VANCOUVER - The no. 3 ranked UBC Thunderbirds (4-2) return to War Memorial Gym this weekend to begin a three-week homestand with a pair of games against the Winnipeg Wesmen.
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A look at the Thunderbirds
The T-Birds' grueling start to the season continued last week in Alberta, where they earned a split against a tough Golden Bears team. Two of UBC's first three opponents have been CIS top ten-ranked teams, and the third team is the Bears, who currently have the best record of all three. Their reward for running that gauntlet is a three-week homestand against three of the bottom four teams in the standings, but the parity in Canada West is as strong as ever, with 10 of 13 conference squads already suffering at least two losses, so every game will be a battle this season.
The 'Birds could have easily walked away from Alberta with a sweep or even with two losses, as both games were up for grabs late in the fourth quarter. UBC trailed for most of game one until a big push in the fourth wiped out a 12-point deficit and got them the win, and in game two they were up by five points with just over a minute left before eventually losing 88-86 on a last-second tip-in by the Bears. The incredible depth that has characterized the team for the past few seasons was on full display in Edmonton, as four players scored at least 13 points in game one, and six players chipped in at least nine in game two. UBC's balanced offence currently ranks second in the league with an average of 89.2 points.
Reigning CIS Player of the Year
Josh Whyte is seventh in league scoring with 18.8 points-per-game.
Nathan Yu,
Brent Malish and
Doug Plumb are all averaging double digits in scoring as well. The rebounding effort has been equally balanced, with
Kamar Burke, Malish and Whyte leading the way. Burke averages 6.8 rebounds, while Malish checks in at 6.0 and Whyte at 5.7.
A look at the Wesmen
The Wesmen will be on the road for the first time this week after beginning the season 1-3 at home. They followed up a loss to Manitoba on opening night with a split against Calgary last week. Benny Iko led the team to victory in game one with 18 points and 10 rebounds, but foul trouble limited his action in game two when he managed just four points and six boards. Team scoring leader Nick Lother poured in 27 points in game two and is currently third in the league averaging 22 per game, but it wasn't enough to make up for the lack of low post presence due to Iko's struggles. Their field goal percentage dropped to .371 from .456 in game one against the Dinos as they were forced to find offence further away from the basket, and Calgary had its way in the paint, earning 37 shots from the free-throw line.
Iko is the team's leading rebounder, averaging 6.7 per game, but the Wesmen clean the glass as a unit, much like UBC. Iko, Nolin Gooding and Brayden Duff all average at least six rebounds, while Kelvin Smith is not far behind at five per game. Scoring is a different story though, as Lother and Gooding account for close to half of the Winnipeg offence on average. Gooding has been deadly efficient in averaging 18 points-per-game, as he is third in Canada West with a .625 field goal percentage.
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