VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds took care of business in the finale of the UBC Invitational preseason tournament, downing the OUA's Lakehead Thunderwolves 107-75 at War Memorial Gym.
UBC earned 24 points off of 26 turnovers and capitalized on a noticeable size advantage – potting 60 points in the paint.
Conor Morgan led all scorers with 23 points to go with 5 rebounds and 3 steals.
Will Ondrik got to the charity stripe 7 times, hitting all 7 en route to a 17 point performance.
Phil Jalalpoor thrived in the high tempo game, going 6 for 7 from the field and earning 4 steals to add to his 14 points and 4 assists.
T-Bird Head Coach
Kevin Hanson was happy with the weekend series and acknowledged the difficulty dealing with the difference in size.
"They were a tough team to match up with – a lot of times our big guys, and some of our young guys, had problems defending. We played out of position, but it was a good opportunity for them to learn from it. That's why I like to play the Ontario teams, they were physical, fast paced with some talented players."
Morgan was pleased with UBC's exhibition play and is looking forward to building team chemistry with the regular season just a week away.
"We're definitely old and young at the same time so we just try to hang out as much as we can as a team. We play video games every night together."
Hanson agreed with his veteran forward.
"Anytime you go on a road trip it's a really good bonding experience and you get a chance to know them and spend more time together. The guys are in a good headspace – this is a wonderful group of guys to be working with."
The 'Birds head to Kamloops to open the 2016-2017 campaign in a two game tilt with Thompson Rivers on November 4th and 5th at 7 pm.
