VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbird men's and women's basketball teams don't have to travel very far for their first road trip of the season, as they will be in Langley this weekend to take on the Trinity Western Spartans. All four games will be at the Langley Events Centre. The women play first with tip-offs scheduled for 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. on Friday and then 5:00 and 7:00 p.m. on Saturday.
It's a big weekend for both squads. The men's series will give an early edge to two teams with conference title aspirations while the UBC women are looking for their first win of the season.
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UBC (1-1) split their opening weekend with Saskatchewan in a re-match of the 2010 CIS national final. After opening with a 91-60 win, the 'Birds squandered an impressive second-half comeback when they allowed the Huskies to steal a 97-96 late in game two.
UBC's trademark depth was on display during their season openers as they had seven players average 8.5 points or more per game against the Huskies.
Josh Whyte, the 2009-10 CIS player of the year, led the way with 20.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in only 27.5 minutes per game. Fifth-year
Brent Malish was also impressive, earning a pair of starts which he turned into 13.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
T-Bird head coach
Kevin Hanson will not be making the trip to Langley in order to be with his ailing father. Full-time assistant Randy Nohr will take the reins in his absence.
Trinity Western (2-0) swept Lethbridge by healthy margins to kick-off their campaign, winning 116-79 and 98-82 on the road. Tyrell Mara leads the team with 22.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game with 2008-09 CIS player of the year, Jacob Doersksen, not far behind at 21.5 points and 7.5 boards. Transfer point guard Tristan Smith had a big impact in his first weekend for TWU, averaging 21.0 points and 8.0 assists per contest.
WOMEN
The T-Birds (0-2) lost a pair of games to Saskatchewan, the reigning CIS bronze medalists, last weekend. As a team, the 'Birds struggled to find consistency on offence and shot only 34.5% from the floor and 12.5% from three-point land.
Zara Huntley was the only T-Bird to average in double figures with 13.0 points per game. Standouts
Alex Vieweg and
Lia St. Pierre will be expected to pick up more of the scoring load as the season progresses - they each averaged over 13 points per game in 2009-10. Fifth-year guard
Devan Lisson will continue to direct the UBC offence and did a solid job on opening weekend with seven assists.
Trinity Western (1-1) split their series with Lethbridge last weekend, losing 65-44 before bouncing back with a 73-62 win. Fourth-year Tiffany Olsen averaged 14.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game to go along with four blocks. No other Spartan is averaging double figures so far on the season.
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