EDMONTON – When two of the best programs in the country meet in the Canada West playoffs, it has all the makings of being a classic series and the clash between the No. 5-ranked Alberta Golden Bears and No. 6-ranked UBC Thunderbirds certainly didn't disappoint.

Fourth-year point guard Jadon Cohee hit a floater with 35 seconds left to give UBC the lead and the Thunderbirds held on to beat Alberta 84-78 in Game 3 of their best-of-three Canada West semifinal series, Sunday night at Saville Community Sports Centre.

The 2-1 series win gives UBC a berth to the 2019 U SPORTS Final 8 tournament in Halifax, while Alberta will have to wait to find out their national championship berth chances with an at-large berth possibility.
 
The Thunderbirds will make their second appearance at the Final 8 in four seasons, with their last trip coming in 2016.

Cohee and fellow fourth-year guard Manroop Clair led UBC with 21 points, while forward Grant Shephard scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Senior forward Patrick Simon chipped in with nine points and 10 rebounds.
 

Freshman Adam Paige paced the Golden Bears with 18 points, fourth-year guard Dwan Williams netting 14 points and six rebounds in the loss.

"They were a few notches better on the evening and they earned the win," said Bears head coach Barnaby Craddock. "It was obviously a close game right down to the wire. A couple bounces differently in the final minute and a half and it's a different outcome.

"Trying to beat a solid team like UBC four out of five times in two weeks is a tall task. They're obviously no slouches and credit to them, they earned it down the stretch."



The Bears were battle-tested in this series and they went toe-to-toe with UBC. After the visitors took a 75-71 lead with under two minutes to play, Williams dialed up from long range and nailed one of his three treys in the game to make it a one-point game.

Star Alberta forward Brody Clarke, battling an injury earned early in Game 3, hit two free throws to tie it at 78-78 with 1:33 left.

After Cohee's go-ahead basket and a miss from Golden Bears third-year guard Tyus Jefferson, Alberta still had a chance to tie the game, but Williams was called for a flagrant foul that sealed the win for UBC.

"We talked about it before the game began. We wrote 'Team' on the board and circled it. That was our game plan to play as a team on both sides of the court," said Thunderbirds head coach Kevin Hanson.

"I thought we did a really good job of being a team and, in the end, your best players have to be your best players and I thought they were.

"I love the opportunity to coach against (Craddock). I think he's a great outstanding coach. I love the game within the game of the coaches making adjustments and the players doing it. He did a really outstanding job with his team."
 

Alberta was forced to play large chunks without Clarke, their leading scorer and captain. The Bears rallied and played inspiring basketball without their leader on the floor as Clarke was forced to leave the game twice.

UBC limited Clarke to 10 points and seven rebounds.

"We said from the get-go that one guy can't guard Brody Clarke. He's that tough of a player. He can shoot the ball, he's got post moves and he's so strong and it took a team effort to do it," said Hanson.

"We had to double-team him and often triple-team him every time he got the ball. He's a physical presence and so are our post guys and we had some veteran guys playing hard. It was a really high-calibre series."

UBC moves on to face the defending national champion Calgary Dinos on March 2 in the Canada West championship, while Alberta awaits for their national championship fate.

The Dinos did not lose in conference play this year, and have won all four post-season contests so far in 2019.