The 2022-23 season has gotten off to a fast start for the University of Regina Cougars Women’s Basketball team. They have rattled off four straight wins, including a pair against the provincial rivals, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, and are the number one ranked team across the country.
Cougars guard Jade Belmore was named a U Sports Basketball Player of the Week for her efforts in the wins against the Huskies. She tied a career high for points in the first win with 28 points, and then the following night she recorded a triple double with 23 points, ten rebounds and ten assists.
On Tuesday, Belmore joined the SportsCage with Michael Ball. She said that the Cougars were very focused heading into their weekend matchups with the U of S.
“We had our minds set on that weekend and we got the job done through hard work so it was a great feeling.”
She noted the Cougars ability to hit the long distance shots were a big reason for the second victory over the Huskies.
“There were a lot of three’s being hit that game, maybe too many, we did set a program record for that game.”
Following the weekend sweep of the Huskies, the Cougars found themselves on top of the U Sports rankings. The number one ranking is something that keeps the Cougars on their toes according to Belmore.
“We realize that there’s a huge target on our back. ” She added. “It’s more of a motivation that anything to kind of keep our team going and realize that we need more work to be done.”
The Cougars guard says the fast start has been a pleasant surprise for the team.
“I don’t think everybody realizes that they’re going to be ranked number one in the country right off the get go, especially such a young team we that we have.”
This weekend the Cougars will be home for a pair of matchups against the winless University of Manitoba Bisons. Belmore is expecting the Bisons to bring plenty of pace to the Queen City this weekend.
“They’re very fast paced and they like to play their transition game, we’re preparing like how we usually do and kind of relying on what we have worked on for the whole year because clearly it’s been working.”
The Cougars host the Bisons Friday and Saturday night, with opening tipoff at 6:00 at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport on the campus at the University of Regina.
