Coming off of a difficult loss against Conestoga in their previous match, the Niagara Knights women's basketball program (1-2, 7th OCAA West) was looking to bounce back against the Humber Hawks (1-1, 6th OCAA West) during the annual Blue and White game this past Thursday night.
Things were looking positive for the Knights in the first half, as they nearly doubled their first half score from the match before when they scored just 15 points in the first half. This time around, they would head to the break down just 28-25 thanks in part to a great run midway through the first quarter that saw them claw back from an early 18-7 deficit and score nine unanswered points.
As they were getting ready for the second half, everyone in the building was expecting a close second half as well, but Humber had different plans. The Knights couldn't put anything together offensively, as nothing would go into the net for them. The Hawks would ultimately outscore them 45-3 in the second half, handing the Knights their second straight loss, this time by a score of 73-28.
"After a promising first half we went into a scoring drought, to put it mildly," said Knights head coach Michael Beccaria. "At times this year we've struggled to put the ball in the basket and that was certainly the case tonight."
The Knights shot just 17.5% (10-57) from the field. They kept their confidence up and continued shooting, especially from long-range, to try and get themselves out of the slump but it did not work. From deep they shot just 5.0% (1-20).
No Knights were able to reach double-digit points, the first time it has happened this season, as Hannah Baker (Thorold) and Bridget Atkinson (Welland) both led the team with 8-points.
The Knights will have to bounce back quickly because they get right back on the road to take on the Mohawk Mountaineers (0-2, 9th OCAA West) on Saturday, November 3rd. Having only played three games so far in the long schedule, the Knights will look to learn from their early season struggles and improve as the season goes on.
The Niagara Knights take on the Mohawk Mountaineers this upcoming Saturday, November 3rd at Mohawk College. The game is set to begin at 6pm. They'll return to Welland in a week's time when they welcome the UTM Eagles to Welland on November 8th.
