REGULAR SEASON

U.B.C. 19-1 25-3 Kevin Hanson        
  Calgary 16-4 26-6 Dan Vanhooren        
  Alberta 14-6 25-12 Barnaby Craddock        
  Saskatchewan 14-6 20-9 Barry Rawlyk        
  Lethbridge 13-7 20-11 Mike Hansen        
  Winnipeg 12-8 21-12 Mike Raimbault        
  Manitoba 12-8 22-14 Kirby Schepp        
  Fraser Valley 11-9 13-12 Adam Friesen        
  Victoria  9-11 15-18 Craig Beaucamp        
  Regina  9-11 14-23 Steve Burrows        
  Brandon  9-11 11-20 Gil Cheung        
  Thompson Rivers  8-12 12-17 Scott Clark        
  Mount Royal  8-12  9-20 Marc Dobell        
  MacEwan  7-13 11-15 Eric Magdanz        
  Northern BC  4-16  7-20 Todd Jordan        
  Trinity Western  3-17  3-18 Aaron Muhic        
  UBC-Okanagan  2-18  2-23 Peter Guarasci        
                 

Playoff non-qualifiers:

UBC-Okanagan Heat: Matt Lafontaine, Triston Matthews, Spencer Thomas, Noma Obaseiki, Navtej Sandhu, Austin Penrose, Aldrich Berrios, Justin Melnychuk, Cameron Friesen, Buzz Truss, Mitchell Goodwin, David Manshreck, Randy Jernidier, Ryan Morck, Davide Ciancio, Sam Striker, coach Peter Guarasci, assistant Landry Ndayitwayeko, assistant Will Sherrett, assistant Yassine Ghomari, strength & conditioning Kevin Phillips, therapist Jeff Thorburn, student trainer Cedric Disengi-Manzi

MacEwan Griffins: Thomas Jereniuk, Tarik Scott, Malik Mate, Thadius Galvez, Adonis Montfort-Palomino, Thomas Laxdal, Denzel James, Jake Notice, Atlas St. Paul-Butler, Michael Burnham, Harrison Lane, Tyler Wise, Cole Aikens, Keith Gerdes, Ryan Coleman, Ali Raza, Deonte Dosov-Doctor, Tre Ross, coach Eric Magdanz, assistant Jesse McLean, assistant Graeme Ryder, assistant Jackson Parker, graduate assistant Lee Danderfer, manager Joe McLeod, assistant manager Scotty Mergaert, therapist Jennifer Dunn, student trainer Eryn Forsyth

Mount Royal Cougars: Craig Martin, Ray Goff, Josh Ross, Ryan Cunningham, Matthew Guinto, Derek Wolf, Tyis Yellow Horn, Nicholas Tancon, Wiande Kher, Noah Lewis, Glen Yang, Brett Layton, Brodie Davis, coach Marc Dobell, assistant Tyler McVicar, assistant Richard Foggo, strength & conditioning Hidesh Bhardwaj, student therapist Michael Mcconaghy

Northern British Columbia Timberwolves: Anthony Hokanson, Tyrell Laing, Marcus MacKay, Elliot Rowe, James Agyeman, Rhys Elliot, Nolan Hanson, Saje Gosal, Sam Zhang, Neal Randhawa, Vaggelis Loukas, Austin Chandler, Volodymyr Pluzhnikov, coach Todd Jordan, assistant Jeff Chu, assistant Dale Dergosoff, assistant Kaz Ikuta, assistant Nav Parmar, assistant Dennis Stark

Trinity Western Spartans: Joshiah Allison, Pogos Trunyan, Tyus Allen, Nick Smith, Max Viitala, Nathan Allison, Vartan Tanielian, Eric Rogers, Peter Spangehl, Tee Mayberry, Matt Hayashi, Josiah Meppelink, Patrick Vandervelden, Nigel Boyd, Aaron Paetku, Ben Reddy, Justin Robinson, Daniel Stead, coach Aaron Muhic, assistant Jason Keegstra, assistant Matt Guynup, therapist Natalie Ghobrial, therapist Philippe Saucier, strength & conditioning Andrew Heming, strength & conditioning Adrienne Friesen, student therapist Tim Lo, student therapist Rachel Weibe

        The top 12 teams according to Ratings Percentage Index following the regular season were seeded into the playoffs. The top four seeds earned a first round bye. Mount Royal was 12th in the RPI but 13th in the standings and therefore did not qualify for the playoffs. The playoff teams (in order of final standings): UBC, Calgary, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Lethbridge, Manitoba, Winnipeg, Fraser Valley, Brandon, Victoria, Regina and Thompson Rivers. They were then seeded according their RPIs.

        In the opening round, the 5th-seeded Manitoba Bisons defeated the 12th-seeded Regina Cougars 94-84; 88-80 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, host Manitoba prevailed 94-84 after rallying from an 18-point deficit. “I’m happy with the competitiveness,” said Bisons coach Kirby Schepp. “We competed, we had a little fire, and that’s what the playoffs are all about.” Guard A.J. Basi said in the second half, “we had to pick up the life. We had to pick up our energy on defense, and it carried over to offense.” The teams exchanged shots throughout the opening frame, with neither able to go on a big run. Treys fell for both sides in the quarter, with four falling for the visitors and three for the home side. Regina led 24-22 after one quarter. The Cougars opened the second quarter with a 21-6 run featuring four treys, while Manitoba missed on all seven attempts. Regina led 52-36 at the half. AJ Basi took over in the third quarter, putting up 14 points in the frame, and Justus Alleyn added another seven for the home team. The Bisons went on an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to 3 and eventually knotted the score at 67 after three quarters. The Cougars were able to get on the board first to take a 69-67 lead, but the Herd strung together nine straight points with James Wagner, Malik Irwin, Justus Alleyn, and Keith Omoerah all getting in on the run. The visitors would cut the lead to 76-72, but Basi responded with five unanswered points, which included an and-one to increase the Bison lead to 81-72 and they romped to the win. A.J. Basi paced the Bisons with 26 on 10-23 from the floor, 3-13 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Justus Alleyn added 16 on 6-12 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Joey Nitychoruk scored 13 on 6-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Keith Omoerah notched 12 on 4-6 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 11 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals. Ilarion Bonhomme added 11 on 4-13 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards, 9 assists and 2 steals. James Wagner scored 8 on 4-9 from the floor and 7 boards. Brett Jewell added 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 2 boards. Malik Irwin added 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 4 boards and 2 steals, while Keiran Zziwa and Johnathan Alexander were scoreless. The Bisons hit 38-81 (.469) from the floor, 8-25 (.320) from the arc and 10-12 (.833) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 10 steals, 1 block, 12 turnovers and 19 fouls. Brian Ofori paced the Cougars with 19 on 8-11 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 1-6 from the line, 12 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Brandon Tull added 16 on 6-9 from the floor, 4-9 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. Johneil Johnson notched 13 on 5-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 3-3 from the line. Alex Igual scored 12 on 4-14 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 5 assists and 5 steals. Travis Sylvestre added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Samuel Hillis scored 8 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 3 boards. Matthew Augustine added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 7 boards. Benjamin Hillis scored 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 2 assists, while Kornel Tokolyi and Carter Millar were scoreless. Millar nabbed 2 boards and dished 2 assists. The Cougars hit 32-61 (.525) from the floor, 10-21 (.476) from the arc and 10-21 (.476) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 10 steals, 2 blocks, 18 turnovers and 17 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Manitoba completed the series sweep by clipping Regina 88-80 after leading 28-13, 46-33 and 66-51 at the quarters. “The guys were really hungry to win this one,” Bisons coach Kirby Schepp said. “They did not want to play a Saturday game, do or die situation. We just had great energy on both sides, and we really moved the ball.” Manitoba was up 7-5 early in the game, before going on a 12-0 run to take a 19-5 lead. They extended the margin to 28-13 after one quarter. The competitiveness rose in the second quarter, as neither team was able to go on a substantial run and the Bisons led 46-33 at the half. Trailing 50-38 early in the third quarter, the Cougars strung together a 7-0 run to cut the margin to 5. A.J. Basi responded with a three-point play, which sparked an 8-0 Bison run. The visitors cut the lead to 58-49, before the Herd went on another 8-0 run, powered by treys from Malik Irwin and AJ Basi. Manitoba led 66-51 after the third quarter. Basi opened up the final quarter with a trey but Regina went on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 11. But an Ilarion Bonhomme shot stopped the run, and momentum. The Cougars were able to cut the lead down to 5 with just over two minutes to play thanks to a Brandon Tull trey, and a Johneil Johnson steal and basket before James Wagner slammed the nail in the coffin with a dunk at the buzzer. Justus Alleyn paced the Bisons with 20 on 8-16 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 4 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. A.J. Basi added 18 on 7-15 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Keith Omoerah added 10 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-3 from the line, 9 boards and 5 assists. Ilarion Bonhomme scored 10 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 9 boards and 7 assists. Malik Irwin added 10 on 4-4 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 steals. James Wagner added 8 on 4-7 from the floor and 4 boards. Joey Nitychoruk notched 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Brett Jewell scored 4 on 2-6 from the floor and 3 boards. Jonathan Alexander added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. The Bisons hit 35-73 (.479) from the floor, 11-27 (.407) from the arc and 7-12 (.583) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 10 steals, 2 blocks, 17 turnovers and 20 fouls. Brandon Tull paced the Cougars with 19 on 6-16 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 4 steals. Travis Sylvestre added 13 on 6-13 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 1-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Johneil Johnson notched 13 on 5-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 3 steals. Matthew Augustine added 9 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Brian Ofori scored 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 8 boards. Alex Igual added 7 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Benjamin Hillis added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3 assists. Samuel Hillis notched 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-3 from the line and 3 boards, while Carter Millar was scoreless. The Cougars hit 31-69 (.449) from the floor, 5-19 (.263) from the arc and 13-22 (.591) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 11 steals, 1 block, 19 turnovers and 13 fouls. The Cougars (coach Steve Burrows, assistant Wade Hackl, assistant Joel Hunter) also included Ramiro Martinez, Aaron McGowan, Kieran Hebert, Stephen Shields, Kornel Tokolyi, Brayden Kuski and Brandon Buttazoni.

The 7th-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen defeated the 10th-seeded Fraser Valley Cascades 82-76; 71-78; 84-59 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, Winnipeg edged Fraser Valley 82-76 on a decisive 18-0 run in the fourth quarter. Fraser Valley opened with an 8-0 run, with Navjot Bains scoring all the points. Winnipeg countered with a 9-0 run. A trey by Sean Tarver followed by a putback by Ryan Oirbans gave the Wesmen a 24-18 lead after one quarter. A 9-0 run by the Cascades to start to the second quarter pulled them ahead 27-24. After the ensuing three-point barrage, Winnipeg led 46-45 at the half. The Cascades opened the second half with a 13-4 run to take a 58-50 lead. Andrew Morris scored seven points down the stretch to help the Cascades carry a 69-56 lead into the fourth quarter. Winnipeg trailed 76-64 with 6:21 remaining in the final quarter, shortly after the Cascades had ripped off a 7-0 run, capped by an Anthony Gilchrist bucket in the paint off a feed from Mark Johnson. But then the Wesmen delivered the 18-0 knockout punch. “We feel fortunate to have made our run at the right time. With a tight turn around we will have to be sharp tomorrow afternoon. We expect another hard fought battle,” said Wesmen coach Mike Raimbault. Cascades coach Adam Friesen said “we just lost the momentum of the game. All the energy in the fourth quarter started going towards Winnipeg, and we couldn’t find any way to stop it. We got stagnant (offensively) in the fourth quarter, and their defensive intensity picked up big-time on us. That combination is something we just can’t have. … We’ve got to find a way to deal with it (the loss), it’s the only thing we can do. Maybe it’s a good thing it’s a quick turnaround and we get back on the floor right away.” Denzel Lynch-Blair paced the Wesmen with 23 on 10-18 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-7 from the line, 9 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Ryan Oirbans added 21 on 10-13 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 15 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Sean Tarver scored 18 on 7-14 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Jamar Farley added 11 on 4-8 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 2 assists. Narcisse Ambanza added 7 on 3-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 3 boards and 5 assists. Marcello Kambola added 2 on 1-6 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc and 2 boards, while William Sesay and Billy Yaworsky were scoreless. Sesay was 0-4 from the floor and 0-3 from the arc, while nabbing 3 boards and dishing 5 assists. The Wesmen hit 35-71 (.493) from the floor, 7-27 (.259) from the arc and 5-12 (.417) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 9 steals, 13 turnovers and 9 fouls. Andrew Morris paced the Cascades with 19 on 8-13 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 4 boards. Manny Dulay added 15 on 3-14 from the floor, 3-13 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 3 assists and 4 steals. Navjot Bains scored 12 on 6-10 from the floor and 5 boards. Anthony Gilchrist added 12 on 6-12 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 10 boards. Vijay Dhillon added 10 on 4-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Mark Johnson notched 6 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Denver Sparks-Guest added 2, while Riley Braich and Sukhman Sandhu were scoreless. The Cascades hit 29-66 (.439) from the floor, 8-27 (.296) from the arc and 10-11 (.909) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 6 steals, 20 turnovers and 10 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Fraser Valley evened the series by clipping Winnipeg 78-71. The teams were tied at 17 after one quarter but Manjot Dulay hit a trio from beyond the arc as the Cascades built a 39-34 lead at the half. The Cascades opened the second half with an 11-2 run to take a double-dig lead. Winnipeg was able to cut the deficit into single digits on three occasions but the Cascades responded with a basket on the next possession each time. Fraser Valley went into the final quarter leading 66-55. Winnipeg clawed their way back into the game in the fourth quarter going on an 8-2 run to cut the Cascade lead to 72-67 with 4:00 remaining. Baskets by Vijay Dhillon and Dulay extended the Cascades lead to double-digits at 77-67 with 3:00 left in regulation. A pair of free throws by Denzel Lynch-Blair followed by a jumper by Narcisse Ambanza cut the lead to 77-71. Winnipeg was unable to gain further ground.  “The difference for us was really learning from yesterday – how to be in a road environment and have a lead, but be able to handle when the home team comes at you with some momentum,” Cascades coach Adam Friesen said, adding that Dulay “played like a senior whose career was on the line. His energy level was incredible, his focus level was awesome, and he willed some shots to go in for us. He really led the charge.” Manjot Dulay led the Cascades with 29 on 11-16 from the floor, 7-7 from the arc, 6 boards, 5 assists and 3 steals. Mark Johnson added 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Navjot Bains notched 10 on 5-9 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4 boards and 4 assists. Vijay Dhillon added 8 on 3-12 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists. Denver Sparks-Guest added 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Anthony Gilchrist scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 3 steals. Andrew Morris added 3 on 1-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists, while Sukhman Sandhu was scoreless. The Cascades hit 30-67 (.448) from the floor, 12-22 (.545) from the arc and 6-8 from the line, while garnering 28 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 7 steals, 1 block, 6 turnovers and 12 fouls. Sean Tarver paced the Wesmen with 22 on 9-17 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Ryan Oirbans added 16 on 8-14 from the floor, 10 boards, 4 assists and 2 blocks. Denzel Lynch-Blair notched 14 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 7-7 from the line, 2 boards and 4 assists. William Sesay scored 9 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 10 boards and 2 assists. Narcisse Ambanza added 4 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 7 boards and 3 assists. Marcello Kambola added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Denzel Soliven added 3 on 1-1 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc, while Jamar Farley, Billy Yaworsky and Joshua Gandier were scoreless. Farley nabbed 2 boards. The Wesmen hit 26-65 (.400) from the floor, 5-15 from the arc and 14-15 (.933) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 8 turnovers and 11 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game three, Winnipeg took the series by dusting Fraser Valley 84-59 on the strength of a decisive third quarter. Both teams struggled out of the gate as the Cascades built a 15-10 lead after one quarter. The Cascades opened up the second quarter on a 9-2 run to take their largest lead at 24-12. Winnipeg rallied with a 9-0 run featuring four points from rookie guard Narcisse Ambanza to cut the deficit to 24-21 with 4:30 left to play in the second frame. A pair of free throws by Denzel Lynch-Blair drew the Wesmen within 32-30 but Denver Sparks-Guest scored a basket with three seconds left to give Fraser Valley a 34-30 halftime lead. The Wesmen blitzed the Cascades 31-9 in the third quarter to take command. “We just didn’t match their energy in the third quarter, and we lost some composure after that,” Cascades coach Adam Friesen said. “The University of Winnipeg has shown us this weekend that when they get on a run, they can really go on a big one. Once they got started, we weren’t able to slow them down.” Narcisse Ambanza paced the Wesmen with 22 on 9-14 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Denzel Lynch-Blair added 19 on 8-12 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards, 3 assists and 4 steals. Sean Tarver scored 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. William Sesay added 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 12 boards and 3 assists. Denzel Soliven scored 7 on 3-4 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Ryan Oirbans added 6 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-4 from the line, 8 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Jamar Farley added 6 on 2-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists, while Kahlil Lakay, Joshua Gandier, Nathaniel Johnson, Marcello Kambola and Billy Yaworsky were scoreless. The Wesmen hit 33-67 (.493) from the floor, 5-12 (.417) from the arc and 13-23 (.565) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 9 steals, 1 block, 7 turnovers and 13 fouls. Manny (Manjodh) Dulay paced the Cascades with 11 on 4-13 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 5 boards and 5 assists. Mark Johnson added 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Andrew Morris scored 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Denver Sparks-Guest notched 8 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Vijay Dhillon added 7 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. Anthony Gilchrist added 6 on 3-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Sukhman Sandhu added 3 on 1-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Daniel Adediran notched 3 on 1-1 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Navjot Bains scored 2 on 1-7 from the floor, 5 boards and 3 assists, while Riley Braich was scoreless. The Cascades hit 21-65 (.323) from the floor, 7-19 (.368) from the arc and 10-12 (.833) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 13 turnovers and 16 fouls. The Cascades (coach Adam Friesen, assistant Trevor Pridie) also included Matt Cooley, Justin Dhillon, Aaron Adrian, Sagar Dulay, Joban Pandher, Jordyn Sekhon, Felix Sun and Mike VanderWerff.

The 9th-seeded Thompson Rivers Wolfpack defeated the 8th-seeded Brandon Bobcats 95-101; 96-64; 94-81 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, Brandon outlasted Thompson Rivers 101-95. The Bobcats led 29-23 after one quarter and then ripped off an 8-0 run courtesy of back-to-back treys by Tyvon Cooper to pad their lead to 12. The WolfPack cut that deficit to 39-33 with 4:20 remaining but the Bobcats built the lead to 48-40 at the half. They extended the margin to 62-48 midway through the third quarter before the Wolfpack closed the third quarter with an 18-6 run to trail 73-70. In the fourth, the Bobcats started strong with a 12-5 run to re-establish their double-digit lead and then coasted to the win. “We responded,” said Tyvon Cooper. “They made their runs, but we made our runs. Every time they hit, we hit. We played resilient basketball to start this series. We fought hard and protected our home court.” Wolfpack coach Scott Clark said “it was a poor defensive effort. We scored OK in the fourth quarter but you can’t do that and just hope that defense takes care of itself. It’s like rolling the dice. Our level of concentration wasn’t good.” Tyvon Cooper paced the Bobcats with 30 on 9-17 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 8-9 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Earl Thompson Jr. added 20 on 8-16 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 6 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Pookie Saunders added 14 on 6-10 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 5 boards, 7 assists and 5 steals. John Paul notched 11 on 5-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Chris Stanhope scored 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 2 assists. Kobyn Jopp scored 6 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Esmat Atem notched 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 2 boards. Mitch Marquis scored 3 on 1-1 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Josh Bell added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards, while Girece Kazumba and Tyler Anderson were scoreless. The Bobcats hit 39-71 (.549) from the floor, 13-25 (.520) from the arc and 10-14 (.714) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 11 steals, 3 blocks, 16 turnovers and 15 fouls. Volodymyr Iegorov paced the Wolfpack with 29 on 11-21 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 5 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. Joe Davis added 24 on 10-18 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Derek Rhodes notched 17 on 7-16 from the floor, 3-10 from the arc and 2 assists. Luke Morris added 12 on 4-10 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Mike Rouault scored 8 on 2-3 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 14 boards and 3 steals. Trent Monkman added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 1-4 from the line, while Madhu McConnell was scoreless on 0-1 from the floor, 3 boards and 5 assists. The Wolfpack hit 36-73 (.493) from the floor, 11-27 (.407) from the arc and 12-19 (.632) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 9 steals, 1 block, 15 turnovers and 16 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Thompson Rivers evened the series by dusting Brandon 96-64. The Bobcats led 11-4 after ripping off a 7-0 run but the Wolfpack countered with a 1-20 run to take a 16-11 lead, which they parlayed into an 18-14 lead after one quarters.  Bobcats’ rookie Kobyn Jopp notched three consecutive buckets as Brandon remained within reach at 28-24 but the Wolfpack got rolling, closing out the half with an 11-5 run to take a 43-32 lead into the lockers. The Wolfpack hit their first four three-point shots early in the second half as they extended the margin to 59-39 and then closed out the third quarter with an 8-0 run to take an 85-51 lead. Brandon never threatened. Wolf pack coach Scott Clark said “we played better defensively than last night. Our scorers scored but it was a team effort as they were able to get the ball thanks to their teammates. We expect no surprises for game three. We will have to continue to be better on defense.” Bobcats coach Gil Cheung said “there is nothing that we can do about it, but we have to learn from it. You are not going to walkover teams in the playoffs. They played with urgency and we did not respond, which I was disappointed in. Our job is to take care of home court on Sunday.” Derek Rhodes paced the Wolfpack with 21 on 8-12 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Volodymyr Iegorov added 20 on 7-21 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 15 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Joe Davis added 14 on 6-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Luke Morris scored 13 on 5-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 4 boards. Madhu McConnell added 8 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Trent Monkman added 8 on 2-4 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 5 boards. Mike Rouault notched 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 10 boards and 4 assists. Kyler Eckess added 3 on 1-3 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Ryan Miller notched 2 on 1-1 from the floor. Maalik Hazziez added 2 on 0-1 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards, while Noah Kaefer was scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 34-71 (.479) from the floor, 12-22 (.545) from the arc and 16-19 (.842) from the line, while garnering 54 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 6 steals, 1 block, 8 turnovers and 17 fouls. Earl Thompson Jr. led the Bobcats with 13 on 6-16 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 6 boards and 6 assists. Pookie Saunders added 10 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-6 from the line and 5 boards. Tyvon Cooper notched 9 on 2-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 2 boards. Chris Stanhope added 8 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 2 boards. John Paul added 8 on 4-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 6 boards. Kobyn Jopp scored 6 on 3-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 5 boards. Josh Bell added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-3 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Denham Buchanan added 3 on 1-4 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Girece Kazumba added 2 on 0-5 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 2 blocks. Esmat Atem added 2 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the line and 3 boards, while Mitch Marquis and Tyler Anderson were scoreless. Marquis nabbed 2 boards. The Bobcats hit 24-73 (.329) from the floor, 6-28 (.214) from the arc and 10-22 (.455) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 12 turnovers and 18 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game three, Thompson Rivers took the series by clipping Brandon 94-81. The WolfPack bookended the first quarter with 7-0 and 12-2 runs to take a 26-13 lead. They then ripped off 13 unanswered to push their lead to 39-13 before Josh Bell notched three consecutive buckets for Brandon to trim the lead to 42-26. The Wolfpack led 48-28 at the half. The Bobcats came out of the break to notched a 13-0 run and drew within 70-64 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, Tyvon Cooper nailed a trey with 3:58 remaining to get the Bobcats within three, but that was as close as they came. Luke Morris paced the Wolfpack with 25 on 8-15 from the floor, 5-10 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Volodymyr Iegorov added 21 on 6-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 8-11 from the line, 11 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Derek Rhodes notched 17 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Joe Davis added 12 on 4-7 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 2 assists. Trent Monkman scored 11 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. Mike Rouault scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 5 boards. Noah Kaefer added 1 on 1-2 from the floor, while Madhu McConnell was scoreless on 0-3 from the arc and 3 boards. The Wolfpack hit 29-61 (.475) from the floor, 10-26 (.385) from the arc and 26-33 (.788) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 14 turnovers and 22 fouls. Tyvon Cooper paced the Bobcats with 28 on 9-20 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 7-7 from the line, 10 boards and 4 steals. Earl Thompson Jr. added 17 on 7-21 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 10 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. John Paul added 13 on 3-11 from the floor, 7-10 from the line and 9 boards. Josh Bell scored 13 on 5-8 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc and 2 boards. Chris Stanhope added 6 on 1-6 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc and 4-4 from the line. Pookie Saunders added 4 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards, while Mitch Marquis, Girece Kazumba, Esmat Atem, Tyler Anderson and Kobyn Jopp were scoreless. Atem nabbed 3 boards. The Bobcats hit 26-74 (.351) from the floor, 6-23 (.261) from the arc and 23-26 (.885) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 15 turnovers and 29 fouls. The Bobcats (coach Gil Cheung, assistant Brett Nohr, assistant Keith Van Wallegham, assistant Kevin Phillip, trainer Popi Vasilarakis) also included Aidan Saunders, Denham Buchanan, Keneal James, Baka Ngeleka and Riley Schaus.

In the last opening round series, the 6th-seeded Lethbridge Pronghorns defeated the 11th-seeded Victoria Vikes 97-85; 94-85 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Lethbridge clipped Victoria 97-85. The Pronghorns stormed to a 10-0 lead and then extended the margin to 20-5 and took a 26-14 lead after one quarter. The Vikes chipped away and Lethbridge’s lead in the second quarter, making it a two-possession game with five minutes to play and the comeback was complete with a Justin Kinnear bucket to tie the game at 40. However, Pierzchala drilled another trey to put the Pronghorns back into the lead and they took a 48-40 lead into the lockers. The Pronghorns rebuilt a double-digit lead in the third quarter but the Vikes again rallied, tying the game for a second time on a Taylor Montgomery-Stinson three-ball and Graeme Hyde-Lay gave the visitors their first lead of the game with just over 30 seconds to play in the quarter. Four consecutive free throws by the Pronghorns in the dying seconds put Lethbridge back up 68-66 after three quarters. The Pronghorns put the outcome out of reach with a 20-6 run to take command in the fourth quarter. “A great team effort, the guys really buckled down defensively in the fourth and were able to get some separation and get the pace of the game up,” said Pronghorns coach Mike Hansen. “Mike and Elliott had a great night shooting the ball and punished them for staying in the zone.” Vikes coach Craig Beaucamp said “we just can’t give up 100 points if we want any chance to win – that’s the bottom line. We scored a ton tonight, we battled back in but when it’s all said and done we had 26 points against in the first and 29 in the fourth.” Mike Pierzchala paced the Pronghorns with 31 on 11-20 from the floor, 9-13 from the arc and 2 boards. Elliot Sentence added 21 on 8-16 from the floor, 5-9 from the arc, 8 boards and 7 assists. Dejon Burdeaux added 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 9 assists and 2 steals. Zac Overwater added 11 on 3-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Brett Warren notched 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 assists. Colton Gibb added 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. DeAngelo Ashley added 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 assists. Scott Mazutinec notched 3 on 1-5 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc, while William Hickey and Josh Sparkes were scoreless. The Pronghorns hit 34-71 (.479) from the floor, 16-32 from the arc and 13-14 (.929) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 28 assists, 7 steals, 5 blocks, 12 turnovers and 15 fouls. Grant Sitton paced the Vikes with 14 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 9 boards. Taylor Montgomery-Stinson added 14 on 4-8 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 7 boards. Scott Kellum scored 12 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Justin Kinnear added 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Hassan Abdullahi added 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 3 boards. Graeme Hyde-Lay added 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 2 assists. J.J. Hamel-Carey added 5 on 2-10 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc and 4 assists. Jake Newman scored 5 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Jayden Lajeune added 4 on 1-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Jason Scully added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, while Noah Charles was scoreless. The Vikes hit 28-63 (.444) from the floor, 12-29 (.414) from the arc and 17-19 (.895) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 10 turnovers and 14 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Lethbridge completed the series sweep by dispatching Victoria 94-85. The Vikes missed their first seven shots but trailed by just 21-20 after one quarter. They closed out the half with an 11-4 run to take a 46-39 lead into the lockers. Scott Kellum capped the run with a three in the dying seconds of the half. The third quarter was essentially a saw-off and the Vikes led 68-61 heading into the final frame. Trailing 68-59 with 3.5 seconds left in the third quarter, freshman Brett Warren hit a buzzer beater to kick-start the Pronghorns comeback. The momentum carried into the fourth where the ‘Horns erased the seven point deficit in the first three and a half minutes and continued on a 14-2 run to take a lead that they would never relinquish. “Early foul trouble, some fatigue and injuries really slowed us down in the first half,” said Lethbridge coach Mike Hansen. “We did a better job of taking away good looks but kept putting Vic on the line. In the fourth quarter we mixed up our coverages and our defense really tightened up and allowed us to get out and run. Gibby (Colton Gibb) was fantastic defensively and Dejon exerted his will on that game and refused to allow us to lose.” Dejon Burdeaux paced the Pronghorns with 34 on 9-20 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 15-17 from the line, 12 boards, 2 assists and 6 steals. Elliott Sentence added 14 on 4-7 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Zac Overwater added 13 on 5-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 8 boards and 3 assists. Colton Gibb added 11 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 6-10 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Mike Pierzchala notched 9 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Scott Mazutinec added 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 4 boards. Brett Warren added 3 on 1-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. DeAngelo Ashley added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 4 boards, while Josh Sparkes was scoreless. The Pronghorns hit 28-69 (.406) from the floor, 9-21 (.429) from the arc and 29-39 (.744) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 11 steals, 10 turnovers and 22 fouls. Grant Sitton paced the Vikes with 23 on 5-14 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 11-13 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Hassan Abdullahi added 23 on 8-9 from the floor, 5-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Jake Newman notched 12 on 5-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Scott Kellum scored 10 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Graeme Hyde-Lay added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Hayden Lejeune notched 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 3 boards. Taylor Montgomery-Stinson added 3 on 1-7 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc and 2 assists. J.J. Hamel-Carey added 2 on 0-1 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards, while Justin Kinnear and Jason Scully were scoreless. The Vikes hit 27-62 (.435) from the floor, 10-29 (.345) from the arc and 21-23 (.913) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 3 steals, 5 blocks, 15 turnovers and 27 fouls. The Vikes (coach Craig Beaucamp, assistant Craig Behan, assistant Phil Ohl, assistant Josh Mullen, strength & conditioning Gary Peden) also included Vladislav Zasmolin, Wayne Tucker, Noah Charles and Ty Stewart-Nelson.

In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Calgary Dinos defeated the 9th-seeded Thompson Rivers Wolfpack 75-71; 76-68. …………………………………………………… In game one, Calgary edged Thompson Rivers 75-71. Calgary broke to a 16-4 lead in the first quarter and led 23-12 after one quarter. The Dinos went on a late 9-0 run to make the score 43-24 at the half as David Kapinga would score two, hit a three, get a steal and find Dallas Karch for a dunk, before Jhony Verrone would get a steal and score a layup  at the buzzer. In the third, TRU’s all-star Volodymyr Iegorov took over, while the Dinos offense went cold against the TRU zone. The WolfPack outscored Calgary 24-9 in the Dinos’ worst quarter of the season and the Wolfpack trailed by 52-48 going into the final quarter. The Wolfpack twice made it a one-point game in the final frame. But Kapinga refused to let his team fall, hitting 11 points in the fourth quarter, including a critical trey from the corner with less than minute remaining as Calgary held on for the win. The game wasn’t without its emotion, as Calgary’s bench was called for two technical fouls and Iegorov and Dino forward Mambi Diawara had words after getting tangled up under the basket late in the game. Wolfpack coach Scott Clark said “we melted down. You can’t break down and turn over the ball like we did against a team like Calgary. They will make you pay. In the second half we did our job and it worked out. We just didn’t get the start we wanted tonight.” Thomas Cooper paced the Dinos with 21 on 7-25 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 10 boards and 7 assists. David Kapinga added 19 on 7-12 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 6 steals. Jhony Verrone added 11 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 4 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals. Dallas Karch notched 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3 boards. Mitch Ligertwood scored 5 on 1-1 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Jasdeep Gill scored 5 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Mambi Diawara added 3 on 1-8 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 3 boards. Max Eisele added 2 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Connor Foreman scored 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 4 boards. Matt Ellis added 2 on 2-2 from the line, while Jeff Rodehutskors was scoreless. The Dinos hit 25-72 (.347) from the floor, 9-33 (.273) from the arc and 16-24 (.667) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 15 steals, 13 turnovers and 8 fouls. Volodymyr Iegorov paced the Wolfpack with 27 on 9-16 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 15 boards, 6 assists and 2 steals. Derek Rhodes added 14 on 5-15 from the floor, 4-11 from the arc and 3 boards. Trent Monkman scored 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Joe Davis added 8 on 4-7 from the floor, 4 boards and 2 assists. Luke Morris notched 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Madhu McConnell added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 4 boards. Mike Rouault added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards, while Maalik Hazziez was scoreless. The Wolfpack hit 26-60 (.433) from the floor, 9-28 (.321) from the arc and 10-10 from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 21 turnovers and 15 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Calgary completed the series sweep by dispatching Thompson Rivers 76-68. The Dinos took an early 16-8 lead but the Wolfpack outscored Calgary 14-2, capped off with a Mike Rouault trey, to take a 22-18 lead after one quarter. The teams repeatedly traded the lead in the second quarter and the score was knotted at 41 after the half. The Wolfpack continued to hit from the perimeter, while the Dinos struggled against a zone, as Thompson Rivers opened the second half with a 5-0 run and took a 56-53 lead after three quarters. Mambi Diawara scored six straight points, but the Wolfpack kept it close as the Dinos made their run, taking their first lead since midway through the third quarter at 67-66. Thompson Rivers moved ahead by one with 2:30 remaining, but then Calgary’s defense stepped up. Mitch Ligertwood made three free throws and Jhony Verrone added a layup to make it 74-68 with 56 seconds to play. Calgary would get two more stops and Thomas Cooper would ice the game with two more free throws. Wolfpack coach Scott Clark said he was “very proud of our guys. This was the seventh road game for us in 15 days. We have a pretty young group. They stepped up and showed some toughness and determination. I was pleased with their effort. It was certainly a learning experience for them. We will take what we learned in the playoffs and move forward as a group.” Clark added that Iegorov “played well. Vlad has meant a lot to our players, our program and the university. I am sad his time with us comes to an end. I was pleased with the progress he made as a player. His impact on our program will be felt for years to come.” Thomas Cooper paced the Dinos with 26 on 9-17 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 9 boards and 3 assists. Mambi Diawara added 15 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 2-5 from the line, 7 boards, 2 assists and 5 steals. Jhony Verrone notched 13 on 6-13 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 11 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Mitch Ligertwood scored 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 4-5 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Max Eisele added 2 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 assists. Jasdeep Gill scored 2 on 1-6 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Matt Ellis notched 1 on 1-2 from the line, while Dallas Karch and Connor Foreman were scoreless. Karch nabbed 5 boards and dished 2 assists, while hitting 0-4 from the floor and 0-3 from the arc. The Dinos hit 28-68 (.412) from the floor, 8-30 (.267) from the arc and 12-18 from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 15 turnovers and 7 fouls. Volodymyr Iegorov led the Wolfpack with 20 on 8-19 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 11 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Derek Rhodes added 11 on 5-11 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 3 boards and 4 assists. Mike Rouault notched 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Luke Morris scored 8 on 4-12 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists. Madhu McConnell added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Joe Davis added 6 on 3-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Trent Monkman added 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the line and 3 boards. The Wolfpack hit 29-67 (.433) from the floor, 8-25 (.320) from the arc and 2-5 (.400) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 5 steals, 14 turnovers and 15 fouls. The Wolfpack (coach Scott Clark, assistant Ted Murray, assistant Brett Parker, assistant Reese Pribilsky) also included Kyler Eckess, Jeff Tubbs, Noah Kaefer, Evan Helgason, Jas Singh, Ryan Miller, Maalik Hazziez, Jordan Komarniski and Jonathan Layne.

The 5th-seeded Manitoba Bisons defeated the 4th-seeded University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 79-75; 98-96 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Manitoba edged host U.B.C. 79-75. The first half was a defensive slugfest with neither team able to make a notable scoring run. Manitoba had game planned for Conor Morgan well, as he faced a constant barrage of physical double-teams. The score was knotted at 18 after one quarter and Manitoba led 35-31 at the half. The third quarter was played at a frantic pace, with eight lead changes in total. The quarter ended with Jensen-Whyte and Basi trading three pointers in dramatic fashion and the Bisons led 54-53 heading into the final frame. The fourth quarter saw Manitoba open up a ten-point lead, capped by a contested three-point shot from Bison guard Ilarion Bonhomme, his only three-point shot of the game. But after a UBC time-out, Jordan Jensen-Whyte nailed a trey and a free throw. Will Ondrik hit back-to-back lay-ups before a spinning jump shot in traffic by Jensen-Whyte knotted the score at 70. A long trey by A.J. Basi put Manitoba back ahead 73-70. UBC had one last shot to tie things up with Manitoba holding a 78-75 lead, Morgan flashed open on the left edge of three-point line and let fly. The ball sailed long and UBC’s 11-game winning streak was over. A.J. Basi paced the Bisons with 22 on 6-11 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Keith Omoerah added 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 15 boards. Ilarion Bonhomme notched 12 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 7-9 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Justus Alleyn added 12 on 4-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2-5 from the line and 3 assists. James Wagner notched 8 on 4-7 from the floor and 2 boards. Joey Nitychoruk scored 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Brett Jewell added 2 on 1-4 from the floor, while Malik Irwin, Keiran Zziwa and Jonathan Alexander were scoreless. Irwin nabbed 8 boards. The Bisons hit 25-60 (.417) from the floor, 7-16 (.438) from the arc and 22-30 (.733) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 16 turnovers and 26 fouls. Jordan Jensen-Whyte paced the Thunderbirds with 22 on 7-19 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 6-10 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Will Ondrik added 16 on 6-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Conor Morgan scored 12 on 5-16 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Patrick Simon added 8 on 4-6 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 6 boards. Phil Jalalpoor scored 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 2 boards. A.J. Holloway scored 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Isaiah Familia added 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 3 boards. Taylor Browne scored 2 on 1-2 from the floor. Luka Zaharijevic added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, while Harpreet Randhawa scored 1 on 1-2 from the floor and 5 boards. The Thunderbirds hit 29-67 (.433) from the floor, 4-18 (.222) from the arc and 13-25 (.520) from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 8 steals, 2 blocks, 11 turnovers and 23 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Manitoba completed the series sweep by edging U.B.C. 98-96 in overtime as A.J. Basi nailed a trey with six seconds to play. The teams traded the lead early, with Manitoba leading 18-15 after one quarter and by as many as 8 in the second quarter. But Patrick Simon and Taylor Browne nailed late treys as the Thunderbirds kept within reach at 37-35 at the half. With Conor Morgan in foul trouble, Jordan Jensen-Whyte took over for the Thunderbirds in the third quarter, repeatedly drawing fouls off penetration drives and giving UBC a 59-53 lead with four minutes to play. But a ate 16-2 Manitoba run gave the Bisons a 69-64 lead after three quarters. With U.B.C. trailing 75-66, Simon kicked off a UBC comeback with a deep corner trey and Jensen-Whyte pulled the ‘Birds within two with a drive to the hoop and a layup. The two teams continued to trade shots in final stages of regulation, setting the stage for Jensen-Whyte’s two free throws with 5.5 seconds to play to force overtime. “I thought it was a gutsy one, man,” said Jensen-Whyte. “We came out stronger than we did last night, we knew it was going to come down to the wire again tonight, but I am so proud of everybody on this team, all the coaches, everyone that has been around me for the last five years. Kudos to those guys.” Ilarion Bonhomme paced the Bisons with 28 on 10-22 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 5-8 from the line, 10 boards, 9 assists and 2 steals. Justus Alleyn added 18 on 6-13 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Keith Omoerah notched 14 on 5-13 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 11 boards and 4 steals. Joey Nitychoruk scored 12 on 5-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. A.J. Basi added 10 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 3 assists. James Wagner added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Malik Irwin scored 6 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 6 boards and 3 assists. Brett Jewell added 2 on 1-1 from the floor, while Keiran Zziwa and Jonathan Alexander were scoreless. The Bisons hit 37-76 (.487) from the floor, 10-26 (.385) from the arc and 14-18 (.778) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 17 turnovers and 30 fouls. Jordan Jensen-Whyte paced the Thunderbirds with 33 on 11-21 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 9-10 from the line, 5 boards and 10 assists. Patrick Simon added 21 on 7-13 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Conor Morgan scored 14 on 5-14 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 blocks. A.J. Holloway added 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 3 boards and 4 assists. Will Ondrik scored 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Luka Zaharijevic added 4 on 1-4 from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 6 boards. Taylor Browne notched 3 on 1-5 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc. Phil Jalalpoor added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Harpreet Randhawa scored 2 on 0-2 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 6 boards and 2 blocks. The Thunderbirds hit 33-72 (.458) from the floor, 12-27 (.444) from the arc and 18-29 (.621) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 5 steals, 5 blocks, 20 turnovers and 25 fouls. The Thunderbirds (coach Kevin Hanson, assistant Spencer McKay, assistant Vern Knopp, assistant Dahman Boudraa) also included Izaiah Ugoalah, Isaiah Familia, Justin McChesney, Roger Milne, Jauquin Bennett-Boire, Charles Dai, Harry Liu, Parker Simson and Jerome Thompson.

The 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies defeated the 7th-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen 85-84; 88-77 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Saskatchewan nipped Winnipeg 85-84. Trading points back-and-forth in the final two minutes of the game after multiple lead changes in the fourth quarter, the Wesmen missed two free throws with under a minute left. Shane Osayande threw down his fifth dunk of the night to take an 83-81 lead with 34 seconds left. Winnipeg guard Narcisse Ambanza missed a trey before Huskie Lawrence Moore hit both free throws after Winnipeg fouled on the next play for a Saskatchewan 85-81 lead with seconds left. Jamar Farley hit a circus shot from the Huskies’ offensive zone at the buzzer to trim the final margin to 85-84. Saskatchewan led 24-21 after the first quarter and the Wesmen led 46-44 at the half on a trey by Sean Tarver with 14 seconds on the clock. Winnipeg led 66-65 after three quarters. Shane Osayande paced the Huskies with 26 on 11-16 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 15 boards, 3 assists and 5 blocks. Lawrence Moore added 15 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Trevor Severinski added 13 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 2 boards. Matt Forbes scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 3 assists. Alex Unruh added 8 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 5 assists. Mack Burns added 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Jaylan Morgan scored 3 on 1-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 2 boards. Reid Thuringer added 3 on 1-2 from the arc. Emmanuel Akintunde scored 2 on 1-1 from the floor, while Joseph Baker was scoreless. The Huskies hit 32-63 (.508) from the floor, 9-30 (.300) from the arc and 12-13 (.923) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 1 steal, 8 blocks, 20 turnovers and 19 fouls.  Narcisse Ambanza paced the Wesmen with 24 on 11-21 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-4 from the line and 2 steals. Sean Tarver added 18 on 6-13 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Jamar Farley scored 16 on 6-10 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc and 3 boards. William Sesay added 9 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 3 boards. Billy Yaworsky scored 9 on 4-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 4 boards. Nathaniel Johnson added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 0-2 from the line. Marcello Kambola added 3 on 0-2 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Ryan Oirbans notched 2 on 1-5 from the floor and 5 boards, while Denzel Lynch-Blair and Denzel Soliven were scoreless. Soliven dished 2 assists. The Wesmen hit 31-70 (.443) from the floor, 10-25 (.400) from the arc and 12-21 (.571) from the line, while garnering 24 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 3 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks, 6 turnovers and 14 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Saskatchewan completed the series sweep by clipping Winnipeg 88-77. The Huskies hit 7-9 from the arc while building a 31-8 lead after one quarter. But Winnipeg slowly clawed within 48-33 at the half. The Wesmen continued to slowly chip away at the Huskie lead in the third quarter. A Jamar Farley trey with 1:30 to go made it 56-54 for the Huskies. But Saskatchewan rebuilt its lead to 60-54 after three quarters. An 11-2 Huskie spurt midway through the fourth gave the Huskies a nine-point cushion that they would grow as large as 15. Shane Osayande paced the Huskies with 21 on 9-16 from the floor, 3-6 from the line, 19 boards, 4 assists and 2 blocks. Alex Unruh added 20 on 8-10 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Lawrence Moore scored 18 on 5-14 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 6-7 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Trevor Severinski added 16 on 5-10 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 10 boards and 2 steals. Matt Forbes notched 9 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Emmanuel Akintunde added 4 on 1-2 from the floor and 2-2 from the line, while Chan De Ciman, Jonathan Halvorson, Reid Thuringer, Mack Burns and Joseph Barker were scoreless. The Huskies hit 31-66 (.470) from the floor, 9-19 (.474) from the arc and 17-25 (.680) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 5 steals, 3 blocks, 20 turnovers and 17 fouls. Narcisse Ambanza paced the Wesmen with 18 on 7-15 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 3 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Denzel Lynch-Blair added 14 on 4-11 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 5-10 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Sean Tarver added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Jamar Farley scored 9 on 4-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 steals. Ryan Oirbans added 7 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 6 boards and 5 blocks. Nathaniel Johnson notched 6 on 2-3 from the arc. William Sesay scored 5 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Denzel Soliven scored 3 on 1-1 from the arc and Joshua Gandier 3 on 1-1 from the arc, while Marcello Kambola and Billy Yaworsky were scoreless. The Wesmen hit 28-65 (.431) from the floor, 10-29 (.345) from the arc and 11-18 (.611) from the line, while garnering 26 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 10 steals, 7 blocks, 15 turnovers and 23 fouls. The Wesmen (coach Mike Raimbault, assistant John Giesbrecht, assistant Jeremy Wielenga, assistant Ben Dethoit, assistant Tim Ireland, assistant Connor Ward, assistant Ryan Wiebe) also included Louis Makot, Kahlil Lakay, Roan Van Eerd, Francesco Tocci and Noah Horobetz-Simpson.

        In the last quarterfinal series, the 3rd-seeded Alberta Golden Bears defeated the 6th-seeded Lethbridge Pronghorns 80-59; 111-112; 107-84 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, Alberta clocked Lethbridge 80-59. The Golden Bears led 20-6 after one quarter on a pair of treys by Geoff Pippus. But Zac Overwater and Dejon Burdeaux rallied the Pronghorns to within 31-23 at the half with a late 8-0 run. The teams exchanged runs throughout the third, with the Bears going up by as much as 14, before a pair of late rallies by Lethbridge trimmed the margin to 51-43 after three quarters. But the Bears depth began to wear down the Pronghorns in the final quarter and they pulled away down the stretch. Mamadou Gueye paced the Golden Bears with 20 on 9-17 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 10 boards, 5 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Geoff Pippus added 14 on 5-9 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc and 3 boards. Dwan Williams notched 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 assists. Austin Waddoups scored 10 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 2 boards and 4 assists. Brett Roughead scored 9 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 8 boards. Lyndon Annetts scored 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 steals. Brody Clarke added 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 9 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Andre Kelly added 3 on 1-9 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc and 3 boards. Ivan Ikomey scored 1 on 0-2 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards, while Jonah Weyessa, Sam Newman and Cole Knudsen were scoreless. Knudsen nabbed 3 boards. The Golden Bears hit 32-77 (.416) from the floor, 10-27 (.370) from the arc and 6-9 from the line, while garnering 57 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 8 steals, 4 blocks, 16 turnovers and 17 fouls. Zac Overwater paced the Pronghorns with 18 on 4-15 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 10-13 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Elliott Sentence added 14 on 5-14 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 9 boards and 2 steals. San Leandro, California-native Dejon Burdeaux scored 7 on 2-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Josh Sparkes added 6 on 2-5 from the floor and 2-4 from the arc. Scott Mazutinec scored 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 4 boards. Mike Pierzchala added 5 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Colton Gibb scored 3 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 blocks, while William Hickey, Daniel Lybbert, Cameron Fischer, Brett Warren and DeAngelo Ashley were scoreless. Warren nabbed 4 boards and Ashley 3. The Pronghorns hit 17-64 (.266) from the floor, 9-28 (.321) from the arc and 16-21 (.762) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 15 turnovers and 17 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game two, Lethbridge evened the series by outlasting Alberta 112-111 in overtime on a pair of free throws by Zac Overwater with 9.3 seconds to play. The Pronghorns broke to an early 9-2 lead but the Bears countered with a 12-4 run and led 28-26 after one quarter. Lethbridge struggled in the second quarter, hitting only 6 shots, not including a bucket (credited to Brody Clarke) they accidentally put into their own net off a defensive rebound with 3.5 minutes to play in the half, after which Alberta led 52-38. The Pronghorns hit 8 treys in the third quarter to draw within 71-70 after three quarters. Lethbridge tied the game at 65 with two minutes to play on a Mike Pierzchala trey, it was anybody’s game in the final 12 minutes, but the Bears caught a break to end the quarter, a Geoff Pippus three-ball attempt near the top of the arc missing the target but a quick-acting Dwan Williams tapped the rebound right back up before the buzzer sounded to give the Bears a 71-70 lead at the end of three quarters. That led to a gritty fourth quarter, the two squads combining for 14 fouls, which fueled the offence even further as every single free throw of 19 combined attempts was successful. Third-year forward Elliott Sentance put Lethbridge up 101-98 when he drained two attempts with 19.7 seconds left. Mamadou Gueye responded with a fade-away jumper with 13.6 seconds left, earning the hoop and the harm, tying the game at 101 with the final free throw of the quarter. Senior guard William Hickey tried to end the game in regulation, but his buzzer-beater fell wide of the basket, hitting the outside rim and the glass. Alberta jumped out to a quick six-point lead on the ‘Horns in extra time, but Overwater netted four of Lethbridge’s six-straight points to tie the game again, only to have Gueye score four straight for the Bears, combining with another Overwater free throw to have Alberta up by three with 50 seconds left. After a Gueye foul on a Brett Warren layup gave the road team a chance to tie the score with 43.4 seconds left, the Bears twice fouled the Pronghorns in the final seconds. Though Overwater missed both attempts with 10.2 seconds left on the clock, he made no mistake with 9.3 seconds left to give Lethbridge the win. On the final play, American Fork, Utah-native Austin Waddoups attempted a trey at the buzzer, only to have it hit the rim and bounce out. Dejon Burdeaux paced the Pronghorns with 31 on 9-14 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 13-13 from the line, 8 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Zac Overwater added 26 on 8-16 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 8-11 from the line, 12 boards and 3 assists. Elliott Sentence scored 16 on 5-11 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 assists and 2 steals. William Hickey notched 12 on 4-6 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc and 4 boards. Mike Pierzchala scored 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 4 boards. Brett Warren added 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 2 assists. Scott Mazutinec added 6 on 2-6 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Colton Gibb scored 5 on 2-6 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc, while Josh Sparkes and DeAngelo Ashley were scoreless. Sparkes dished 2 assists, while Ashley nabbed 2 boards. The Pronghorns hit 36-73 (.493) from the floor, 15-37 (.405) from the arc and 25-29 (.862) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 5 steals, 3 blocks, 13 turnovers and 20 fouls. Brody Clarke paced the Golden Bears with 23 on 8-16 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 7-8 from the line, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Mamadou Gueye added 21 on 6-14 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 8-9 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Austin Waddoups added 19 on 7-12 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 11 boards, 8 assists and 4 steals. Geoff Pippus added 15 on 6-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 assists. Lyndon Annetts added 11 on 4-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 6 boards and 3 assists. Ivan Okomey added 11 on 3-6 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Andre Kelly added 7 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Dwan Williams scored 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-2 from arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. The Golden Bears hit 38-75 (.507) from the floor, 15-31 (.484) from the arc and 20-22 (.909) from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 18 assists. 6 steals, 3 blocks, 12 turnovers and 24 fouls. …………………………………………………… In game three, Alberta took the series by dusting Lethbridge 107-84. A trio from beyond the arc by Mike Pierzchala gave Lethbridge an early lead but the Golden Bears responded with a 15-2 run, while hitting 6 treys, as they took a 34-22 lead after one quarter. The Bears opened the second quarter with an 8-0 run and added 8 more treys as they took a 69-46 lead into the lockers. Lethbridge missed its first 8 shots of the third quarter before William Hickey finally drained a trey. The Pronghorns remained vaguely within reach by draining their free throws but rallied no closer than 17. The Golden Bears led 88-69 after three quarters and then romped to the easy win. Geoff Pippus paced the Golden Bears with 26 on 8-14 from the floor, 6-11 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 6 boards. Austin Waddoups added 21 on 7-14 from the floor, 5-10 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Ivan Ikomey scored 16 on 6-6 from the floor and 4-4 from the arc. Brody Clarke added 13 on 5-6 from the floor, 3-5 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks. Mamadou Gueye scored 12 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 12 boards and 4 assists. Lyndon Annetts notched 10 on 4-9 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 5 boards. Andre Kelly added 7 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Brett Roughead added 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 4 boards, while Dwan Williams, Jonah Weyessa, Sam Newman and Cole Knudsen were scoreless. Williams nabbed 5 boards and dished 3 assists. The Golden Bears hit 37-71 (.521) from the floor, 19-39 (.487) from the arc and 14-19 (.737) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 8 steals, 6 blocks, 18 turnovers and 20 fouls. Elliott Sentence paced the Pronghorns with 21 on 6-14 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 8 boards. Dejon Burdeaux added 15 on 3-6 from the floor, 9-9 from the line and 4 boards. Mike Pierzchala scored 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc and 3 boards. Zac Overwater notched 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Colton Gibb scored 8 on 4-11 from the floor and 0-4 from the arc. Brett Warren scored 7 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 2 assists and 3 steals. DeAngelo Ashley added 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. William Hickey added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Josh Sparkes scored 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 0-2 from the arc, while Scott Mazutinec was scoreless and nabbed 3 boards. The Pronghorns hit 27-72 (.375) from the floor, 10-30 from the arc and 20-23 (.870) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 8 steals, 16 turnovers and 18 fouls. The Pronghorns (coach Mike Hansen, assistant Alex Fletcher, assistant Rick Pawlak) also included Daniel Lybbert, Cameron Fischer, Lynden Nummi and Mark Rodehutskors.

        In the Final Four semis, the 5th-seeded Manitoba Bisons stunned the top-seeded host Calgary Dinos 74-72. Down two with 13 seconds left, Calgary’s Thomas Cooper drove the baseline but missed inside and although Mambi Diawara got an offensive rebound, his floater was batted by Bison post Keith Omoerah into the backcourt as the clock ran out. “Being up two there, the coach just said not to foul, just run them off the line,” said Bisons guard A.J. Basi. “We just tried not to foul them and our guys dug deep.” Basi added that the Bisons were determined to avenge losses to Calgary in the 2015 and 2016 postseason tournaments. “I kept that fresh in my mind, it stung and it gave a veteran group who has a lot of pride and confidence just that extra motivation. We couldn’t come in here three straight years and have our seasons end here.” The Bisons led 16-12 after one quarter but Calgary rallied to knot the score at 30 at the half despite hitting just 1-13 from the arc. The Dinos made their push in the third quarter as Dallas Karch hammered a dunk and Thomas Cooper added a bucket to make it 50-46. Basi countered with a layup and Omoerah a bucket as Manitoba knotted the score at 53 after three quarters. Cooper notched a layup to give Calgary a 73-71 lead and after another stop, Max Eisele went to the line for Calgary with 36 seconds left. He hit the first, but missed the second and Basi closed it out by hitting 1-2 free throws. Bisons coach Kirby Schepp said “it has been our goal all year to get to Halifax (the first time since 1985 that the Bisons made a CIS draw). This is a special moment for our guys and our program. I could not be more proud them and everyone who has worked hard for this for so long.” A.J. Basi led the Bisons with 19 on 6-9 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 3 boards. Keith Omoerah added 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 14 boards, 5 assists and 3 steals. Ilarion Bonhomme added 13 on 4-8 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Justus Alleyn added 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. James Wagner notched 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 3 boards. Joey Nitychoruk scored 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the line and 3 boards. Malik Irwin added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-3 from the line and 3 boards. Brett Jewell scored 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 2 assists. The Bisons hit 25-53 (.472) from the floor, 11-19 (.579) from the arc and 13-21 (.619) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 8 steals, 2 blocks 25 turnovers and 18 steals. Thomas Cooper paced the Dinos with 17 on 6-24 from the floor, 0-6 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. David Kapinga added 13 on 6-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Jasdeep Gill added 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 4 boards. Dallas Karch notched 8 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2 boards, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Jhony Verrone scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 steals. Mitch Ligertwood scored 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Mambi Diawara added 4 on 1-9 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Max Eisele added 4 on 1-2 from the floor and 2-3 from the line. Connor Foreman added 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 3 boards. The Dinos hit 29-74 (.392) from the floor, 3-23 (.130) from the arc and 11-16 (.688) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 5 assists, 12 steals, 4 blocks, 12 turnovers and 18 fouls.

        In the other semi, the 3rd-seeded Alberta Golden Bears dispatched the 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies 83-70. The Huskies led 16-7 early but Alberta stormed back with a 12-2 run and took a 19-18 lead after one quarter. Huskie post Shane Osayande then ripped a personal 8-0 run, capped by a thunderous dunk, as Saskatoon took a 33-31 lead. But Austin Waddoups hit a trey and then fed Mamadou Gueye with an alley-oop for a dunk as Alberta took a 40-35 lead into the lockers. Alberta started the third in a flurry, with first-team all-star Brody Clarke making back-to-back layups and then Waddoups hitting one of his four threes to take a 50-37 lead. Alberta began double-teaming Osayande, defying the Huskies to beat them from the perimeter, but they struggled from the arc and the Golden Bears led 63-55 after three quarters. But Huskies guard Lawrence Moore drilled a trey and Golden Bears guard Brody Clarke fouled out. The Huskies, though, were unable to capitalize and Alberta ripped off an 8-0 run. The wheels fell off for the Huskies when Osayande fouled out with 3:39 to play. Mamadou Gueye paced the Golden Bears with 30 on 11-16 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 8 boards and 2 steals. Austin Waddoups added 20 on 5-13 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Brody Clarke scored 11 on 5-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Geoff Pippus added 11 on 4-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Ivan Ikomey added 6 on 2-4 from the arc and 2 boards. Lyndon Annetts scored 5 on 1-6 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists, while Dwan William, Andre Kelly, Brett Roughead and Cole Knudsen were scoreless. Williams nabbed 6 boards and dished 3 assists. Roughead nabbed 2 boards and blocked 2 shots. The Golden Bears hit 28-61 (.459) from the floor, 12-30 (.400) from the arc and 15-22 (.682) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 4 steals, 5 blocks, 14 turnovers and 16 fouls. Lawrence Moore paced the Huskies with 19 on 8-18 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 4 steals. Matt Forbes added 11 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 0-1 from the line and 8 boards. Jaylan Morgan scored 11 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Shane Osayande added 10 on 4-13 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Alex Unruh scored 10 on 4-12 from the floor and 2-7 from the arc. Trevor Severinski added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 6 boards. Emmanuel Akintunde added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Mack Burns was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. The Huskies hit 27-77 (.351) from the floor, 9-38 (.237) from the arc and 7-9 (.778) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 6 steals, 2 blocks, 10 turnovers and 21 fouls.

        In the bronze medal match, the top-seeded Calgary Dinos outlasted the 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies 111-106 in overtime. Dino guard Thomas Cooper took command in the fourth quarter and overtime as Calgary rallied from a 15-point deficit to pull out the win. The Huskies broke to an early 26-9 lead before Calgary responded with an 11-0 run to draw within 26-20 after one quarter. The Dinos took a 38-34 lead in the second quarter but the Huskies responded with a 9-0 run capped by a Lawrence Moore trey to take a 51-43 lead into the lockers. The Huskies maintained a slim lead throughout the third quarter, after which they led 76-71. Another Moore trey gave the Huskies an eight-point lead with 3:45 remaining but Jhony Verrone notched back-to-back dunks in the open floor to make it 91-87 with just over two minutes left – and then Cooper put the team on his back. After a pair of free throws by Matt Forbes, Cooper scored the Dinos’ last eight points, including a jump shot with 44 seconds left to tie it at 95. Calgary got a stop and possession with just 1.5 seconds remaining and contested Cooper trey missed, forcing overtime. The Huskies would make the first shot of the extra session, but Cooper continued his surge, scoring five straight, followed by a Verrone trey to make it 103-97. Saskatchewan kept it close, but Calgary held on for the win. Thomas Cooper paced the Dinos with 32 on 11-20 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 7-8 from the line, 7 boards and 5 assists. David Kapinga added 21 on 8-15 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Mambi Diawara added 17 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 10-14 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists. Jhony Verrone added 16 on 6-12 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Connor Foreman scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 blocks. Max Eisele scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Mitch Ligertwood added 4 on 2-3 from the floor, 5 boards and 2 assists. Jasdeep Gill notched 3 on 1-1 from the floor and 2 boards. Jeff Rodehutskors scored 2 on 1-3 from the floor. The Dinos hit 38-74 (.514) from the floor, 13-29 (.448) from the arc and 22-28 (.786) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 7 steals, 3 blocks, 15 turnovers and 27 fouls. Lawrence Moore paced the Huskies with 33 on 11-16 from the floor, 5-8 from the arc, 6-11 from the line, 6 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Matt Forbes added 18 on 6-11 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 6 boards. Shana Osayande added 15 on 6-21 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Jaylan Morgan scored 11 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Trevor Severinski added 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 assists. Addison Dewar scored 7 on 2-2 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Alex Unruh added 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 0-2 from the line. Joseph Barker added 3 on 0-1 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 6 boards. Mack Burns added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Emmanuel Akintunde added 2 on 0-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2-2 from the line, while Reid Thuringer was scoreless. The Huskies hit 35-75 (.467) from the floor, 11-29 (.379) from the arc and 25-35 (.714) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 8 turnovers, 3 blocks, 18 turnovers and 23 fouls. The Huskies (coach Barry Rawlyk, assistant Chad Jacobson, assistant Dan Dewar, strength & conditioning Jordan Harbidge) also included Chan De Ciman, Davis Humbert, Jonathan Halvorson and Devin Wittow.

        In the final, the 3rd-seeded Alberta Golden Bears whipped the 5th-seeded Manitoba Bisons 92-73. “I just thank my teammates,” said Golden Bear Brody Clarke, who notched a double-double. “I’m just so happy right now,” added forward Mamadou Gueye. Alberta led 18-15, 38-32 and 63-56 at the quarters and then took command in the final frame. The Golden Bears scored the first four points of the quarter, pushing the lead to 10 with five and a half minutes remaining at 72-62. Manitoba cut the lead to 8 but then Geoff Pippus got hot, hitting three treys in just over a minute to make it 84-66, as Alberta cruised to victory. Brody Clarke paced the Golden Bears with 29 on 10-14 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 8-12 from the line, 12 boards and 2 assists. Mamadou Gueye added 20 on 7-13 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 8 boards and 3 steals. Geoff Pippus scored 18 on 6-11 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 3 boards. Austin Waddoups added 17 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 9-11 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Dwan Williams scored 4 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Lyndon Annetts added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Brett Roughead scored 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 4 boards, while Cole Knudsen, Andre Kelly, Sam Newman and Ivan Ikomey were scoreless. Kelly nabbed 4 boards. The Golden Bears hit 30-55 (.545) from the floor, 10-21 (.476) from the arc and 22-30 (.733) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 7 steals, 2 blocks, 22 turnovers and 23 fouls. Keith Omoerah paced the Bisons with 17 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 6-7 from the line, 10 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. A.J. Basi added 17 on 8-19 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 steals. Ilarion Bonhomme added 15 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 2 boards and 5 assists. Justus Alleyn added 6 on 2-13 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 steals. Malik Irwin added 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. James Wagner notched 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 2 boards. Brett Jewell added 2 on 1-3 from the floor, Joey Nitychoruk scored 2 on 1-3 from the floor and 3 boards. Dharmjit Dhillon notched 2 on 1-2 from the floor, while Raj Sidhu, Jonathan Alexander and Keiran Zziwa were scoreless. The Bisons hit 27-73 (.370) from the floor, 4-22 (.182) from the arc and 15-22 (.682) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 10 steals, 1 block, 14 turnovers and 28 fouls.

        The bronze medalist Calgary Dinos: David Kapinga; Mambi Diawara; Thomas Cooper; Jake Nielson; Aloysius Callaghan; Jasdeep Gill; Dallas Karch; Maximilian Eisele; Jhony Verrone; Ethan Scott; Lars Schlueter; Sasha Pojuzina; Mitch Ligertwood; Matthew Ellis; Connor Foreman; Jeff Rodehutskors; Sunny Johal; coach Dan Vanhooren; assistant Matt Skinn; assistant Sean Foote; assistant Blaine Miciak; assistant Andy Vorhies; manager Dean McCord; strength & conditioning Rich Hesketh

The silver medalist Manitoba Bisons: Keiran Zziwa; Keith Omoerah; Keenan Benarroch; Amarjit Basi; Ilarion Bonhomme; Justus Alleyn; Malik Irwin; Raj Sidhu; Jonathan Alexander; James Wagner; Joseph Nitychoruk; Dharmjit Dhillon; Cameron O’Hara; Brett Jewell; Osahon Eghosa; Joel Adu Quaye; Zach Giesbrecht; David Mugugu; coach Kirby Schepp; assistant Don Fowler; assistant Grant Richter; assistant Mike Page; assistant Suk Singh; assistant Herve Vincent; strength & conditioning Shawn Preston; director operations Tyler Penner; manager of personnel Hudson Isaac; manager Narv Mulchand; manager Nick Stewner; analytics Luke Penner; therapist Byron Bahniuk; student therapist Darin Soung; student therapist Richard Libera

The champion Alberta Golden Bears: Austin Waddoups; Andre Kelly; Jonah Weyessa; Sam Newman; Ivan Ikomey; D’Wan Williams; Sheldon Pittman; Lyndon Annetts; Geoff Pippus; Brody Clarke; Mamadou Gueye; Cole Knudsen; Joel Lutz; Brett Roughead; coach Barnaby Craddock; assistant Kent Johnson; assistant Nick Maglisceau; assistant James Jones; assistant Jonathan Verhesen; assistant Habib Ademi; manager Zale Smordin