Huskies clinch playoffs with 64-54 win over Capers

Saint Mary's wing Angong Jacob scored a game-high 24 points, leading the Huskies to a 64-54 win over the Cape Breton Capers in Atlantic University Sport women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon in Sydney, N.S.

With the win, the Huskies clinch a spot in the 2026 Bell AUS Basketball Championships, presented by G-Series, which will be played Feb. 20-22 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax.

In the first quarter, Angong Jacob scored nine of her game-high 24 points, and Molly Healy added five, as the Huskies took a 19-12 lead after 10 minutes of play.

Jacob continued her hot shooting into the second quarter, scoring five straight points to extend the Huskies lead to 24-15. But the Capers fought back, finishing the quarter on a 11-6 run, with a late lay-in from Emily MacNeil cutting the Huskies lead to 30-26 at the half.

Saint Mary's were paced in the first half by 14 points from Angong Jacob, while Cape Breton were led by eight points off the bench from Gabriela Uyanze.

The third quarter was highlighted by a scoring duel by two of the top guards in the AUS - Capers guard Amanda Cruickshank and Huskies counterpart Lauren Armstrong - who scored 10 and eight points respectively in the frame. After an Armstrong three extended the Saint Mary's lead to 38-28, the Capers responded with an 8-0 run, with four straight points from Cruickshank cutting the lead to 38-36. 

The back and forth continued through a tight third quarter, with Huskies first year wing Kalli Georgoulias hitting back-to-back three-pointers to put SMU ahead 48-42, but a last second lay-in from Amanda Cruickshank cut the lead to 48-45 through three quarters of play.

The Capers opened the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run, with an Emily MacNeil three-pointer giving them a 50-48 lead, their first lead since 5-4 in the first quarter. But the Huskies quickly clawed back, with five straight points from Angong Jacob putting them ahead 56-52 with just over four minutes to play.

First year SMU guard Sophia Das hit a clutch three-point play to extend the Huskies lead to 59-52, followed by two more Cruickshank free-throws. But the Huskies defence locked down over the final two minutes, and Jacob hit one more three, followed by a Georgoulias jumper to ice the 64-54 win.

The Huskies win improves their record to 7-9 on the season, good for fifth place in the AUS standings. Saint Mary's will be back on home court next week, hosting the league-leading UNB REDS (15-1) on Friday, Feb. 6 at 6 p.m. at the Homburg Centre, as part of the annual Huskies Black Heritage Night. GET TICKETS

The Capers drop to 2-15 with the loss. Cape Breton will be back in action on Friday, Feb. 6, visiting the UPEI Panthers (10-6) at 6 p.m. in Charlottetown, PEI.

Recap by Allan April / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics
Photos by Vaughan Merchant / Cape Breton Capers Athletics