WINDSOR, Ont. (CIS) – Mariam Sylla, the RSEQ MVP and first-team CIS all-Canadian, recorded her second double-double of the weekend as the fourth-seeded McGill Martlets tallied a 58-51 victory over the No. 8 Laurier Golden Hawks at the ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS women's basketball championship on Saturday afternoon at the St. Denis Centre.
 
CHAMPIONSHIP WEBSITE: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wbkb/index
 
Sylla finished with game-highs of 18 points and 14 rebounds to help the Martlets clinch their first win of the championships while Helene Bibeau chipped in with 14 points in the win. McGill will move on to the fifth-place game against No. 7 Alberta on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. (live at cis-sic.tv).
 
The Golden Hawks close out their fourth-ever appearance at a CIS championship, and were led by Whitney Ellenor who recorded a team-best 12 points.
 
Both teams played a strong defensive first half, combining to score just 51 points through the opening two quarters of play. The Martlets grabbed an early advantage, going up by four points at the end of the first.
 
Both offences went cold during the opening minutes of the second quarter, as only two points were scored through the first three and a half minutes of the period. McGill held a small lead, but a 7-0 streak by the Golden Hawks in the latter stages of the half allowed them to snag a two-point advantage.
 
The Martlets answered with two straight buckets, including a jumper by Dian Ros, and the RSEQ champions were able to take a single-point lead into halftime. Sylla nearly recorded her double-double in the first half, picking up 10 points and nine boards after 20 minutes of play.
 
McGill's momentum continued early in the third quarter, as they extended their point-streak to 11 by scoring the first seven points of the second half.
 
Doreen Bonsu looked to spark the Hawks offence, picking up a tough lay-in and earning a trip to the foul-line. Kimberley Yeldon grabbed Bonsu's rebound off and sank two free-throws soon after to bring the deficit down to a single possession.
 
However, Francoise Charest responded with a timely three to increase the Martlets lead once again. Kizzy Clarke then came up with a strong rejection and found Marie-Pier Bastrash for the transition outlet to push the lead up to eight. McGill held the Golden Hawks to just seven points in the third to take a 10-point lead into the final quarter of play.
 
Laurier's offence came to life in the final quarter, as they slowly chipped away at the Martlet lead throughout the final 10 minutes of play. The Hawks came within seven points with just over a minute to play, but another timely three by Bibeau took the wind out of Laurier's sails, shutting out their hopes for a late comeback bid.
 
The Martlets shot 32.3% from the floor compared to 27.9% from Laurier, and slightly out-rebounded Laurier 53-49.
 

STAT LEADERS

 
Boxscore: STATS
 
McG 16-10-16-16: 58
WLU 12-13-7-19: 51
 

McGill

Points: Mariam Sylla (18), Hélène Bibeau (14), Françoise Charest (8)
Rebounds: Mariam Sylla (14), Gabriela Hébert (7)
Assists: Dianna Ros (4)
 
Player of the game: Mariam Sylla
 
Laurier
Points: Whitney Ellenor (12), Laura Doyle (7), Kimberley Yeldon (7)
Rebounds: Kimberley Yeldon (9), Nicole Morrison (7)
Assists: Laura Doyle (4)
 
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times EASTERN TIME)
 

Friday, March 14

13:00 Quarter-final 1: Saint Mary’s 71, Alberta 51
15:00 Quarter-final 2: Saskatchewan 61, Queen’s 52
18:00 Quarter-final 3: Windsor 81, Wilfrid Laurier 53
20:00 Quarter-final 4: Fraser Valley 74, McGill 60
 

Saturday, March 15

10:00 Consolation 1: Alberta 67, Queen’s 55
12:00 Consolation 2: McGill 58, Wilfrid Laurier 51
15:00 Semifinal 1: No. 2 Saint Mary’s vs. No. 3 Saskatchewan (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
17:00 Semifinal 2: No. 1 Windsor vs. No. 5 Fraser Valley (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
 

Sunday, March 16

15:00 5^th Place: No. 7 Alberta vs. No. 4 McGill (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
17:00 Bronze (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
20:00 Final (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
 
* The webcast of all 3 televised games (semifinals & final) will be on pay-per-view basis.