VANCOUVER - UBC settled for a split on its Prairie road trip last weekend, but still gained ground in the standings, taking over sole possession of first in the Pacific Division after Victoria was swept against the same two opponents. Now the No. 4 Thunderbirds come home looking to keep that division lead into the semester break, as they prepare to host Calgary and Lethbridge to wrap up the first-half schedule.
Both games will be streamed with live statistics at
CanadaWest.TV. Friday's game will also be broadcast live on
CiTR 101.9 FM.
GAME TIMES
Friday, Nov. 30 - Calgary at No. 4 UBC (8 p.m. at War Memorial Gym)
Saturday, Dec. 1 - Lethbridge at No. 4 UBC (7 p.m. at War Memorial Gym)
No. 4 UBC Thunderbirds (6-2)
Last Week: W 84-81 at No. 9 Saskatchewan, L68-66 at No. 7 Alberta
The T-Birds should be happy about their split last weekend, all things considered. They played two extremely tough opponents on the road, and moved up in the standings after Victoria went down hard to the very same teams. But there will no doubt be some lingering frustration about not completing the sweep, given their roller coaster performance against Alberta that resulted in a two-point loss.
Despite scoring a season-low seven points in the second quarter, UBC actually had a decent lead going into the fourth against Alberta. That's because they came back from that seven-spot and posted 29 points in the third. But they came crashing down in the fourth again, scoring just nine, and unable to come back from the game-winning basket by Alberta with almost two minutes still on the clock.
Alberta is the conference's top-ranked defensive team by a long shot, but the 'Birds still have to be a little concerned about where their offence is going to come from in those big moments. They have plenty of players capable of scoring, with
Doug Plumb,
O'Brian Wallace,
Tommy Nixon,
Isaiah Solomon and
Geoff Pippus all chipping in at least nine per game and all capable of single-handed scoring runs, but with so much roster turnover from last season they are still ironing out some wrinkles. The offence ranks in the bottom half of the league in field goal percentage and turnovers.
Defensively the 'Birds have been impressive though, ranking third in opponent field goal percentage and defensive rebounding, so they haven't had to come from behind too often. But as the season goes along and the competition gets tougher, those situations are going to arise, and the offence will have to respond.
Calgary Dinos (4-4)
Last Week: W 74-53 vs Mount Royal, W 72-63 vs UNBC
The Dinos desperately needed two wins last week to get their season back on track after a rocky start, and they got them in convincing fashion, led by senior forward Thijin Moses. He had 26 points and 11 rebounds against Mount Royal and nine points with 15 rebounds against UNBC.
Moses is leads Canada West with two blocks per game, is second in conference rebounding with nine boards per game, and his 17 points per game make him not just a double-double machine, but a legitimate offensive threat that the 'Birds will have to be wary of. The big man is very proficient from range, hitting .47 per cent of his threes this season.
Jared Ogungbemi-Jackson leads the Dinos with 18.8 points, and like Moses he is a great all-around contributor, adding 6.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists and two steals. Ogungbemi-Jackson and Moses combine for about 40 per cent of their team's shot attempts, so slowing them down will be top priority for UBC.
Lethbridge Pronghorns (5-3)
Last Week: W 99-90 vs UNBC, W 93-73 vs Mount Royal
The Pronghorns are one of four teams tied for second in the Prairie Division at 5-3 after sweeping through last weekend with an extremely balanced effort from the starting lineup. All Lethbridge starters scored in double digits in game one and four of the five did it again in game two. In fact just 31 of their 192 points last week came from the bench.
Relying almost exclusively on their starters has worked out for the Horns so far, at least offensively, where they rank second in conference scoring. And to be fair, sixth man Niko Kovac is averaging just under nine points and six rebounds in 22 minutes per game, so it's not like they get nothing from their bench.
Senior post Derek Waldner leads the team with 16.9 points per game and the conference with 9.1 rebounds per game. He is also coming off his biggest week yet, turning in two double-doubles, including a 26-point 17-rebound performance against UNBC, earning him Canada West Athlete of the Week honours.
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