The Matchup
The UBC Thunderbirds (4-4) hit the road once again, set for a weekend doubleheader against the Winnipeg Wesmen (4-4) this Friday and Saturday November 24 and 25.
It will be the first meeting of the season between the two teams who haven't faced each other in nearly two years, dating back to February of 2016 when the 'Birds won back-to-back games against the Wesmen at War Memorial Gym in Vancouver.
The action gets going with tip off at 4 p.m. PT on Friday night at the Duckworth Centre in Winnipeg. The rematch goes Saturday at 3 p.m. PT.
Last Action
The Thunderbirds split last weekend's meetings with the Trinity Western Spartans on home court at the War Memorial Gym, enjoying a 69-58 victory on Friday night but dropping a thrilling 75-71 overtime decision on Saturday.
The Wesmen won both of their road games against the Fraser Valley Cascades in Abbotsford, B.C.
By the Numbers
45.0 – The average number of rebounds per game for the T-Birds, which leads Canada West in the category.
32.4 – The average number of defensive rebounds per game for the 'Birds, which is tops in the conference.
Players to watch
Maddison Penn (#15, G) – The third-year guard was dominant last weekend combining for 56 points and 25 rebounds in a Friday night win and a Saturday night loss against the Spartans. Penn leads the 'Birds in scoring with 19.6 points per game and is also tops in rebounds, averaging 10.5 per game.
Jessica Hanson (#11, G) – The third-year guard leads the T-Birds with a 35.9 shooting percentage from three-point range thanks to making 14 of her 39 attempts from beyond the arc this season, which ranks her eighth overall in the conference.
Coach's Take
UBC head coach
Deb Huband is looking for her squad to build upon the positives from last Friday's win rather than some of the bad habits that were a part of Saturday's overtime loss to the Spartans
"We had a great start on Friday night, we had a lot of energy and set the tone with our focus and we needed to come out strong on Friday after faltering the weekend prior on the road," said Huband. "One of our issues in general has been our consistency and establishing ourselves instead of reacting to our opponent. We saw that from the first half to the second half on Friday and then we also saw that our start on Saturday was flat and put us behind the eight ball. We had enough to force overtime but that takes a lot of energy when you have to come back from a deficit so it's still building on trying to get little more consistency and understanding how to play to our strengths from the start of the game."
Huband was also asked to size up the competition, who UBC hasn't faced since earning back-to-back wins against the Wesmen 20 months ago.
"They're a unique team, they have their own style of play which is uncommon so not having seen them very often makes it a little bit harder for my young group to have a perspective on what they might see," Huband continued. "Winnipeg is very tough at home and they have the Canada West player of the year in (Antoinette) Miller who does a lot for that team with scoring, rebounding and making her teammates better. They're a young team as well; they start two rookies so I think if we're disciplined and we look to attack as well as emphasize rebounding to limit them to one shot we should get rewarded."
