T-Birds hang on to remain undefeated in preseason
VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds survived a shaky second half against the UBC-Okanagan Heat on Friday to remain undefeated in preseason action with a 75-67 win at War Memorial Gym.
The T-Birds took a 50-26 lead into halftime, and everything they did seemed to have been working up to that point. The 'Birds shot over 64 per cent from the field in the first half and had a significant turnover advantage, but the Heat came storming out of the locker room to outscore UBC 21-12 in the third quarter.
The Heat cut down on turnovers in the second half and forced the T-Birds to cough the ball up several times in the late going, including nine fourth quarter turnovers that allowed the visitors to pull to within four points.
Okanagan's Madison Kaneda scored 11 of her 26 points in the fourth to make things interesting, but the T-Birds got a few key baskets down the stretch to hang on for the win.
"Our discipline wasn't there. We had a bad week of practice, so it's no surprise that we played like we did today," said UBC head coach
Deb Huband, noting that the absence of starting point guard
Kristen Hughes from the lineup affected her team's performance.
Kristjana Young scored 14 for the T-Birds on efficient shooting, including six in the fourth quarter that helped her side put the game away. With the Heat down just four and the shot clock expiring on a T-Bird possession late in the fourth, Young knocked down a nice turnaround jumper at the top of the key to beat the buzzer, and the 'Birds led by at least six the rest of the game.
"She really stepped up for us and wanted to take the game into her own hands," Huband said of Young.
Zara Huntley and
Leigh Stansfield shared the team scoring lead with 17 points. Huntley also grabbed nine rebounds and blocked three shots.
Alex Vieweg had 10 points, and
Zana Williams, who started at the point in place of Hughes, recorded four assists and three steals.
The T-Birds are now 5-0 in preseason action. They wrap up their home preseason schedule on Saturday, when they host the Lakehead Thunderwolves at 7 p.m.
UBC then plays one more exhibition game at Western Washington next week before starting conference play at War Memorial Gym on November 11 against Brandon.
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