Rattlers Roll in Home Opener
St Mary's had the first points of the game after a miss from both teams at either end. Both teams came out firing for this home opener at the Snake Pit. Medicine Hat trailed early with the Lightning jumping out to an early lead thanks to some early fouls. But the Rattlers came back to take over the lead in the later stages of the quarter. The pace quickened, and both teams settled into a grove. This early season rematch of last year's ACAC Championship game was living up to the Hype. Both teams were fighting back and forth with neither gaining a distinct advantage. The first quarter closed with the Rattlers ahead by a mall margin.
The Second quarter started very similar to the first with neither team gaining an edge. Medicine Hat Rattler Kiana Mintz hit two big 3 pointers to extend the Rattler lead and bring the energy in the gym up. St Mary's did their best to squash the energy by making a charge late in the half. This brought them closer as they closed the gap right at the end of the 1st half leaving the rattlers with a slight 39-34 Lead.
The third quarter nothing seemed to change in the Locker room. An even game from the opening whistle continued with teams trading baskets and misses. With neither side able to gain a foothold in the game, the play got tighter and faster and each possession seemed to count for more. With the play quickening the game started to get more fouls and each team got to the line but failed to convert on all their chances at the charity stripe. The teams were separated by only a few as they entered the final frame.
If the third quarter was tight the fourth was even more so. The Rattlers opened up a 10-point lead early, but the Lightning refused to go away. Any time Medicine Hat would score St. Mary's seemed to answer right back. This continued as the Rattlers looked to control the clock and the pace of play. St Mary's continued to try and push a fast break and fast paced game, but Medicine Hat continually shut the fast opportunities down. As the clock wound down, the Rattlers seemed to close it out, using the clock and getting points on almost every trip down the floor. The Lightning were wasting too much time running down the clock to single digits on every possession. Medicine Hat simply took the shot when given, no matter the time on the clock. With 30 seconds left the game was all but wrapped up as a final defensive rebound shut the books on a 78-56 Rattlers Win.