The Huskies women’s basketball team started out the 2017-18 season on fire, as they’re currently sitting at first place in the Canada West Conference, with an undefeated 8-0 record. They have dominated league play so far, outscoring opponents 683 to 438 over their eight regular-season games.

Huskies Women’s Basketball Head Coach Lisa Thomaidis has been pleased with what she’s seen from her team so far this season.

“What I’ve liked is that we’ve had lots of contributions from several different players to start the year. We’ve shared the ball well, and as a result, are getting some high-quality shots most of the time. We’ve been focused on playing with more pace on offence, and I think we’re starting to see the result of that,” Thomaidis said.

The Huskies women are led by second-year forward Summer Masikewich, who has been exceptional so far this season. Masikewich is averaging 17.8 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, while shooting 65.4 per cent from the field. She is currently sitting at fourth in points per game and first in field-goal percentage in the conference.

The women will look to beat the Dinos to stay undefeated.

“[Masikewich] has been outstanding so far this season. She’s really become a dominant force for us, which really should be no surprise, given the outstanding season she had as a rookie,” Thomaidis said.

According to Thomaidis, Masikewich — who represented Canada at the 2017 U19 World Cup over the summer — has become a valuable player after a busy off-season.

“She’s improved every single part of her game from last season, as well as her strength, speed and athleticism, so that’s been exciting for me to see,” Thomaidis said.

The Huskies women’s team is chasing their third straight Canada West Conference championship and will look to make that dream a reality this coming March.

On the men’s side of things, the basketball team is in quite a different position. The Huskies currently sit in the basement of the Canada West Conference with a 2-6 record.

The Huskies men’s team has been involved in some tight games, but they’ve been unable to pull out victories. With such a young team, the Huskies have struggled to get production from their bench.

While the team has struggled as a whole, fourth-year guard Lawrence Moore has certainly not. Moore, who is in his second season with the program, has stuffed the stat sheet. The Chicago native is averaging 20.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists over eight games and is currently sitting at second place in the conference in steals with 27.

Alongside Moore, the Huskies have received excellent production from a quartet of local athletes. Four Saskatoon-born players — Alex Unruh, Joseph Barker, Emmanuel Akintunde and Addison Dewar — have started in all eight regular-season games so far.

Unruh, a fifth-year graduate of Evan Hardy Collegiate is thriving in his final year with the Huskies. The guard is averaging 13.6 points per game, which is on pace to smash his career high of eight points per game from the 2015-16 season.

Unruh will be counted on as the leader of this inexperienced Huskies team, as they aim to rebuild the men’s basketball program.

The Huskies basketball teams will host the University of Calgary Dinos next weekend at the Physical Activity Complex, with games on Dec. 1 and Dec. 2. The women’s team will tip off at 6:15 p.m., followed by the men at 8 p.m.

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Matthew Johnson

Photos:  J.C. Balicanta Narag / Photo Editor