VANCOUVER – A valiant fourth-quarter comeback by the UBC Thunderbirds fell short as the host Manitoba Bisons squeaked out a 66-64 victory at the Investors Group Athletic Centre on Friday night.
 
Both teams are 8-3 in Canada West men's basketball league play, a half game out of first place in the Pioneer Division.
 
UBC forward Conor Morgan (Victoria, B.C.) scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead all players in both categories on Friday. Frontcourt mate David Wagner (Kamloops, B.C.) added 14. Guard A. J. Holloway (Tacoma, Wash.) recorded 12 points, eight rebounds and three steals off the bench. Guard Jordan Jensen-Whyte (Calgary) was the fourth T-Bird in double digits; he scored 11 points.
 
The T-Birds trailed by 15 points – 62-47 – midway through the fourth quarter.
 
Wagner began the comeback bid by scoring a layup with 5:20 remaining in regulation. It was the first two points of a huge 15-2 run that spanned 4:18.
 
Jensen-Whyte scored a layup before Morgan came through with a one-handed baseline slam dunk. After a single made free throw by Manitoba, it was déjà vu, another Jensen-Whyte layup, followed by another Morgan jam, this time after getting a lob pass in the high post. UBC trailed just 63-57 with 2:23 to go.
 
Holloway delivered a dunk of his own with about two minutes to go.
 
The T-Birds fouled Wyatt Anders, who missed the front end of his two free throws. On the next possession Morgan sank a jumper and converted the ensuing and-one foul shot to cut Manitoba's lead to 64-62.
 
However, the Bisons scored twice from the foul line to make it 66-62. Holloway got the 'Birds back within two point after making a late layup but UBC couldn't take advantage of four missed Bisons free throws late and ran out of time.
 
The Thunderbirds led by as many as six points in the first quarter but Justus Alleyn's jumper late gave the Bisons a 23-19 lead that they took into the break.
 
Alleyn pushed Manitoba ahead by nine points – 33-24 – midway through the second quarter. The hosts led 38-31 at the half.
 
The two teams played to a 17-16 third quarter, allowing the Bisons to enter the final period up 55-47.
 
UBC shot 41.5 per cent from the field (27-65) and 13.3 per cent from behind the three-point line (2-15). Manitoba had a 36.7 per cent conversion rate from the field and was successful on 37.5 per cent of its attempts from downtown (6-16).
 
The two teams will play each other again on Saturday at 4 p.m. PT at the Investors Group Athletic Centre.

The Bell NBA All-Star Challenge presented by AIR MILES is making its way across Canada ahead of the 2016 NBA All-Star Game in Toronto, and on Saturday, January 23, the competition will make its way to UBC's Point Grey campus.

Saturday's festivities, culminating with the Thunderbirds men's and women's double-header against the Regina Cougars, will be headlined by an NBA skills competition, and appearances from former Vancouver Grizzlies icon Shareef Abdur-Rahim. The NBA will be rolling out the full big-league experience at War Memorial Gym during the two Thunderbird basketball games, as sponsors Bell, Samsung, BMO, and AIR MILES will be doling out prizes, giveaways amidst a host of interactive exhibits and performances.