The Canadian Women are off to the gold medal game at the Commonwealth Games following a 12-5 win over Scotland in Monday’s semifinals. Team Canada got behind 2-0 early but battled back to tie it and then scored five unanswered in the final 3:41 of play to pull away for the win. Élodie Tessier and Kady Dandeneau each had five points in the victory, and Tara Llanes added two points for the Canadians. “We knew it was going to be tough; they’re a very good team,” said Dandeneau, who also had five rebounds. “We’ve played against them before in the 5-on-5 game, so we know exactly their talent and what they’re capable of. We were a little shaky there in the beginning, but we got it together, and I think it worked out nicely for us.” Tessier finished 5-of-7 shooting and picked up a rebound in the win. “It was a game that we know we needed to come out strong, and I think we did,” Tessier said. “We have a lot of depth on our team, and I think that was showing on the court. I’m just really proud of how we’re playing as a team. You can see the teamwork and team chemistry – it has been really good.” The Canadians will play Australia in Tuesday’s gold medal game at 3 p.m. ET. Full stats from Monday’s win can be found here. The Canadian Men will also play Australia for gold on Tuesday following their 14-9 semifinal victory over Malaysia on Monday. Canada jumped out to an early 4-0 lead and controlled much of the play against Malaysia, finishing with 12 of 20 shooting while holding Malaysia to just 37 per cent shooting. Colin Higgins had a game-high 11 points and four rebounds, and Bo Hedges added two points and five rebounds in the win. “We came out and wanted to set that defensive tone to start,” said Higgins. “We were able to do that, get up on them a little bit, and it was a good team win.” Team Canada now faces Australia on Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. ET – a rematch of the Pool Round game, which Canada lost 13-11 this past Friday. “Obviously, every time you go to a tournament, the goal is to win,” said Vincent Dallaire, who chipped in one point and two rebounds in the victory. “I think it’s been a process to get here, but we’re following the process, and hopefully, tomorrow we’ll play our best game of the tournament.” Complete stats from Monday’s win can be found here.
Press release & photo: Wheelchair Basketball Canada