VANCOUVER - After a pair of big wins over Prairie Division foes Regina and Brandon, the T-Birds set their sights back on the Pac-D as the Fraser Valley Cascades come to town. The teams will meet on Friday, January 15 and Saturday, January 16 at War Memorial Gym, with tip-offs scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
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A look at the Thunderbirds
The T-Birds rang in the new year in style last weekend with a couple of huge wins to improve to 7-3. First they took down the Prairie Division-leading Regina Cougars 73-63, and then put up their biggest margin of victory all season with a 103-62 thumping of the Brandon Bobcats. Those results certainly didn't hurt UBC's scoring margin for the year, which is now second-best in Canada West at +11.4. The T-Bird defence has been strong all season and currently ranks third in the conference, but the offence has jumped all the way up to fifth in Canada West after being ranked 10th heading into last week's action.
Zara Huntley has been doing damage at both ends of the court for her side, as she leads the team with 15.8 points and 7.4 rebounds-per-game. She is one of just three players who ranks top-ten in Canada West in both scoring and rebounding, and she is also tied for second in the conference with 1.7 blocks-per-game. She poured in a season-high 27 points last week against Brandon.
Alex Vieweg has been a solid two-way player as well, as she is making contributions at both ends with 11.9 points and 6.6 rebounds-per-game. She also leads the team in defensive rebounding.
Lia St. Pierre has been doing a fine job setting the offence in just her second year of CIS service, as she leads the conference with a 1.6 assist/turnover ratio. She leads her team with just under four assists-per-game and is second in scoring with 12 points-per-game.
A look at the Cascades
It's been a tough year for the Cascades, who sit at the bottom of the Pacific Division standings with a 1-8 record. Of their eight losses, all but one has been by at least 17 points. Having a conference-worst .350 team shooting percentage is a large part of the problem, as is having the third-worst turnover margin in Canada West.
Jane Meadwell leads the conference with 19.9 points-per-game, but the Cascades' offence lacks the depth that the contending Canada West teams possess. Alyssa Gaukel is the only other player averaging double digits in scoring, and she and Meadwell are the only two starters for the Cascades who are shooting at least .400 from the field.
The Cascades have seven rookies on their roster and just two players with more than two years of experience, so they could have the foundations of a strong team for the future.
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