Mariners Battle Royals

#1 VIU Mariners vs. #4 Douglas Royals – Friday March 1, 5:30pm | WATCH HERE

The top ranked Mariners take the floor for the first time at the PACWEST championship after earning a first-round bye through to this semifinal where they will meet the Royals on Friday.

They have won their last eight games and are hoping to continue that run as they open the playoffs.  They are scoring over 68 points a game while shooting 34.3% from the field on the offensive side and have locked down the opposition on the defensive side holding teams to 53 points.

On their offensive side they have done an excellent job of scoring by committee with three players in the PACWEST Top 15 scoring leaders.  Makayla Kimble has led them but they are getting production up and down the line-up.

In the standings they finished 16 points ahead of the Royals.

On Thursday the Royals advanced in the playoffs after defeating the Camosun Chargers 63-55 shooting 32% and seemingly got better as the game went on.  The victory was their second straight and third in their last four games.

During the regular season these two schools met four times and they split the seasonal series winning on the other teams floor twice.  The Mariners swept the Royals at Douglas in October, before the tables were turned in January at VIU.

There is so much on the line in this semifinal.  The winner advances to play for PACWEST gold and a berth in the CCAA national championship in Alberta in two weeks.  The loser will play for bronze on Saturday.