THUNDER BAY -- It would be easy for the Lakehead Thunderwolves to rest on their laurels.
They are, in fact, coming off a huge upset win over the No. 5 Laurier Golden Hawks, a win that lifted them into eighth spot in the national rankings.
They’ve won seven straight and haven’t lost a game since November.
But lose to Toronto on Friday night or No. 7 Ryerson and Saturday and the implications could be disastrous.
With the OUA switching to a new basketball playoff format this year, ranking the 12 playoff teams on their ratings performance index against other playoff teams, a first-round bye and the ability to host a second-round game could be at stake.
Right now, the Lakehead women (11-3) are third in RPI in the OUA.
But their hold on the position is tenuous.
The solution said fifth-year guard and Thunder Bay native Katie Ulakovic is to keep on winning.
“Every weekend we kind of go into it saying all right, these two games are our next biggest games of the season. We kind of stay focused for those two games, take it one game at a time, and so far it’s working for us,” said Ulakovic, fondly nicknamed the Long-Distance Assassin by coach Jon Kreiner.
Fellow senior guard Cornia Bruni said it’s important to find a way to keep the momentum alive.
While past accomplishments are nice, the team can’t afford to bask in the glow of their second-half success.
“Fortunately for us there’s absolutely no chance of that as we head into Toronto and Ryerson, which are two tough places to play, against two super-tough teams,” said Bruni, who has stepped up her defensive game recently, earning herself co-player-of-the-month honours alongside the sharp-shooting Ulakovic.
“Ryerson is ranked above us nationally. There’s no opportunity to rest.”
They won’t be taking Toronto lightly.
The Varsity Blues are 7-6, but have beaten teams ranked in the top 10, including Saint Mary’s at a Christmas tournament in Halifax, a tournament ultimately won by the Thunderwolves.
“We can’t overlook them, even if other teams may or the focus is on Ryerson because they are ranked or not ranked because what we’ve learned thus far in the season is that any team can win on any night,” Bruni said.
“We’ve lost to teams that haven’t been ranked or that we’ve been ranked higher than.”
That said, the Rams (13-3) are the target, a chance for Lakehead to prove the win over Laurier wasn’t luck – as much as a team that’s already beaten three ranked teams this season can be considered lucky.
The Wolves lost 53-46 in a non-conference, pre-season game against the Rams, but this certainly isn’t the same team.
The confidence levels are sky high these days. But the Rams have made plenty of improvement too, Kreiner said.
“They’re a team that could go all the way. They have all the tools and the athleticism needed to be a championship team,” he said.
It would be a statement win, and one with playoff implications, he added.
“You want to give yourself the best possible opportunity to get yourself to the big show and winning one game at a time is the way you’ve got to take it from a coaching perspective with your players. But in the big picture we need to knock off the teams ahead of us and Ryerson is the only team that’s ahead of us left in the regular season.”
