The Bisons and the Brandon University Bobcats traded runs all night before the herd won 95-89 at the Investors Group Athletic Centre on Friday, Feb. 6. The Bobcats had already qualified for the playoffs prior to this weekend. The game was relatively even until halftime, with the herd leading by three points. However, by the end of the third quarter, the Bisons were leading by 13 points.
Anna Miko opened the scoring for the game with a layup. The herd stretched the scoreline to 13-0. Averill Ella made a layup, becoming the first Bobcat to score, 13-2. The Bisons maintained this gap until 3:04 minutes remaining, with a 20-10 score. The Bobcats then went on a run and scored seven more points, ending the first quarter 20-17.
The second quarter had both teams going head-to-head, each scoring 26 points. The game went into halftime with a 46-43 score. Macaya Copeland for the Bobcats shone in this quarter, scoring nine points, grabbing two assists and two rebounds. The herd’s defence could not contain Copeland. But the Bisons were able to maintain significant but brief leads (13-0, 20-8, 31-22) in the first half as the Bobcats were determined to reduce the gap, highlighting their offensive capability.
In the third quarter, Piper Ingalls made a spectacular three-point jump shot, to tie the score to 46-46. With another three-pointer from Amaya McLeod, the Bobcats were leading 49-46. The herd took back the lead a few minutes later when Paige Schatkowsky scored a layup, 52-51. The Bisons offence proved effective as they outscored the Bobcats by 10 points (28-18) in this quarter. The third quarter ended 74-61.
The last quarter started with the Bisons stretching the lead with back-to-back three pointers by Avya Khan and Taylor Schepp, making the score 80-61. Both teams would keep scoring until the score was 95-81. This is where the Bobcats found the wind in their sails and started scoring consecutive points, reducing the deficit 95-89. Miko had a night to remember for the Bisons, scoring 20 points and getting 15 rebounds. Samantha Onyebuchi also had a spectacular night for the herd, scoring 19 points.
On Friday, the Bisons women’s basketball head coach Michele Sung said the team had already taken “care of a win [last] Saturday,” so they “knew [they] had taken another step toward a playoff push here.” She explained, “It’s more about tomorrow,” and if they win again it “just changes the playoff opponents.”
Looking at the third quarter, she said they “got some stops back-to-back” and “locked into defence for a little bit,” which allowed them “to stay on pace with [the Bobcats]” and build the 10-point lead. She also emphasized that she wanted her group to attack, saying, “You [have to] put pressure on their defence if you want to make ball movement a little bit easier and getting into the free-throw line a bit more of a reality,” instead of “settling [and] playing from the outside of the free-throw line.”
The Bisons and the Bobcats played again on Saturday, Feb. 7, and the herd went on to win the game 93-77. Ella Averill scored 29 points for the Bobcats, but that was not enough to win. Over the 2025-26 conference season, Schepp scored 240 points and Miko scored 223 points for the Bisons.
The Bisons might face the Calgary Dinos in the playoffs. The Bisons finished sixth in the Prairie Division, which placed them 11th overall in the playoff standings. Under the Canada West playoff format, the 11th seed is matched up against the sixth seed in the play-in round, and the Dinos earned that sixth seed in the Prairie Division standings. These rankings stand as of Sunday, Feb. 8 at 10 a.m.
