REGULAR SEASON
| PIONEER | EXPLORER | |||||||
| Saskatchewan | 15-5 | 25-10 | Barry Rawlyk | Fraser Valley | 17-3 | 23-8 | Adam Friesen | |
| Victoria | 15-5 | 24-10 | Craig Beaucamp | Northern BC | 12-8 | 13-12 | Todd Jordan | |
| British Columbia | 14-6 | 20-9 | Kevin Hanson | Thompson Rivers | 11-9 | 16-13 | Scott Clark | |
| Alberta | 14-6 | 19-12 | Barnaby Craddock | Mount Royal | 10-10 | 13-15 | Marc Dobell | |
| Calgary | 12-8 | 19-14 | Dan Vanhooren | MacEwan | 7-13 | 10-18 | Eric Magdanz | |
| Winnipeg | 12-8 | 18-12 | Mike Raimbault | UBC-Okanagan | 3-17 | 3-21 | Peter Guarasci | |
| Manitoba | 9-11 | 15-16 | Kirby Schepp | |||||
| Regina | 8-12 | 8-19 | Steve Burrows | |||||
| Lethbridge | 7-13 | 9-15 | Mike Hansen | |||||
| Brandon | 2-18 | 6-24 | Gil Cheung | |||||
| Trinity Western | 2-18 | 5-23 | Scott Allen | |||||
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Brandon Bobcats: Samy Stanson Desir, D.J. Jordan, Kenonte Ramsey, Ryan Hawley, Mikee Dosado, Denham Buchanan, Quinton Hunter, Earl Thompson Jr., Theo Farough, Ali-Mounir Benabdelhak, Ryan Cowley, Zach Beazley, coach Gil Cheung, assistant Keith Van Walleghem, assistant Kevin Phillip, therapist Kelly Whitmore, athletic director Russ Paddock, SID Matt Packwood
UBC-Okanagan Heat: Ryan Linttell, Dario Gini, Noma Obaseki, Austin Penrose, Aldrich Berrios, Cameron Servatius, Cameron Friesen, Buzz Truss, Mitchell Goodwin, David Manshreck, Dean Johnston, Travis Worthing, Ryan Morck, redshirt Brian Ademba, redshirt Joel Burma, redshirt Randall Mosca, coach Peter Guarasci, assistant Dino Gini, assistant Landry Ndayitwayeko, assistant Gene Wolverton, therapist Jeff Thorburn, student trainer Lemuel Lau, athletic director Rob Johnson, SID Cary Mellon
Lethbridge Pronghorns: Brandon Brine, Lynden Nummi, Tyler York, Spencer Lambert, Michael Pierzchala, Jason Nysten, Zac Overwater, Josh Sparkes, Jared Baker, Rob Olsen, Brent Watkins, Tyson McIntyre, Braden Overwater, coach Mike Hansen, assistant Rick Pawlak, athletic director Sandy Slavin, SID Eoin Colquhoun
MacEwan Griffins: Thomas Jereniuk, Tarik Scott, David Grange, Daniel Fessahye, Deonte Dosov, Lee Danderfer, Denzel James, Seaid Deria, Harrison Lane, Liban Hassan, Brandon Sackey, Keith Gerdes, Ryan May, redshirt Kenny Johnson, coach Eric Magdanz, assistant Jesse McLean, assistant Thomas Slifka, graduate assistant Navin Ramharak, graduate assistant Adam Boyd, graduate assistant Tyson Denhamer, manager Joe McLeod, assistant manager Scott Mergaert, therapist Jennifer Dunn, athletic director Ken Schildroth, SID Lindsay Bax
Mount Royal Cougars: Oluwafemi Ogun, Ray Goff, Deng Awak, Jalen Gardener, Wiande Kher, Awet Abraha, Derek Wolf, Mangk Akl, Glen Yang, James Lefebvre, Noah Lewis, Kyle Wilson, redshirt Taner Parrington, redshirt Neil Phillip, redshirt Tethloach Thokbuom, coach Marc Dobell, assistant Tyler McVicar, assistant Richard Foggo, apprentice coach Chad Hardy, student therapist Jeffrey Owen, strength & conditioning Hidesh Bhardwaj, athletic director Karla Karch, SID Justin McCaffery
Regina Cougars: Michael Hudson, Razvan Anca, Alex Igual, Ryan Delwo, Brandon Tull, Jonathan Tull, Travis Sylvestre, Mike Malechka, Brandon Buttazoni, Matthew Augustine, Zach Mihalicz, Jeremy Zver, Will Tallman, Wesley Jones, Brian Ofori, Ryan Sandhu, coach Steve Burrows, assistant Wade Hackl, assistant Jordan McFarlen, athletic director Dick White, SID Braden Konschuh
Trinity Western Spartans: Josiah Allison, Justin Bakuteka, Tyus Allen, Nicholas Tancon, Kelvin Smith, Patrick Vandervelden, Vartan Tanielian, Eric Rogers, Peter Spangehl, Kosia Cauw, Taylor Heinrichs, Matt Hayashi, Jesse Jeffers, Matt Blackaby, Denny McDonald, coach Scott Allen, assistant Matthew Boulton, assistant Cal Wirch, assistant Bill Ruby, assistant Mike Horner, therapist Natalie Ghobrial, assistant therapist Philippe Saucier, strength & conditioning Andrew Heming, nutritionist Adrienne Friesen, student therapist Nat Chan, student therapist Ana Lamavatu, SID Scott Stewart, assistant SID Mark Janzen, athletic director Murray Hall
In the opening round, the 8th-seeded host Thompson Rivers Wolfpack (3rd, Explorer division) defeated the 9th-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen (6th, Pioneer Division) 86-78; 62-61 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, the Wolfpack prevailed 86-78. The Wolfpack led 20-12 after one quarter. The Wesmen led 42-30 at the half and 63-57 after three quarters. The Wolfpack broke to a 7-0 lead before Ryan Oirbans hit a pair of buckets for the Wesmen. A 7-2 Wesmen run in the second quarter closed the gap to 22-19 but the Wolfpack had it back at double digits at the half by exploding for a late 16-3 run. Winnipeg rallied to a lead in the final quarter but the WolfPack closed the gap to 66-65 and after an exchange of baskets, grabbed a lead at 69-66. A Denzel Lynch-Blair trey knotted the score but Thompson Rivers closed out the contest with a 17-9 run. Brett Roualt paced the Wolfpack with 22 on 9-18 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 7 boards and 3 steals. Josh Wolfram added 21 on 7-18 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 13 boards and 2 assists. Reese Pribilsky added 17 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 4 boards and 7 assists. Tallon Milne scored 11 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 17 boards and 3 assists. Josh Mayorga scored 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Victor Aguero scored 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Brett Parker added 3 on 1-6 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc. The Wolfpack hit 33-75 (.440) from the floor, 7-24 (.292) from the arc and 13-14 (.929) from the line, while garnering 51 boards, including 18 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 6 steals, 1 block, 13 turnovers and 10 fouls. Denzel Lynch-Blair paced the Wesmen with 22 on 8-14 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 5-7 from the line and 3 steals. Jelane Pryce added 16 on 7-17 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 assists. Christopher Baxter notched 14 on 6-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Ryan Oirbans scored 10 on 5-6 from the floor and 10 boards. Jamar Farley added 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 3 boards. Travis Krahn added 6 on 2-7 from the arc and 2 assists. Blair Orr was scoreless. Winnipeg hit 32-72 (.444) , 7-29 (.241) from the arc and 7-10 from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 9 turnovers and 14 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Thompson Rivers completed the series sweep by nipping Winnipeg 62-61. It marked the first playoff series win for the Wolfpack since joining Canada West. The Wolfpack prevailed though both posts, Tallon Milner and Josh Wolfram fouled out. A pair of Denzel Lynch-Blair free throws tied the game at 57-57. A three-pointer by Josh Mayorga with 1:24 left lifted the WolfPack to a 60-57 lead. Winnipeg went one for two from the line to close the gap to 60-58. A lay-up by Reese Pribilsky gave the WolfPack a 62-58 lead with 55 seconds left. Jelane Pryce added a free throw and a basket to cut the lead to 62-61. Two missed free throws by Mayorga with four seconds left gave the Wesmen one last chance for the win. But Wesmen guard Jordan Clennon turned over the ball. “Both teams played really hard,” said WolfPack head coach Scott Clark about the series. “I thought you saw a couple of tired basketball teams today. A lot of grit on both sides of the basketball. I thought it was a game that could have gone either way.” Wesmen coach Mike Raimbault said “both teams made plays down the stretch but we didn’t capitalize. I have to give credit to TRU who executed better than we did.” The Wolfpack led 14-8 after one quarter. The Wesmen led 28-27 at the half after ripping off a 13-2 run early in the second quarter. The Wolfpack led 47-44 after three quarters. WolfPack head coach Scott Clark “it was a pretty good start. We got some good looks and did a pretty good job of defensive transition.” As far as the rest of the contest was concerned: “There was some bite to us. We had some fight on the glass and our defensive resiliency was high. We looked pretty ugly in some defensive situations but all in all we didn’t wallow in it at all and came back. … It was a good crowd. With things being a little tight having them there was good. It was great cheering them on. In a game where the guys logged lots of minutes their cheering can probably help make a difference emotionally. In terms of confidence it could have been a distraction for the opposition. I was happy with the big support for the guys. We appreciate it.” Brett Parker paced the Wolfpack with 17 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Brett Roualt added 10 on 4-15 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 3 assists and 2 steals. Josh Wolfram scored 10 on 5-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 9 boards. Tallon Milne added 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 11 boards. Reese Pribilsky scored 7 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 5 boards and 7 assists. Josh Mayorga added 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 6 boards. Victor Aguero added 2, along with 3 boards, while Luke Morris and Joe Davis were scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 24-62 (.387) from the floor, 7-23 (.304) from the arc and 7-10 from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 4 steals, 1 block, 15 turnovers and 21 fouls. Jelayne Pryce paced the Wesmen with 22 on 6-22 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 9-12 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Christopher Baxter added 15 on 6-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 8 boards. Denzel Lynch-Blair scored 10 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-8 from the line and 4 boards. Jordan Clennon scored 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Ryan Oirbans added 2, along with 7 boards, Mark McNee 2, along with 5 boards, and Jamar Farley 2, along with 2, boards, while Travis Krahn was scoreless. The Wesmen hit 21-65 (.323) from the floor, 1-18 (.056) from the arc and 18-26 (.692) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 5 assists, 5 steals, 7 blocks, 10 turnovers and 13 fouls. The Wesmen (coach Mike Raimbault, assistant Tyler Kohut, assistant Nick Lother, strength & conditioning Gerren McDonald, therapist Jeff Billeck, student therapist Ryan Kolly, student therapist Adrienne Chubala, athletic director Doran Reid, SID Sheldon Appelle) also included Marcello Kambola, Denzel Soliven, Blair Orr, Kuet and Tre Harmon.
In the other opening round series, the 7th-seeded Calgary Dinos (5th, Pioneer Division) dispatched the 10th-seeded Manitoba Bisons (7th, Pioneer Division) 92-81; 93-81 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Calgary prevailed 92-81. The Dinos led 27-17, 49-47 and 70-66 at the quarters. “There are good and bad days, I made some shots today, but we’ll see how it goes tomorrow,” said Calgary guard Lars Schlueter. “Tomorrow is an important day and we have to finish them off.” Calgary hit 10 of its first 11 shots. But Manitoba rallied within two at the half and took a 53-51 lead in the third quarter on a pair of free throws by forward Wyatt Anders. After the two teams exchanged buckets, A.J. Basi hit a big three for the Bisons, giving them a 64-60 lead with 3:22 remaining in the third. But Schlueter would hit a three on the next possession and after a Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson layup tied the game at 65, the German would hit another three for the 68-65 lead and two free throws by Jhony Verrone gave the Dinos a 70-66 advantage going into the fourth. Then Calgary took complete control. The Dinos scored 12 points in the first three minutes of the quarter with four different players scoring to take an 82-70 lead. From that point on, every time Manitoba made a push, the Dinos had an answer. Lars Schlueter paced the Dinos with 21 on 8-13 from the floor, 5-9 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 assists. Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson added 15 on 7-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 6 boards and 3 assists. Dallas Karch scored 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Philip Barndt scored 10 on 4-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Jhony Verrone notched 10 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Josh Owen-Thomas added 8 on 3-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. L.J. Hegwood added 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Mitch Ligertwood scored 5 on 2-3 from the floor and 1-1 from the line. Jasdeep Gill added 3 and Matt Letkeman 2, along with 2 boards, while Adonis Montfort-Palomino was scoreless. The Dinos hit 35-66 (.530) from the floor, 9-22 (.409) from the arc and 13-21 (.619) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 9 steals, 4 blocks, 14 turnovers and 20 fouls. Amarjit Basi paced the Bisons with 21 on 7-15 from the floor, 4-10 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Stephan Walton added 14 on 6-15 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 5 assists. Andre Arruda scored 11 on 3-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Alfreeman Flowers scored 11 on 3-5 from the floor, 5-7 from the line and 6 boards. Wyatt Anders added 9 on 2-6 from the floor, 5-6 from the line and 16 boards. Justus Alleyn added 7 on 3-15 from the floor and 1-6 from the arc. Brett Jewell scored 3 and Mike Holloway 1, while Malik Irwin was scoreless. The Bisons hit 27-75 (.360) from the floor, 10-27 (.370) from the arc and 17-22 (.773) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 5 steals, 15 turnovers and 18 fouls. …………………………………………………… The Dinos completed the series sweep by dumping the Bisons 93-81. The Bisons led 22-20 after one quarter. The Dinos led 36-35 at the half and 65-54 after three quarters. Point guard Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson said defense was the key. ”They have so many talented guards that you have to get back, if you don’t get back they’re going to hit threes and take it to the rim.” Manitoba took a 53-47 lead in the third quarter but Dinos guard Josh Owen-Thomas scored six straight points and after an Ogungbemi-Jackson layup, the Dinos were back up by two. The Bisons tied it at 55, but Owen-Thomas scored another four straight and after a three by Jasdeep Gill late in the quarter, Ogungbemi-Jackson threw a perfect pass to L.J. Hegwood for a thunderous alley-oop dunk to give Calgary the momentum and the 65-57 lead going into the fourth. ”Josh Owen-Thomas has one of the toughest jobs because he’s always guarding one of their best players full court, rebounding and playing some point guard duties and he came up big,” Ogungbemi-Jackson said. Manitoba cut the lead to 76-73 with four minutes to play. But the Dinos hit 16-18 from the line in the final quarter to ice the win. The Bisons trailed 81-77 with two minutes to play but Calgary’s Lars Schlueter – who had not scored the entire game – hit a dagger three at 1:37 to give Calgary a seven-point lead. Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson paced the Dinos with 23 on 5-17 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 12-14 from the line, 6 boards and 6 assists. Philip Barndt added 13 on 4-12 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 5 boards and 3 steals. Josh Owen-Thomas scored 13 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 3 boards. Dallas Karch scored 9 on 4-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 6 boards and 3 assists. Mitch Ligertwood scored 8 on 2-5 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 6 boards. L.J. Hegwood added 6 on 3-3 from the floor and 3 boards. Jhony Verrone scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Jasdeep Gill scored 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Matt Letkeman scored 5 on 1-2 from the floor and 3-4 from the line. Lars Schlueter scored 3 on 1-2 from the arc and Adonis Montfort Palomino 2, along with 2 boards. The Dinos hit 30-68 (.441) from the floor, 7-19 (.368) from the arc and 26-31 (.830) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 9 steals, 14 turnovers and 20 fouls. Amarjit Basi paced Manitoba with 20 on 6-14 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 6-8 from the line. Wyatt Anders added 16 on 6-10 from the floor, 4-8 from the line and 13 boards. Justus Alleyn notched 15 on 4-11 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 5 boards. Stephan Walton scored 13 on 5-10 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 6 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals. Andre Arruda added 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 4 boards and 4 steals. Jonathan Alexander scored 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Mike Holloway added 2 and Alfreeman Flowers 2, along with 4 boards, while Malik Irwin and Brett Jewell were scoreless. The Bisons hit 27-64 (.422) from the floor, 7-18 (.389) from the arc and 20-29 (.690) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 9 steals, 1 block, 20 turnovers and 21 fouls. The Bisons (coach Kirby Schepp, assistant Jeff Laping, assistant Don Fowler, assistant Grant Richter, assistant Herve Vincent, assistant Jon Giesbrecht, strength & conditioning Matt Barr, director of basketball operations Tyler Penner, manager of player personnel Hudson Isaac, massage therapist Byron Bahniuk, athletic director Coleen Dufresne, SID Chris Zuk) also included Joseph Medrano, Amir Ali, Keena Benarroch, Wyatt Anders, Sam Kinsley and Boris Zimbakov.
In the quarterfinals, the 4th-seeded University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (3rd, Pioneer Division) defeated the 5th-seeded University of Northern British Columbia Timberwolves (2nd, Explorer Division) 83-77; 88-78 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, U.B.C. prevailed 83-77. The Timberwolves led 22-21 after one quarter. The Thunderbirds led 45-38 at the half and 56-45 after three quarters. UNBC’s Marcus MacKay drained a pair of treys in the fourth quarter to rally the Timberwolves but their efforts fell just short. The Thunderbirds led by 19 at the 6:19 mark of the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves trimmed the margin in half but missed treys by Rhys Elliott and Sam Zhang dashed any hopes of a comeback and made a late Timberwolves 17-4 run moot. “They’re a hard working team and we have to get back to exploiting some of our opponent’s weaknesses, something we did well down the stretch during the regular season,” said UBC coach Kevin Hanson. “We have a real size advantage and look to use that to take control of tomorrow’s game.” UBC opened with a 10-4 run but the Timberwolves rallied to take the lead with two minutes remaining in the opening stanza. Tommy Nixon answered with a putback to draw the T-Birds within one after a quarter. A 12-3 UBC run made it 43-36 for the Birds with just over two minutes remaining in the half. The teams traded baskets to end the half. UBC continued to apply the pressure in the third, and opened up a 13-point lead after UNBC head coach Todd Jordan was assessed a technical. Conor Morgan drained a trey and a dunk to put the Birds up by 19. That lead provided just enough. ”They scored a lot in transition and off loose balls, and you can’t let other teams out hustle you in these pressure situations,” said Hanson. “With that said, we played some guys a bit more than anticipated so we’re looking to end this series tomorrow and take advantage of an extra days rest.” Tommy Nixon paced the Thunderbirds with 23 on 9-15 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 10 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Tonner Jackson added 16 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Jordan Jensen-Whyte notched 14 on 7-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists. Kedar Wright scored 10 on 2-11 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Conor Morgan notched 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Andrew McGuinness added 9 on 3-5 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 2 boards. David Wagner added 2. The Thunderbirds hit 32-65 (.492) from the floor, 6-18 from the arc and 13-19 (.684) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 9 steals, 3 blocks, 14 turnovers and 10 fouls. Rhys Elliott paced the Timberwolves with 21 on 9-23 from the floor, 3-10 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Nolan Hanson added 13 on 5-7 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Billy Cheng added 11 on 5-14 from the floor, 1-8 from the arc and 2 assists. Marcus Mackay scored 9 on 3-6 from the arc and 2 boards. Franco Kouagnia added 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 10 boards and 3 blocks. Jeff Chu added 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line 5 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Devin McMurtry added 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 8 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Sam Zhang added 2, along with 3 boards, and Vaggelis Loukas 1, along with 5 boards and 2 steals, while Michael Smith and Colin Plumb were scoreless. Plumb nabbed 2 boards. The Timberwolves hit 31-76 (.408) from the floor, 10-34 (.294) from the arc and 5-9 (.556) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 10 steals, 4 blocks, 15 turnovers and 21 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, UBC completed the series sweep by clipping UNBC 88-78 after leading 28-9, 41-25 and 62-52 at the quarters. “It’s a great team win for us, and although we were a bit sloppy yesterday, we really stepped up today to get that series victory,” said Kedar Wright. “After a disappointing first round last year, it feels good to take that next step and advance on to the next round.” UBC had a 20-point lead at the 9:24 mark of the third quarter, but the Timberwolves clawed back down the stretch as the Thunderbirds struggled from the line. Conor Morgan scored 9 of UBC’s first 14 points and the Birds moved ahead 21-7 on treys by Tommy Nixon and Andrew McGuiness. The Timberwolves were more effective on the offensive end of the floor in the second quarter but a late 6-2 run gave the T-Birds a six-point lead at the half. Both teams came out firing in the third, each draining their first three field goals of the quarter including a pair of UBC threes from Wright and Morgan, and two huge dunks from UNBC’s Devin McMurtry and Franco Kouagnia. The Timberwolves cut UBC’s 20-point lead to 5 at the 4:00 mark. An Andrew McGuiness restored a double digit lead. UNBC hung around, though. Down by eight points with 52.3 seconds to play, UNBC began a string of fouls to regain possession, followed by a UNBC Rhys Elliott trey to make it a two-possession ball game. The T-Birds hit their free throws to pull out the win. “We were able to regroup and put our minds together and come back strong tonight, and now moving forward we have to stay focused, and not get complacent just because of these two wins,” said Wright. Conor Morgan paced the Thunderbirds with 19 on 7-14 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Kedar Wright added 17 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 9-11 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Tommy Nixon scored 15 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 10-11 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Tonner Jackson added 10 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 6 boards. Brylle Kamen added 8 on 4-6 from the floor, 5 boards and 2 assists. Jordan Jensen-Whyte scored 7 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-10 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Andrew McGuinness scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 3 boards. David Wagner notched 6 on 3-3 from the floor, 3 boards and 2 steals, while Luka Zaharijevic was scoreless. The Thunderbirds hit 27-63 (.429) from the floor, 6-20 (.300) from the arc and 28-40 (.700) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 7 steals, 2 blocks, 13 turnovers and 14 fouls. Rhys Elliott paced the Timberwolves with 19 on 7-17 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Jeff Chu added 16 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Billy Cheng notched 14 on 5-9 from the floor and 4-5 from the arc. Devin McMurtry added 14 on 6-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Franck Olivier Kouagnia added 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 10 boards and 2 assists. Nolan Hanson added 3, Sam Zhang 2, along with 4 boards, and Vaggelis Loukas 2, along with 5 boards, while Marcus Mackay was scoreless. The Timberwolves hit 28-64 (.438) from the floor, 10-27 (.370) from the arc and 12-13 (.923) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 6 steals, 2 blocks, 18 turnovers and 29 fouls. The Timberwolves (coach Todd Jordan, assistant Dale Dergosoff, assistant Jordan Johnson, assistant Dennis Stark, assistant Charles Barton, athletic director Loralyn Murdoch, SID Jesse Olynyk) also included Michael Smith, Mitchell Howden, Gagan Sahota, Colin Plumb and Elliot Rowe.
The 3rd-seeded Victoria Vikings (2nd, Pioneer Division) dispatched the 6th-seeded Alberta Golden Bears (4th, Pioneer Division) 77-62; 81-67 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Victoria prevailed 77-62 after leading 24-13, 37-35 and 55-53 at the quarters. “Junior Sesay really stepped up and gave us some energy in both ends with a couple of steals, big rebounds and from there on we rolled away with it in the fourth quarter,” said Vikes coach Craig Beaucamp. “When our bench players came on they gave us positive contributions and that was really key for us today.” The Vikes ripped off a late 12-0 run in the first quarter to take the early lead but Joel Friesen rallied Alberta within two at the half. Vic exploded for eight unanswered in the third quarter but Alberta rallied with a 9-0 run to take a 48-47 lead. Alberta continued to lead throughout the end of the third until Sesay hit a shot clock buzzer-beating three from the corner to tie the game at 53. On Alberta’s last possession Friesen turned the ball over and Pilato fed Sesay to give the Vikes a 55-53 lead entering the fourth. The Vikes took command in the final frame. “Chris [McLaughlin] is our anchor in the offensive and defensive end for us and Marcus [Tibbs] does so much for us in creating penetration, making shots and distributing the ball,” said Beaucamp. “Other guys stepped in though and played rolls and got us through down the stretch. It was a very good team win for us tonight.” Chris McLaughlin paced Victoria with 20 on 9-17 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 15 boards and 3 assists. Marcus Tibbs added 16 on 6-11 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-6 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Grant Sitton added 11 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 2 boards. Junior Sesay scored 11 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 4 steals. Mack Roth notched 6 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 7 boards and 2 assists. Reiner Theil scored 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 4 boards. Patrick Pilato notched 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 assists. Jordan Charles added 3, along with 3 boards, while Hassan Abudullahi and Hayden Lejeune were scoreless. The Vikes hit 31-73 (.425) from the floor, 6-25 (.240) from the arc and 9-13 (.692) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 8 steals, 4 blocks, 4 turnovers and 18 fouls. Joel Friesen paced Alberta with 15 on 5-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-5 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Kenneth Otieno added 15 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 assists. Youssef Ouahrig notched 11 on 4-13 from the floor, 2-10 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 5 boards. Mamadou Gueye added 8 on 3-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Ray Dhaliwal scored 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 2 boards. Sebastien Denault notched 3 on 0-2 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Ethan Dixon added 2, while Andriy Halushko, Sheldon Pittman and Brett Roughead were scoreless. The Golden Bears hit 22-57 (.386) from the floor, 8-28 (.286) from the arc and 10-15 from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 13 turnovers and 18 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Victoria completed the series sweep by dumping Alberta 81-67. “Junior [Sesay] tonight gave us so many great minutes, energy wise, which was so key for us and our leaders were also very good,” said Vikes coach Craig Beaucamp. “Marcus [Tibbs] was good offensively and sort of set the table for us and Chris [McLaughlin] was just a huge pillar of strength.” The lead changed hands 11 times and the score was knotted 13 times. “Kind of like last night we seemed to get better as the game got older,” said Beaucamp. “The deeper we got into the game the more we had consistent stops and consistent offence.” The Vikes led 18-15 after one quarter, with Kenneth Otieno hitting a pair from beyond the arc for Alberta. In the second quarter, Alberta went on a late 10-0 run on treys from Yousef Ouahrig and Andriy Halushko. But Victoria’s Patrick Pilato responded with a trey of his own as the Vikes rallied within 37-36 at the half. McLaughlin notched an and-one to knot the score at 40 but Otieno’s fifth trey of the night gave the Bears a 47-46 lead. Back-to-back buckets from third year guard Brett Roughead extended Alberta’s lead to 51-49 but a Mack Roth knotted the score at 51. The Vikes went ahead 62-54 at the end of the third on a Pilato trey, a Tibbs layup and two free throws from Reiner Theil. A McLaughlin dunk and a baseline trey iced it the win for Victoria down the stretch. “We survived and that’s it,” said Beaucamp. Chris McLaughlin paced Victoria with 22 on 8-15 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 5-5 from the line and 11 boards. Marcus Tibbs added 19 on 8-18 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 4 boards and 6 assists. Junior Sesay added 10 on 4-11 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 8 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. Jordan Charles added 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 5 boards. Mack Roth scored 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Patrick Pilato added 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc and 2 assists. Reiner Theil notched 5 on 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Grant Sitton added 4 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards, while Jeremy Leonard-Smith and Hayden Lejeune were scoreless. The Vikes hit 30-67 (.448) from the floor, 7-23 (.304) from the arc and 14-17 (.824) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 10 turnovers and 24 fouls. Kenneth Otieno paced the Golden Bears with 21 on 6-12 from the floor, 5-8 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Youssef Ouahrig added 14 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 6-8 from the line. Joel Friesen scored 11 on 4-16 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Mamadou Gueye added 10 on 1-8 from the floor, 8-10 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Sebastien Denault added 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-2 from the line and 4 boards. Brett Roughead added 4, along with 2 boards, and Andriy Halusko 3, while Ethan Dixon, Sheldon Pittman, Ray Dhaliwal and Taylor Riar were scoreless. The Golden Bears hit 19-57 (.333) from the floor, 8-20 (.400) from the arc and 21-32 (.656) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 3 steals, 4 blocks, 7 turnovers and 18 fouls. The Golden Bears (coach Barnaby Craddock, assistant Kent Johnson, assistant Nick Maglisceau, assistant Lyndon Annetts, assistant James Jones, fitness Michael Cook, head therapist Nicole Lemke, therapist Danielle Boehres, therapist T.J. Mussbacher, therapist Alex Yaworski, therapist Darcy Ogloza, athletic director Ian Reade, SID Matt Gutsch) also included Grant Galbraith, Czar Robotham and Brody Clarke.
The 2nd-seeded Fraser Valley Cascades (1st, Explorer Division) defeated the 7th-seeded Calgary Dinos 78-71; 72-65 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, the Cascades prevailed 78-71 as reserve Vijay Dhillon nailed a trey in the final minute against an shot clock to give Fraser Valley a decisive margin. “He plays smart, and he obviously hit some big shots,” said Cascades coach Adam Friesen. “We needed some big moments when they were making some big runs, and he made some big shots to sort of end it and get us back on track, get the momentum started in our direction again. It changed the trajectory of the game.” The Dinos took a 22-15 lead after one quarter but the Cascades exploded with a 19-2 run featuring 7 points from Kevon Parchment. Calgary answered with a 14-1 run as Lars Schleuter and Josh Owen-Thomas each nailed a pair of treys and the Dinos took a 38-35 lead at the half. The Cascades outscored Calgary 21-11 in the third quarter and extended their lead to 64-52 with six minutes remaining in regulation after Dhillon drilled a three-pointer. But then Parchment fouled out and the Dinos rallied to within 66-63 after a pair of free throws from Owen-Thomas. Cascade guard Nate Brown answered with a trey. Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson countered with a trey for Calgary but on the next possession, with the shot clock ticking down, Jasper Moedt found Dhillon with a skip pass from the post, and he took a dribble to gather himself before hoisting a desperation three-pointer with Ogungbemi-Jackson right in his face. The ball found nothing but net, restoring the Cascades’ six-point lead with 41.4 seconds left, and the Dinos were forced to foul from that point. “I saw Jasper pick up his dribble, so I just tried to get in passing position,” said Dhillon. “And then once I took the ball, I looked up and saw it was at two seconds (on the shot clock) and just prayed it went in. It was just like any other game – I come off the bench and try to do my role, play off these other guys.” Friesen noted “it was a tough one – Calgary gave us all we could handle. We were fortunate to come away with a win. It was a game of runs – we just happened to kind of hang on, and the clock ran out in the middle of their last run.” Vijay Dhillon paced the Cascades with 20 on 6-8 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc and 4-6 from the line. Nate Brown added 19 on 8-14 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Jasper Moedt notched 15 on 5-11 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 5-8 from the line and 13 boards. Kevon Parchment added 10 on 4-13 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 6 boards and 6 assists. Dominique Brooks scored 5on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Manjodh Dulay added 4 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 7 boards and5 assists. Kadeem Willis added 4 on 1-7 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists, while Navjot Bains was scoreless. The Cascades hit 27-64 (.422) from the floor, 7-18 (.389) from the arc and 17-26 (.654) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 20 turnovers and 19 fouls. Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson paced the Dinos with 20 on 9-17 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 4 assists. Lars Schlueter added 17 on 7-12 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 steals. Josh Owen-Thomas notched 16 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 4 assists. Matt Letkeman scored 7 on 1-5 from the floor, 5-6 from the line and 3 boards. Jhony Verrone added 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards, 3 assists and 5 steals. Philip Barndt added 2 on 1-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 5 boards. Jasdeep Gill scored 2 and Mitch Ligertwood 2, while Dallas Karch, L.J. Hegwood and Skylar Sheehan were scoreless. The Dinos hit 26-65 (.400) from the floor, 7-23 (.304) from the arc and 12-16 (.750) from the line, while garnering 21 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 12 steals, 3 blocks, 14 turnovers and 21 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, the Cascades completed the series sweep by clipping Calgary 72-65. The Cascades led 24-10, 39-23 and 56-39 at the quarters. They led by as many as 23 (54-31) with three minutes remaining in the third quarter as Manny Dulay nailed a trey. But the Dinos rallied within 67-65 after Jhony Verrone made a layup with 1:27 left in regulation. But Cascades power forward Nate Brown answered with a hook shot, and fifth-year centre Jasper Moedt ripped down a defensive board and then hit a pair of free throws to salt the game away. “Four straight years (in the Final Four) for UFV, I think that’s an unbelievable feat,” Cascades coach Adam Friesen said. “It’s a comment on the guys that we have – guys are willing to come on board and believe in a dream that we could work hard enough to compete with the bigger schools and give ourselves chances to go to nationals. I’m glad all the hard work’s paying off.” Dulay said “a win’s a win at the end of the day, but still, we have to learn from this going into our Final Four games. When you have a lead, you have to finish it off. …We learned a lot from losing the last couple years, and we know we have a special team. We have a lot of good pieces on our team and feel like we can make it far. It’s just about taking care of business at the end of the day.” Friesen said Calgary’s Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson was exceptional. “We didn’t shoot the basketball particularly well, and the short end of it is, Jarred Jackson happened. When you have him on your team, you’re never out of it, and we know that. We know he’s one of the best players in the country, and you’re in a situation as a fifth-year where you’re battling for your career. You’re going to go out swinging. He put on one heck of a performance in the fourth quarter.” Manjodh Dulay paced the Cascades with 21 on 8-13 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 5 assists. Nate Brown added 13 on 5-16 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards, 5 assists and 4 steals. Jasper Moedt scored 11 on 1-12 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 9-11 from the line and 13 boards. Kadeem Willis added 11 on 5-11 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc and 5 boards. Kevon Parchment scored 8 on 3-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Dominique Brooks added 4 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc and 2 assists. Vijay Dhillon added 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 2 assists, while Navjot Bains was scoreless. The Cascades hit 26-75 (.347) from the floor, 5-24 (.208) from the arc and 15-19 (.789) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 8 steals, 1 block, 12 turnovers and 18 fouls. Jarred Obungbemi-Jackson paced Calgary with 16 on 6-17 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards and 3 assists. Lars Schlueter added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Matt Letkeman notched 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 blocks. Jhonny Verone added 9 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. L.J. Hegwood added 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 3 boards. Josh Owen-Thomas added 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Philip Barndt added 3 on 1-4 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists. Jasdeep Gill added 2 and Connor Foreman 2, along with 2 boards, while Dallas Karch, Adonis Montfort-Palomino and Mitch Ligertwood were scoreless. The Dinos hit 23-61 (.377) from the floor, 9-28 (.321) from the arc and 10-14 (.714) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 18 fouls. The Dinos (coach Dan Vanhooren, assistant Sean Foote, assistant Blaine Miciak, assistant Andy Vorhies, manager Dean McCord, strength & conditioning Rich Hesketh, athletic director Ron Wuotila, SID Ben Matchett) also included Syklar Sheehan, Corey Hauck, Luke Praught, Matt Ellis, Emmett Cook, Cooper Hamaliuk, Sunny Johal and Hunter Karl.
In the last quarterfinal series, the top-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies (1st, Pioneer Division) defeated the 8th-seeded Thompson Rivers Wolfpack 96-82; 75-81; 84-71 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, Saskatchewan prevailed 96-82. The Wolfpack led 27-19 after one quarter and 49-43 at the half. The Huskies led 68-63 after three quarters. A solid defensive effort helped spark the Huskies third quarter comeback. Saskatchewan forced seven turnovers and held the WolfPack to just 25% shooting in the period. Ben Baker started the rally by forcing a pair of turnovers that led to runout layups from Evan Ostertag and Matt Forbes. Ostertag notched a layup to tie the game at 54 and the Huskies never again trailed. Thompson Rivers opened with a 6-2 lead but Saskatchewan hit a pair of treys to lead 12-9. The Wolfpack then ripped off an 8-0 run and extended their margin to as many as 10. Saskatchewan opened the second quarter with a 6-2 run by the Wolfpack rebuilt an 11-point lead by bombing from beyond the arc. Reserve Jonathan Karwacki ignited a 10-2 Huskies run that cut the margin to one but Brett Roualt hit a deep trey at the buzzer to give the Wolfpack a 49-43 lead at the half. The Huskies dominated the third quarter. Thompson Rivers was able to cut the deficit to just one early in the fourth quarter, but the top-seeded Huskies were able to pull away after Trevor Severinski hit a pair of shots from beyond the arc to restore a 10-point Huskie lead. Saskatchewan led by as many as 18. Matthew Forbes paced the Huskies with 20 on 7-11 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 assists. Shane Osayande added 14 on 7-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Dadrian Collins added 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 4 boards. Mike Scott added 11 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Ben Bajer scored 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards, 12 assists and 2 steals. Evan Ostertag added 7 on 3-4 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Trevor Severinski added 7 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 2 boards. Connor Burns added 6 on 1-2 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and boards. Andrew Henry added 6 on 2-4 from the arc and 3 boards. Jonathan Karwacki added 3 and Joe Barker 2, while Alex Unruh was scoreless. The Huskies hit 37-63 (.587) from the floor, 11-21 (.514) from the arc and 11-13 (.846) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 7 steals, 4 blocks, 11 turnovers and 11 fouls. Brett Roualt paced the Wolfpack with 22 on 9-16 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 assists. Josh Wolfram scored 20 on 7-15 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Brett Parker added 16 on 5-8 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Reese Pribilsky scored 8 on 4-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 4 boards. Tallon Milne added 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Victor Aguero scored 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Josh Mayorga added 2 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Joe Davis added 2, while Luke Morris and Gerard Gore were scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 30-62 (.484) from the floor, 12-23 (.522) from the arc and 10-13 (.769) from the line, while garnering 22 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 14 turnovers and 13 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, the Wolfpack evened the series by defeating Saskatchewan 81-75 after leading 17-11, 40-25 and 57-50 at the quarters. The Wolfpack exploded to a 16-0 lead. The Huskies closed the gap to single digits but never seriously threatened until the final quarter. Trailing by 11 with 4:23 to play the Huskies went on a quick spurt capped off by a Ben Baker trey with less than two minutes to go to cut the lead to 71-69. Three WolfPack went to the line in the next three possessions knocking down all six attempts to pull out the win. Brett Parker paced the Wolfpack with 21 on 9-13 from the floor, 3-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 steals. Josh Wolfram added 17 on 5-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 9 boards and 2 blocks. Tallon Milne scored 15 on 6-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 10 boards and 2 assists. Brett Rouault scored 13 on 6-15 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc and 3 steals. Reese Pribilsky scored 10 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 5 assists. Josh Mayorga scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards, while Joe Davis and Victor Aguero were scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 30-62 (.484) from the floor, 8-23 (.348) from the arc and 13-17 (.765) from the line, while garnering 28 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 10 turnovers and 18 fouls. Andrew Henry paced the Huskies with 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. Dadrian Collins added 12 on 4-14 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Ben Baker scored 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 9 boards, 9 assists and 2 steals. Matthew Forbes added 10 on 3-14 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Evan Ostertag scored 10 on 3-4 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 assists and 2 steals. Trevor Severinski added 10 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 4-4 from the line. Shane Osayande added 9 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 7 boards. Connor Burns added 1, along with 2 boards, while Mike Scott was scoreless. The Huskies hit 24-59 (.407) from the floor, 14-27 (.519) from the arc and 13-20 (.650) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 4 steals, 15 turnovers and 19 fouls. …………………………………………………… In the deciding contest, Saskatchewan prevailed 84-71. The Wolfpack led 27-23 after one quarter and 43-42 at the half. The Huskies led 61-57 after three quarters. Saskatchewan started to mount the comeback in the dying seconds of the first half. Down by four with seconds left, Ben Baker swung the ball cross-court to Evan Ostertag, who nailed a trey to trim the margin to one. Brett Rouault opened the second half with a trey for the Wolfpack but an Ostertag layup put Saskatchewan back up by one near the end of the third. He hit another three-point shot from the top of the arc to give the Huskies its largest lead of the game at 61-57 to close the third. Saskatchewan’s Andrew Henry opened the fourth quarter with another trey and the Huskies began to pull away and coasted to the win. Matthew Forbes paced the Huskies with 30 on 13-18 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Dadrian Collins added 17 on 5-9 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Evan Ostertag added 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 0-1 from the line. Andrew Henry added 8 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Ben Baker notched 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 16 boards and 8 assists. Shan Osayande added 4 on 1-1 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 assists. Connor Burns scored 4 on 0-1 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Jonathan Karwacki scored 3 on 1-5 from the arc. Mike Scott added 2 on 0-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards, while Trevor Severinski was scoreless. The Huskies hit 28-60 (.467) from the floor, 10-26 (.385) from the arc and 18-20 (.900) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 12 fouls. Brett Rouault paced the Wolfpack with 33 on 12-20 from the floor, 7-10 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 3 boards. Brett Rouault added 17 on 6-17 from the floor, 5-11 from the arc, 4 boards, 6 assists and 5 steals. Tallon Milne scored 8 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 7 boards, 2 assists and 4 steals. Brett Parker added 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 2 assists and 2 steals. Josh Wolfram notched 4 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists. Joe Davis added 4 on 2-2 from the floor, while Josh Mayorga, Gerard Gore, Victor Aguero and Luke Morris were scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 28-64 (.438) from the floor, 12-29 (.414) from the arc and 3-7 (.429) from the line, while garnering 20 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 13 steals, 1 block, 14 turnovers and 17 fouls. The Wolfpack (coach Scott Clark, assistant Kevin Pribilsky, assistant Joe Enevoldson, assistant Paul Patterson, athletic director Ken Olynyk, SID Larry Read) also included Ismail Abdullahi.
In the Final Four semis, held in Saskatoon, the 3rd-seeded Victoria Vikes dusted the 2nd-seeded Fraser Valley Cascades 86-61 after leading 27-12, 45-39 and 67-53 at the quarters. The Vikes broke to an 11-0 lead before Jasper Moedt finally put the Cascades on the scoreboard. The Vikes scored 20 points after Cascade turnovers. “I think we could have played a lot better in the first two or three minutes of each half,” Cascades coach Adam Friesen told the Abbotsford News. “We dug ourselves a hole in the first quarter and the third quarter, and playing a quality opponent like Victoria, you give yourselves such a limited chance for success that way.” Mack Roth paced the Vikes with 19 on 7-13 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-5 from the line and 6 boards. Chris McLaughlin added 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards, 6 assists and 2 steals. Reiner Theil added 15 on 6-8 from the floor, 3-3 from the arc, 9 boards and 2 assists. Marcus Tibbs scored 15 on 7-14 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 3 boards and 11 assists. Junior Sesay notched 12 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 4 boards. Grant Sitton added 5 on 2-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the arc. Jeremy Leonard-Smith added 3 on 1-1 from the arc, while Jordan Charles, Hayden Lejeune, Hassan Abdullahi, Justin Kinnear and Patrick Pilato were scoreless. Charles dished 3 assists and pilfered 2 balls. The Vikes hit 33-64 (.516) from the floor, 10-23 (.435) from the arc and 10-11 (.909) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 24 assists, 7 steals, 11 turnovers and 14 fouls. Kevon Parchment paced the Cascades with 17 on 6-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Nate Brown added 14 on 7-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Jasper Moedt added 10 on 5-9 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. Kadeem Willis added 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 6 boards. Dominique Brooks added 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 2 steals. Vijay Dhillon added 4 on 1-8 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 assists, while Manjodh Dulay, Luke Braund and Navjot Bains were scoreless. Dulay nabbed 2 boards and dished 4 assists. The Cascades hit 24-58 (.414) from the floor, 4-22 (.182) from the arc and 9-9 from the line, while garnering 25 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 17 turnovers and 14 fouls.
In the other semi, the top-seeded
Saskatchewan Huskies edged the 4th-seeded University of British
Columbia Thunderbirds 81-75. The score was knotted at 18 after one quarter.
U.B.C. led 43-41 at the half and 62-60 after three quarters. But Huskie Matt
Forbes opened the final quarter with a trey and Dadrian Collins followed with a
long two to give Saskatchewan a 65-62 lead. UBC took a timeout to stop the
momentum and hit two foul shots, but the Huskies Trevor Severinski nailed a
trey in response. With just over two minutes to play, UBC rallied within 77-75
but could draw no closer. “We predicted a tough physical game and that’s exactly
what we got,” UBC coach Kevin Hanson told the Abbotsford News. “We struggled to
guard and didn’t rebound the ball well enough to win, two things that we tried
to focus on all year. We hung in for three quarters but couldn’t close out the
fourth. They went on a run mid-way through the fourth and we could not climb
back. During that phase we missed some defensive assignments and they got some
big shots.” With 26 seconds to play, Tommy Nixon was stripped of the ball and Dadrian
Collins drained a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game. “It’s a
tough loss but we competed hard and you can’t question the heart that the boys
showed tonight,” said Hanson. Ben Baker paced Saskatchewan with 20 on 7-16 from
the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 7 boards and 8 assists. Dadrian
Collins added 20 on 8-17 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5
boards and 2 steals. Matthew Forbes notched 14 on 6-8 from the floor, 1-1 from
the arc, 1-1 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Mike Scott scored 11 on 3-7
from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Trevor Severinski scored 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 5
boards. Andrew Henry notched 6 on 2-6 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists.
Connor Burns added 2, while Evan Ostertag and Jonathan Karwacki were scoreless.
Ostertag nabbed 2 boards and dished 2 assists. The Huskies hit 30-64 (.469)
from the floor, 11-28 (.393) from the arc and 10-12 (.833) from the line, while
garnering 29 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 7 steals,
2 blocks, 11 turnovers and 18 fouls. Kedar Wright paced the Thunderbirds with
23 on 9-15 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 2 assists.
Tonner Jackson added 14 on 5-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the
line and 3 boards. Tommy Nixon added 14 on 3-7 from the floor, 8-10 from the
line, 12 boards and 6 assists. Conor Morgan scored 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-3
from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Andrew McGuinness notched
6 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc and 2 boards. Jordan Jensen-Whyte added
4 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 2 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals.
David Wagner scored 4 on 2-2 from the floor, while Brylle Kamen scored 2. The
Thunderbirds hit 28-56 from the floor, 3-16 (.188) from the arc and 16-23
(.696) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 6 on the offensive
glass, 21 assists, 4 steals, 15 turnovers and 15 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, the
2nd-seeded Fraser Valley Cascades dumped the 4th-seeded University of British
Columbia Thunderbirds 87-71. Fraser Valley held a lead for the majority of the
first quarter. A Kedar Wright jump shot gave the T-Birds its first lead of the
game at 18-17 with 36 seconds left in the frame. He added another shot as time
ran out for a 20-17 UBC lead after the first quarter. Wright and Tommy Nixon
built a 24-17 lead for UBC to start the second quarter but the T-Birds shooting
soon went cold. Fraser Valley went on a 15-2 run for a 32-26 lead. The Cascades
continued the hot streak outscoring UBC 25-12 in the quarter to lead 42-32 at
halftime. UBC made a bid for a comeback in the third quarter outscoring the
Cascades 20-19, but Fraser Valley still led 61-52 after three quarters. The
Thunderbirds never seriously threatened. The bronze was the Cascades in three
straight appearances in the bronze medal game. “We showed a lot of character,”
Cascades coach Adam Friesen told the Abbotsford News. “These games can be tough
to play in, but starting with our fifth-years, the character of our group
really shone through today. We wanted to get a bronze medal and end on a win.” Kedar
Wright led the T-Birds in the loss with a game-high 19 points off the bench,
while Tommy Nixon scored 18 and Tonner Jackson had 14. UBC built a seven-point
lead early in the second quarter, but the Cascades exploded for 13 unanswered,
including a four-point play from Kadeem Willis, and eventually took a 42-32
lead into the lockers. They opened the second half with a 13-5 run to build the
lead to 19. U.B.C. rallied within seven in the final quarter but Manjodh Dulay to
bury Thunderbird hopes. “Manny’s been learning the point guard role for us this
year, balancing being aggressive with being a playmaker,” Friesen said. “But
when he’s aggressive, he makes our team so much better and allows his teammates
to have so much more success. He’s such a great shooter, he draws a lot of
attention when he’s looking for his own shot.” Willis said “we wanted the
hardware – we wanted to come home with something. We were focused, and we made
it happen.” Manjodh Dulay paced the Cascades with 19 on 6-12 from the floor,
6-11 from the arc, 3 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals. Nate Brown scored 17 on
6-12 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 7 boards and 3
steals. Kadeem Willis notched 16 on 6-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 1-1
from the line and 4 boards. Kevon Parchment scored 15 on 5-14 from the floor,
1-5 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 9 boards and 5 assists. Dominique Brooks
scored 15 on 5-11 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 2 boards
and 2 steals. Jasper Moedt notched 6 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc
and 7 boards, while Luke Braund was scoreless. The Cascades hit 31-69 (.449)
from the floor, 12-29 (.414) from the arc and 13-15 (.867) from the line, while
garnering 33 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 10
steals, 1 block, 9 turnovers and 18 fouls.
Kedar Wright paced U.B.C. with 19 on 7-14 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 2 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Tommy Nixon added 18 on 6-14 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Tonner Jackson scored 14 on 5-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 6 boards. Conor Morgan scored 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 7 boards and 2 assists. Andrew McGuinness scored 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Jordan Jensen-Whyte scored 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. David Wagner added 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 5 boards. Luka Zaharijevic added 2, while Elijah Campbell-Axson, Daniel Sutcliffe, Brylle Kamen and Stefanos Fasianos were scoreless. The Thunderbirds (coach Kevin Hanson, assistant Spencer McKay, assistant Dahman Boudraa, assistant Vern Knopp, assistant Shaun McGuinness, trainer Beth Rizzardo, trainer Miguel Olfato, trainer Amanda Giacomazza, manager Charles Dai, athletic director Ashley Howard, SID Dan Elliot) also included Bret Macdonald, Mindy Minhas, Will Ondrik and Harpreet Randhawa.
In the final, the 3rd-seeded Victoria Vikes edged the top-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies 70-67. The Vikes broke to 7-3 lead but Huskie Mike Scott hit a three to tie the game at 20 to end the first quarter. Victoria went on a 6-0 run to start the second frame before Evan Ostertag hit a three from the top of the arc. Huskie shooters went cold midway through the second and the Vikes built their lead to 11. Ben Baker hit a jump shot at the buzzer to trim the margin to 42-31 at halftime. A 4-0 Saskatchewan run started the second half before Roth hit a long three to restore an eight-point lead. A Matt Forbes three started an 18-1 run by the Huskies to give Saskatchewan a 54-45 lead. Saskatchewan held a 60-56 lead after the third quarter. But Chris McLaughlin rallied the Vikes, knotting the score at 65 with 3:44 left. Marcus Tibbs added a jumper on the next Vikes possession. Two Matthew Forbes free throws tied the game back at 67 but Tibbs once again gave the Vikes the lead. A missed Saskatchewan three-pointer with 7 seconds left sealed Victoria’s win. “We knew it would be tough and we had got kind of handled by them three times this year already,” said Vikings coach Craig Beaucamp. “We got off to a decent start and then kind of gutted it out in the end. It was just a really good team win for us. Getting to nationals is always the big goal and sometimes teams under estimate the value of winning a conference championship. There is still so much pride in winning your conference as the last time we won was 2006 so, it’s definitely not easy to do. Several of the guys on the team have played through the last two silver medals so it was nice for them to get this win.” Marcus Tibbs paced Victoria with 25 on 10-16 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 5 boards and 7 assists. Chris McLaughlin added 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Mack Roth scored 10 on 4-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 9 boards and 2 assists. Reiner Theil notched 9 on 3-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 4 boards. Jordan Charles scored 7 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Grant Sitton scored 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Junior Sesay added 2 on 0-7 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards, while Patrick Pilato was scoreless. The Vikings hit 26-63 (.413) from the floor, 9-27 (.333) from the arc and 9-14 (.643) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 17 turnovers and 12 steals. Ben Baker paced Saskatchewan with 21 on 8-20 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 10 boards and 6 assists. Evan Ostertag notched 17 on 7-11 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 steals. Matthew Forbes scored 13 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Mike Scott added 7 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 4 boards. Connor Burns scored 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 3 boards. Dadrian Collins added 3 on 1-9 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 steals. Andrew Henry scored 2 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals, while Trevor Severinski was scoreless. The Huskies hit 27-69 (.391) from the floor, 5-21 (.238) from the arc and 8-13 (.615) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 9 steals, 4 blocks, 9 turnovers and 18 fouls.
At the start of the season, Scott Allen announced that he would step aside after the campaign after seven years at the helm. “I want to thank Scott for the solid coaching that he provided for our men’s basketball program, highlighted by the CIS silver medal in 2011,” said Dr. Blair Whitmarsh, Dean of the School of Human Kinetics. “He will do well in whatever he does and I wish him all the best in his future endeavours.” Prior to coming to TWU, Allen enjoyed a 15-year career at South Surrey’s White Rock Christian Academy. Trinity Western subsequently appointed Aaron Muhic as head coach. Muhic, from Sacramento, California, was coach of William Jessup University (a “Christian” liberal arts NAIA school) in Rocklin, California, where he garnered 173 wins in 13 seasons. He played four years at Eastern Oregon University.
Canada West
announces that it had approved yet another format change. Commencing in
2016-17, the 17 schools will play in a single conference, featuring a 20-game
regular season schedule. Each team will play four geographical, or historical
opponents every year, with games against six of the remaining 12 opponents
every other year. Over a four-year rotation in the schedule, each team will
play every team in the conference at least twice, and will visit every gym in
Canada West at least once. Also approved was the accompanying playoff format,
which will see the top 12 teams playing a bracketed postseason structure over a
three-week period. The top four teams will receive a bye in the first week of
the playoffs, which will feature four best-of-three series. The following week
will consist of four best-of-three quarterfinals, leading to the final four
hosted by the highest remaining seed. “The majority of members wanted a
different format, so we spent six months going through a lot of options for
schedules,” Canada West President Ian Reade said. “We were able to go through a
collective problem solving process to get to a format, and come together on
this one. This allows us to guarantee that traditional and geographic opponents
will have the opportunity to play each other annually, while eliminating
the perception of having two tiers within the conference.” The annual opponents
by school: …………………………………………………… Alberta (Calgary, Lethbridge, MacEwan,
Saskatchewan) …………………………………………………… Brandon (Regina, Saskatchewan,
Manitoba, Winnipeg) …………………………………………………… UBC (UBC-Okanagan, UNBC, Trinity
Western, Victoria) …………………………………………………… UBC-Okanagan (UBC, Fraser Valley,
Thompson Rivers, Victoria) …………………………………………………… Calgary (Alberta, Lethbridge,
Mount Royal, Saskatchewan) …………………………………………………… Fraser Valley (UBC-Okanagan,
UNBC, Thompson Rivers, Trinity Western) …………………………………………………… Lethbridge (Alberta,
Calgary, MacEwan, Mount Royal) …………………………………………………… MacEwan (Alberta,
Lethbridge, Mount Royal, Winnipeg) …………………………………………………… Manitoba (Brandon,
Mount Royal, Regina, Winnipeg) …………………………………………………… Mount Royal (Calgary, Lethbridge,
Manitoba, MacEwan) …………………………………………………… UNBC (UBC, Fraser Valley, Thompson
Rivers, Trinity Western) …………………………………………………… Regina (Brandon, Manitoba,
Saskatchewan, Winnipeg) …………………………………………………… Saskatchewan (Alberta, Brandon,
Calgary, Regina)…………………………………………………… Thompson Rivers (UBC-Okanagan, Fraser
Valley, UNBC, Victoria) …………………………………………………… Trinity Western (UBC, Fraser
Valley, UNBC, Victoria) …………………………………………………… Victoria (UBC, UBC-Okanagan, Thompson
Rivers, Trinity Western) ……………………………………………………
Winnipeg (Brandon, MacEwan, Manitoba, Regina)…………………………………………………… In the first
round of the playoffs, the teams finishing 1st-4th in the regular season will
receive a bye. The four best-of-three series will see 12 @ 5, 11 @ 6, 10 @ 7
and 9 @ 8. The four best-of-three quarterfinals will be hosted by the top four
teams, with the winner of 5/12 @ 4, 6/11 @ 3, 7/10 @ 2, and 8/9 @ 1. The Final
Four will be a single-elimination tournament, hosted by the highest remaining
seed. The semis will see the 6/11 @ 3 winner vs 7/10 @ 2 winner; while the 5/12
@ 4 winner vs 8/9 @ 1 winner.
The bronze medalist Fraser Valley Cascades: Dominique Brooks; Manjodh Dulay; Nate Brown; Vijay Dhillon; Jasper Moedt; Navjot Bains; Kevon Parchment; Mackenzie Thompson; Kadeem Willis; Luke Braund; redshirt Marcus Morgan; redshirt Antonio Jhuty; coach Adam Friesen; assistant Kyle Graves; assistant Kyle Grewal; interim athletic director Chris Bertram; SID Dan Kinvig
The silver medalist Saskatchewan Huskies: Alex Unruh; Evan Ostertag; Andrew Henry; Michael Scott; Ben Baker; Jonathan Karwacki; Jonathan Halvorson; Reid Thuringer; Mack Burns; Joseph Barker; Dadrian Collins; Matt Forbes; Connor Burns; Shane Osayande; Trevor Severinski; coach Barry Rawlyk; assistant Chad Jacobson; assistant Dan Dewar; strength & conditioning Jordan Harbidge; student trainer Jaelyse Gorgchuck; student trainer Logan Senchuk; athletic director Basil Hughton; SID Nicole Betker
The gold medalist Victoria Vikes: Grant Sitton; Kai Greene; Rulon Schmidt; Marcus Tibbs, Reiner Theil; Taylor Montgomery-Stinson; Mack Roth; Junior Sesay; Jeremy Leonard-Smith; Patrick Pilato; Jordan Charles; Justin Kinnear; Chris McLaughlin; Hassan Abdullahi; Hayden Lejeune; coach Craig Beaucamp; assistant Craig Behan; assistant Phil Ohl; assistant Chris Franklin; athletic director Clint Hamilton; SID Ali Lee