wolves, scored 14 points by the end of the game. She and Cianah Miller, who is also a long-time player, kept up a strong passing game and provided really good ball distribution. Together, Miller and Mitchell made up over 70 per cent of the assists in the game for the Wolves.

“I’m feeling really well, it’s good to get out here with the new group of girls. I love them so much, and we’ve been practising very hard,” said Mitchell.

“We’re new, we’re young and we’re going to get there. So, I’m proud of us.”

Another standout player was Cooper Drover, who scored 15 points, got the most play time at 25 minutes and had a stunning 62.5 three-point percentage.

Miller showed strong support for the team, often creating a wall against the Lords’ offence. She is excited to see what the season will bring and is looking forward to getting to know her teammates better.

“It’s good to get the first game jitters out of the way,” said Miller. “I know a lot of us came in a little bit nervous because we’re still getting used to playing with each other. I feel like we came out strong and tried to get through that, so I think it was a really good game for us.”