VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds took down the Trinity Western Spartans (0-6) 102-97 at War Memorial Gym to finish the year with a perfect 10-0 regular season record heading into the winter break.
Grant Audu led the T-Birds with 24 points – adding six assists and six rebounds,
Kyle Foreman put up 18 points with 12 assists, and
James Woods had 22 points in the home court victory.
The Canada West scoring leader Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath had a season-high 37 points for TWU (one shy of his career-high) and went 14 for 23 from the field with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals in 39 minutes of playing time.
"What I like most is that we get to go into the break on a happy note," said UBC head coach
Kevin Hanson. "That was a long grind, so I'm looking forward to the break. Our bodies are a bit broken down with injuries, so I'm happy to get that win without
Sukhman Sandhu and Tristan Matthews. We'll have a chance now to heal and refocus. Tonight, I'm happy with the guys that stepped up –
Jack Cruz-Dumont had a really good game, Tony Maric played well, and Audu had a great second half."
In addition to Gilbreath's strong outing, Isaiah Reimer made seven threes on the night for the Spartans – finishing with 22 points and five rebounds, Mason Bourcier had 14 points with 13 assists and Andrew Goertzen scored 14 points in the loss.
The 'Birds jumped out to a 12-6 lead in the first on an Audu three before Gilbreath replied with a triple of his own. Woods hit on of his five threes for a 15-9 advantage then drew a foul – making both free throws at 15-11. Woods hit another three and the 'Birds went into the second quarter up 22-15.
"He's such a tough player to guard," said Hanson after Gilbreath dazzled the War Memorial crowd with a seasons-best performance. "He's such an explosive, dynamic player…he's a handful – one of the best players I've coached against. When you're focussing on a guy and he's still able to do that to us, that's an impressive performance."
Cruz-Dumont drove to the rim early in the second quarter for a layup before
Lincoln Rosebush knocked down a three from the corner at 27-20 UBC and drained his second three of the quarter for an eight-point lead at 30-22.
Esaie Maurancy dished to Rosebush for a dunk, but Tre Fillmore responded with a triple and Reimer knocked down a jumper from beyond the arc at 38-28 'Birds. Gilbreath came back with a steal and a breakaway dunk to cut the deficit to single digits, and Reimer dropped a three to make it 43-37. Bourcier hit a runner from midrange to make it a one-possession game at 44-41 and the Spartans headed into halftime down 46-41.
Woods lifted the T-Birds to a double-digits lead in the third with a three at 62-52 UBC and Rosebush scored back-to-back buckets to extend the lead to 18 – forcing a TWU timeout. Gilbreath showed off his range with a logo three as the shot clock expired to make it 72-59, but the home team carried a 74-63 lead into the fourth quarter.
Reimer opened the fourth with a four-point play and knocked down another three at 80-74 before Gilbreath found himself open for a three at 83-77 and again at 88-83. Goertzen hit two free throws to cut the deficit to five with a minute remaining, and Gilbreath made it 99-95 with 12.1 on the clock, but it wasn't enough to close the gap and the Thunderbirds held on for the win.
UBC and TWU will now enjoy a break until January – with the T-Birds returning to action on January 13
th in Kelowna to face the UBC Okanagan Heat and the Spartans back on January 7
th and 8
th on the road against the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack.
