The UBC Thunderbirds defeated the host Alberta Pandas in 75-72 overtime thriller on Sunday to win the Pandas Hoop Fest 2012 tournament.
The game was back and forth throughout, with the teams trading leads in the fourth quarter. A 57-53 UBC lead after three quarters changed hands multiple times, leading the teams to a 65-65 tie with just 36 seconds to go. Each team scored in crunch time, sending the game to overtime tied at 67.
In the overtime frame, UBC was able to pull away and secure the victory. Once again the teams traded baskets, but UBC managed to take a one-point lead late, causing Alberta to foul to regain possession.
Cassandra Knievel (Nanaimo, BC) hit a pair of clutch free throws to extend the lead to three and seal the win. Head coach
Deb Huband was pleased with the team's strong weekend showing.
“We're really a young team. A lot of learning needs to take place,” said Huband. “Every game last weekend helped us learn, we got to work on things in practice this week, and this weekend moved as further along in our development.”
The Thunderbirds were led by
Kris Young (North Vancouver, BC), who hit the game-tying basket with just seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to force overtime. Young scored 24 points and added four steals, earning herself tournament MVP honours.
Leigh Stansfield (Victoria, BC) also chipped in with 12 points and seven rebounds, enough to be named to the tournament All-Star team.
“Kris and Leigh give us an inside-outside combo to work through,” explained Huband. “We had a deep recruiting class the last two years, and now we're looking for those players to grow into roles around them.”
UBC and Alberta had both defeated Brock and Western earlier in the weekend, making their previously scheduled round robin friendly a de facto tournament championship game. The successful weekend puts UBC back on track with a 4-2 preseason record with just one more exhibition game on the schedule before the Canada West season kicks off.
UBC is coming off of a successful 21-4 season (15-3 in conference) which saw them finish as the second best team in the entire country after losing to Windsor in the CIS championship. The Thunderbirds are a younger team this season with five freshman and three sophomores including a pair of freshman point guards. But the team also returns several key players, including Young, the team's 2011-12 leading scorer and 2
nd team Canada West All-Star, and Stansfield, the team's primary post scoring option, who are the only two returning starters.
UBC travels to Bellingham, Washington for an exhibition game against Western Washington on Saturday.
