BUFFALO, N.Y. – It was only a matter of time before Colgate rediscovered its shooting touch.
The Raiders did so in a big way here Wednesday night, scorching the nets to a season-high percentage en route to a 90-69 thumping of Canisius. That makes five straight wins to start a campaign for the first time since 2009.
Colgate scored 40 points in the first half and 50 in the second, the latter as they topped the 60 percent shooting barrier on 20-of-33 from the floor. Colgate for the game shot 54.5 percent.
Rachel Thompson led all scorers with 24, while
Tegan Graham added 16 off the bench.
Alexa Brodie and
Taylor Langan tossed in 11 apiece, with
Abby Schubiger scoring 10.
The Raiders put five scorers in double figures for the second time this year.
Colgate did its greatest damage in the third quarter, outscoring the Golden Griffins 28-17 led by Thompson's 10 and Graham's nine. Colgate was 12-of-16 from the floor in that 10-minute stretch and 3-of-4 from downtown to lead 68-48 going to the fourth.
Canisius (1-3) opened the evening with a 7-0 lead as D'Jhai Patterson-Ricks and Danielle Sanderlin started quickly. But Colgate's balance finally began to click and the Raiders put five different scorers in the books for their opening five baskets.
An 8-0 run handed Colgate its first lead at 11-10 with 2:49 showing in the quarter. Colgate led 18-17 at the first break. Thompson scored six,
Haley Greer five and
Taylor Langan five in a the second quarter as the Raiders extended their lead to 40-31 at intermission.
Canisius in the fourth quarter never drew closer than 17 as Colgate pocketed its third 20-plus-point victory of the young season.
Thompson in addition to her scoring dished out seven assists without a turnover, and Graham finished with four and zero. Colgate as a team committed just eight turnovers while forcing 21. Points off turnovers favored the Raiders by a 31-7 count.
Thompson was the rebound leader with seven and Langan had six.
Haley Greer contributed eight points and five assists.
Bottom Line
• Colgate 90, Canisius 69
From the Sources
•
Head Coach Bill Cleary (On the shooting) "We shot the ball very well. We did some things tonight really well, like our inside-outs, but we made some shots that kind of bailed us out too. We've got to tighten some things up there offensively."
(On the third quarters) "We were able to give ourselves some breathing room. Credit Canisius. They played hard and they didn't give up. They rushed us into some shots. But luckily for us we made those shots"
(On the 5-0 start) "I'm very proud and this is where we wanted to be. Going out to the Midwest for Rachel's and Haley's homecoming puts us in a good position. We've played some tough teams and we've responded really well."
•
Senior guard Rachel Thompson (On the third quarter) "We made some adjustments at halftime and we had to come out and tighten up our defense. We had to talk a little bit more and cover their sets – and that's what we did, better than in the first half."
(On the depth) "We are very deep, guards and bigs. If someone can's play, the next person up has to be mentally ready and prepared to give it their all when their name is called."
(On the shooting) "We were ready to shoot as soon as the ball touched our hands. The way we get those outside shots is from our posts. We love the inside-outside game and kickouts. We do well when we play team ball, and that's what we did tonight."
Stats of the Game
• Colgate eclipsed its nonconference win total from a year ago, when the Raiders finished 4-6. There are six more out-of-league games remaining.
• The Raiders won for the 13th straight time when scoring at least 70 points. This streak began after an 83-73 home loss to Brown back in December 2017.
• This was the first 90-point scoring total in regulation in the Cleary Era. The last time Colgate put at least 90 on the board in a 40-minute game was a 97-79 triumph at St. Francis (Pa.) back in November 2013.
• Colgate in Cleary's debut season of 2016-17 defeated Boston University 96-87 in double-overtime.
• Graham for the season has 13 assists and one turnover. Her 7-of-10 shooting effort in this game lifts her to 61.5 percent for the year.
• Thompson's 24 points are her most since she scored a career-high 30 last year against Loyola.
• Langan's scoring (11) and rebounding (6) totals were both career highs.
•
Nia Ahart and
Keelah Dixon missed Wednesday's game because of injuries.
• Patterson-Ricks (22) and Sanderlin (20) were the Canisius scoring leaders.
Gate Grab Bag
• Attendance at Koessler Athletic Center was 688.
Up Next
• Colgate travels to the Midwest for games Sunday at Saint Louis and next Wednesday at Northwestern.
• The Billikins are 4-1 after Wednesday's 68-35 win at SIU Edwardsville.
• Tipoff is 2 p.m. Central time from Chaifetz Arena, with ESPN+ carrying the livestream.
