VANCOUVER – The 9-0 UBC Thunderbirds are the top-ranked team in the nation, but a surprisingly strong Fraser Valley squad will attempt to put the first dent in that perfect record this weekend. The T-Birds and Cascades square off Friday, January 15 and Saturday, January 16, with tip-off slated for 8 p.m. both nights.

A look at the Thunderbirds

The T-Birds showed no signs of rust as they returned to action last weekend after the holiday break, handling both the Regina Cougars and Brandon Bobcats with ease. The 'Birds outscored their opponents by a combined 189-116 margin in their first two games of 2010, making good use of their outstanding depth along the way. Every player on the T-Bird roster registered at least 24 minutes of playing time over the weekend, and five players scored in double digits against Regina. The 'Birds followed up that impressive showing by having nine different players score at least seven points against Brandon. Second-year guard Denny Dumas' 12 points were a game-high against the Bobcats.

With so many players capable of doing serious damage on the scoreboard, opposing teams have had little success containing UBC's offence this season, which currently ranks first in Canada West with 86.1 points-per-game. Josh Whyte's 17.8 points-per-game leads the team, while Blaine LaBranche and Nathan Yu are both making significant offensive contributions as well, averaging 14.2 and 11.9 points respectively.

But with so much to talk about at the offensive end of the court it can be easy to overlook the fact that UBC also boasts the conference's best defence, allowing an average of 65.4 points-per-game. The T-Birds top the list in rebounding and turnover margins as well.

Kamar Burke leads the effort on the glass with 7.4 rebounds-per-game, and also showed signs of picking up the pace offensively last weekend. The third-year big man is averaging just 7.4 points-per-game on the year, but he chipped in 18 over the weekend, including a couple of highlight-reel dunks against Brandon. He also added 11 assists.

A look at the Cascades

The Cascades have been one of the surprises of Canada West this season, as they are 6-4 on the year and are just a game back of the second-place Simon Fraser Clan, despite finishing with a 7-16 record last year. Their current record may be a bit misleading however, as none of the teams they have beaten this season are above .500. They will have to change that trend if they want to be successful against the Pacific Division-leading T-Birds this weekend.

Zeon Gray leads the team with 15.8 points-per-game, and is coming off a big 30-point, seven-rebound performance last week to lead his side to a 97-94 win over Manitoba. But like the T-Birds, the Cascades have been getting their scoring from multiple sources this year. Through their first 10 games, five different players have led the team in scoring at least once. Sam Freeman is one of those players, and the second-year guard is second on the team with 14.5 points-per-game. He has also looked strong from three-point range, shooting .481 percent from beyond the arc. Jasper Moedt is the team's rebounding leader, averaging 6.2 boards per-game.