Kajan Thiruthanikasalam (Sports Writer, Colts Athletics)

SCARBOROUGH, ONT.- If you love watching a grind-it-out battle on both ends with offense being a struggle, this was the game for you to watch. The crowd were on the edge of their seats as the Loyalist Lancers were seconds away from pulling off a road victory against the Centennial Colts.

Colts forward Yasmeen Smith, though, had other plans.

Smith's and-one layup with 5.9 seconds left in the game was the deciding bucket as the Colts beat the Lancers, 54-52, at the Athletic and Wellness Centre, despite shooting 26.3 per cent from the field and 31.8 per cent from the charity stripe.

"I wasn't losing," Smith said. "I was going to do whatever it took to get us this win. We all came together and the energy was loud."

"We needed to win the game," forward Tonie Parker said. "No ifs, ands, or buts. Although, we just need to work on our shooting (from the line) and breathe."

The win brought the Colts' record even to 2-2 on the season. Loyalist, meanwhile, fell to 2-2 on the season, with their two game winning streak snapped.

"With a young team, it's important to know who your players are," Colts head coach Justin Bobb said. "This was a real character builiding win for our group and an opportunity for our players to play through some mistakes, to identify areas to be better down the stretch, and down the strech, we executed strongly. That's why we got the win."

There was one stat that clearly stood out in Centennial's victory, and that was rebounding. The Colts out rebounded the Lancers, 72-33, 23 of them coming on the offensive end.

"Defensively, our group is doing a good job, forcing teams to take tough shots," Bobb said. "When we force contested shots, it puts our best rebounders in a good position to rebound the ball. The offensive rebounds is something we're going to live on; we like to get to the rim and use our talent and athleticism around the hoop. That's going to be an important part of the offense."

Four players in double figures for the Colts offset Loyalist guard Jenni Thompson's game high 26 points. Although Thompson hit five triples and had it going offensively (with a game high six assists), no other Lancer reached double digits.

Guard Judy Ta led Centennial with 14 points, hitting three triples. Forwards Smith (15 rebounds), Parker (11 rebounds), and Effe Mae Abban (11 rebounds) each had 10 points and finished with double-doubles. In particular, Parker (7) and Smith (9) combined for 16 offensive rebounds. 

"I just learned from her (Smith) that when you get the rebound, go straight back up no matter who's around you," Parker said. "Don't be afraid to go back up for a layup."

Guard Bethany Miller hit two triples in the win. Centennial also won in second chance points (15-3) and bench points (22-6) despite committing 22 turnovers. 

"Timely buckets are important," Bobb said. "Beth and Judy hit a couple of big threes, and Effe and Yasmeen did a good job getting to the rim. At the end of the day, the game is about flow and I'm proud of our group for being resilient by starting and finishing the game well on offense."

The first quarter saw Centennial hold Loyalist to just nine points as they took a 14-9 lead. However, Centennial struggled to score in the second and third quarters as Loyalist outscored them, 30-22, in the two quarters, and carried a 39-36 lead heading into the final frame.

Loyalist then split a pair of free throws to take a 52-51 lead with 23 seconds left in the game. The Colts missed a shot on the other end but the ball went off of Loyalist, giving the Colts another chance.

With 7.1 seconds left, Bobb called a timeout to set up a play offensively. On the inbounds play, Miller made a great pass, finding Smith under the rim, where she somehow muscled in a layup over two Lancers defenders while being fouled as the Colts retook the lead.

"We actually didn't execute perfectly but we executed well enough to get a good look," Bobb admitted. "Credit to Bethany for making a great pass and Yasmeen's an incredible athlete; she made a tough catch and finished at the rim."

"I just knew I had to get it in," Smith said about the first game winner of her college career. "I didn't care who was beside me; once I touched that ball, it was going in the net."

Smith missed the ensuing free throw but Parker grabbed yet another Colts offensive rebound and got fouled.

"That was a game saving offensive rebound for us," Bobb said. "Credit to Tonie for putting in the effort every night in practice. She's emerging as a leader because of how hard she works."

She split the pair, however, leaving Loyalist with one last chance to win the game.

Forward Katie Wiggins had a chance from the corner to be the hero for the Lancers but her three point attempt was long, securing the Colts win.

"I wasn't concerned about the shot because although we didn't execute perfectly on defense, we forced her to shoot a pretty deep three pointer," Bobb said. "In that moment, the pressure is on the offense to make the shot, not so much the defense to make the stop."

Although this was a huge win despite the offense struggling, Bobb thinks that the offense needs to work on making decisions at the right times in order to have more success and not rely as much on offensive rebounding.

"We're working on one thing at a time. I think decision making on offense is something we're still working on every day and figuring out who we want to have the ball, where we want it, and when we want to have it," Bobb said. "But in terms of our offense, we're going to get better. We did a great job in the fourth quarter of getting into our stuff and that puts pressure on the defense to guard us."

Up Next: On the road against the undefeated Seneca Sting (5-0) on Thursday Nov. 23 at 6:00 pm.