VANCOUVER - The Thunderbirds are in Regina for the Canada West Final Four this weekend where one guaranteed berth to the CIS tournament is on the line. UBC is up against Saskatchewan in the quarter finals on Friday. If they get to the title game and win, they are through to nationals. Otherwise they need a top-three finish to qualify for a regional tournament where they can still play their way into the CIS tournament.
All games this weekend will be broadcast with live statistics at
Canada West TV.
GAME TIME
Fri., Mar. 2 - UBC vs. Saskatchewan (3 p.m. at
Centre for Kinesiology, Health and Sport, Regina, SK)
UBC Thunderbirds
2011-12 regular season: 15-3 (1st, Pacific Division)
Last Week: swept conference quarterfinals vs Alberta (W 85-51, W 82-71)
The T-Birds looked as good as they have all year against a tough Alberta side in the opening round of playoffs. They cruised to a big game one win with six players scoring in double digits, and then outlasted the Pandas with a strong second half in game two, riding 20+ point performances from
Kristen Hughes and
Kris Young.
Hughes' three-point shot was a timely and dangerous weapon for UBC in game two, and when she's hot she is one of the top long-range threats in the conference.
Rookie guard
Cassandra Knievel also hit a pair of big three-pointers in game two and has been known to catch fire from distance this year as well, giving the 'Birds two dangerous options on the perimeter to stretch out the tough defences they'll be up against the rest of the season.
Young has been clutch for the T-Birds all year, but the 26 points she droppped in game two marked her first 20+ scoring performance since her three-game streak in November. She's remained a consistent scorer and a solid defender at the two-guard slot since then, while also emerging as a great floor general and passer, but it has to give her teammates confidence to see her put up another dominant scoring performance in a playoff game.
Zara Huntley and
Leigh Stansfield were both crucial to the T-Birds in what was a very physical Alberta series, especially in the low post. Huntley perservered through foul trouble as well as a few bumps and bangs to put up 10 points in both games, and Stansfield had one of her better offensive performances with 12 points in game one while playing tough defence at the basket all weekend.
Saskatchewan Huskies
2011-12 regular season: 15-5 (2nd, Prairie Division)
Last Week: swept conference quarterfinals vs Thompson Rivers (W 66-59, W 56-43)
The Huskies got some tough competition from the Thompson Rivers WolfPack in their series, but their talented bigs got the job done as they often have this season.
Katie Miyazaki had 13 rebounds and 10 points in game one, and Dalyce Emmerson scored 11 in game one followed by her own double double in game two, with 13 boards and 12 points.
They rely on big rebounding margins to get extra looks at the basket from in close, and that strategy worked during the regular season as they finished second in Canada West rebounding behind only the undefeated Regina Cougars. But the 'Birds happen to be just behind them in third, so they can't expect things to be so easy on the glass this weekend.
Kabree Howard is next in team scoring with 9.3 points, but her sub-.400 field goal percentage isn't what you want from a scorer you are relying on in the playoffs. She does take almost half her shots from three-point range though where she shoots a respectable .366, so the Huskies are probably counting on getting a few of those to drop as they prepare to face one of the toughest defensive teams in the conference.
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