Scott Radley: McMaster basketball star Sarah Gates named top player in Canada

So much of McMaster's national championship in her sophomore season was stressful. A turnover here or a miss there and things could've turned out far differently. Yet there, in that environment, she appeared calm.

Sitting in the crowd in dress shoes rather than sneakers waiting to hear whether she was going to be named the top player in Canadian university basketball, on the other hand?

My hands were definitely sweating and my heart was pounding," Sarah Gates says.

We can end the suspense. It's no secret anymore. She did win. The McMaster guard became the second player from the school ever to take the Nan Copp Award, following in the footsteps of Danielle Boiago who did it in 2017.

Couple this with the fact that she passed Boaigo as the Marauders' all-time leading scorer late in the season and she might be able to claim rights as the best player to ever wear maroon. But don't bother mentioning that to her. Soon as you do, she runs away from the comparison at about 100 miles an hour.

The 24-year-old majored in human behaviour but she may as well have majored in humility.

Danielle is a whole other level of basketball," she says. She's the GOAT."

That's the Greatest Of All Time" for those not up on their sports lingo.

What does longtime head coach Theresa Burns think? She's coached them both. Who's the best?

I'm running, too," she laughs.

Is there an answer?

When you get to that level, how do you discern between the two of them?"

Fair point. So we'll leave it to others debate who's the greatest - don't forget to throw Taylor Chiarot's name in there while you're at it - but Gates surely has built a case for herself.

She's been to nationals twice, winning the title once. She led all of Canada in scoring (27.3 points per game) and three-pointers made (63) this year. And as mentioned, she set the school's all-time scoring record (1,857 points).

Need more? She's done a ton of community work, set all these marks despite having her career put on hold for a year because COVID shut things down - she remained sharp by practising on an outdoor elementary school court - and even competed in the playoffs last year with a broken shoulder.

The only thing she didn't do? Win a second national title. Which is hardly a criticism. So few women win even one. That said, she has thought about it over the subsequent years.

I definitely took that moment for granted a bit," Gates says.

Why wouldn't she? She was in her second season. There was tons of time left. It was easy to imagine getting back and hoisting the trophy again.

She may still have a chance.

Not here. Her eligibility is up. But she's now working on finding an agent and looking into professional opportunities somewhere. There are plenty of leagues throughout Europe and in Australia.

Admittedly, she doesn't know a lot about it but she's been googling stuff and contacting players she knows who are over there and she feels pretty confident she'll find someone eager to sign her.

Having national MVP" on her resume can only help, right?

I think so," she says.

Before she leaves, though, there's one person we didn't ask about that best Marauder ever" question? Namely, the only other woman from Mac ever to win the Copp award.

So Danielle, who's at the top of the mountain?

Boiago is now the lead assistant coach on the team. She's seen everything Gates has done from a front-row seat. She talks about how proud she is of what Gates accomplished and the records she set. Not to mention the incredible consistency she's shown since she arrived on campus. She's just a phenomenal player.

Right at the top? Might be.

But," Boiago says breaking into a laugh, I always tell her I'll still beat her one-on-one."

Scott Radley is a Hamilton-based columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sradley@thespec.com