LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Senior forward Conor Morgan had a big night for the fourth-ranked UBC Thunderbirds men's basketball team, which earned an 84-71 triumph over the Lethbridge Pronghorns Friday night in southern Alberta.

Morgan scored a game-high 30 points to go along with 11 rebounds, six assists, six blocks and three steals.

His 30 points pushed his career total to 1,375 in Canada West regular season action, allowing the Mt. Douglas Secondary School graduate to crack the top 40 of the league's all-time scoring list. His jump shot with just under two minutes left in the first half gave UBC a 39-27 advantage, and was the 500th of his career in conference play. Morgan's six blocks are also the most in UBC conference game since the statistic was first tracked in 1996.

Patrick Simon came off the bench to pick up 12 points and Phil Jalalpoor and Luka Zaharijevic each picked up 10 points in the win.



The loss is the Pronghorns third in a row, all without point guard and leading scorer Dejon Burdeaux, dropping their season record to 10-5. UBC improves to 11-2 and remains one game behind the Alberta Golden Bears for top spot in Canada West.

For the Pronghorns, Burdeaux's replacement Brett Warren led the way with 17 points. Zac Overwater and Kyle Peterson had 15 and 13 respectively. Freshman Mark Rodehutskors had his best night statistically as a Pronghorn, coming off the bench to score 11 points and grab seven rebounds.

Following a tight opening quarter, that placed the Thunderbirds up 23-20, UBC blew the game open in the second quarter, holding the Pronghorns to a mere seven points, while depositing 20 of their own to hold a commanding 43-27 lead at half.

Turnovers and missed layups plagued the Pronghorns in the opening the half, turning the ball over 16 times in the first 20 minutes, leading to 13 UBC points and finishing with a 30.3 per cent from the floor. UBC hit on 46.2 per cent in the half.

Morgan was an unstoppable force at both ends of the court for the Thunderbirds, leading all scorers with 16 points, five defensive rebounds and three blocks in the first half.

Morgan picked up where he left off, blocking the Pronghorns first attempt of the third quarter and 10 of his team's 19 points in the quarter to give the Thunderbirds a 65-44 lead after three.

Despite scoring 27 points in the final period, the closest the Pronghorns would get was 13 points following two Brett Warren free throws with only seconds to play.

On the night, The Thunderbird finished shooting 45.1 per cent from the field and out-rebounded the Pronghorns 54-40. The Pronghorns finished with a 33.3 shooting percentage but were 5-for-24 from behind the arc. Despite turning the ball over 22 times, the Pronghorns were able to generate 20 steals of their own.

The Pronghorns and T-Birds will hit the hardwood at the 1st Choice Savings Centre tomorrow night to conclude their weekend set.