VANCOUVER – For a second straight year, the UBC Thunderbirds (13-7) playoff quest begins with a play-in bout with the Mount Royal Cougars (8-12). Beginning Friday afternoon at 1:00 pm PT,
Kevin Hanson's crew will clash with the Cougars in the 5 vs. 12 play-in game with the winner advancing to face the #4 ranked Golden Bears on Saturday afternoon.
The 'Birds arrive to the Canada West playoffs having gone 9-2 in their last 11 games dating back to January 7
th in Brandon. From January 20
th through February 4
th, UBC rattled off six straight home victories and did so relying heavily on depth, preparation and a solid work ethic.
"We're playing the best basketball that we've played all year," claimed head coach
Kevin Hanson. "During this stretch we've became closer as a team, we've built trust with each other, we've had some special performances and different guys have stepped up at different times to help us win. There's no better time to be peaking."
In their final weekend of Canada West regular season play, the blue and gold dropped both games in a home-and-home set with the (RPI) top ranked Victoria Vikes. On Thursday, February 9
th the 'Birds fell 90-82 to the Vikes at home, before a hard-fought 94-92 overtime loss on the Island two days later. Despite the two losses, the long-time head coach spoke positively about his team's effort in both games and even in the immediate aftermath of Saturday's loss, he saw enough leadership to have him feeling encouraged about all that's to come.
"Two tough losses, but we actually played some pretty good basketball," added Hanson. "As soon as the game was over, we immediately focused on the positives. We were one bounce, one call, one steal, one pass, one rebound away from winning either game. There are no easy games in Canada West, especially when you're on the road but we're confident and we're excited for the challenge. We're going to prepare for all scenarios."
As an older team, the 'Birds feel like they are well equipped to handle the highs and lows that are inevitable with playoff basketball. Fifth-year guard
James Woods, who led UBC during the regular season with 20.3 points-per-game, has played some of his best basketball on the big stage, and
Kevin Hanson is confident that Woods and the other veterans won't be overwhelmed by the pressures of the Canada West playoff stage. "We have a lot of guys that are used to it.
James Woods was MVP of the Quad A tournament in a packed house in high school. Without a doubt he's going to bring it. Age-wise we've got an older team and we expect them to lead by example. This this is why they play, for moments and opportunities like this."
The Mount Royal Cougars are arriving to the play-in having dropped each of their past five games. Defensively they surrendered the second most points in all of Canada West (1759), but on the offensive side, third-year guard Holt Tomie finished second among all Canada West competitors with 23.3 points-per-game. In late November (25
th and 26
th) the 'Birds battled the Cougars twice in Calgary and earned a split. Dating back to February, 2013 the 'Birds are 13-2 lifetime against MRU.
"They're a gritty, feisty team and they're in every game they play," observed Hanson. "Offensively they've got some dynamic scorers and they expose teams. We really have to be at our best defensively to try and eliminate their strengths. We're familiar with them. We saw them last year in the playoffs and we know it's going to be a challenge – Especially playing in a quiet gym on a Friday afternoon in Edmonton where neither team has a home court advantage. Our biggest two keys are going to be defense and communication with each other at both ends of the floor."
The 'Birds and Cougars square off on Friday afternoon at 1:00 pm PT from Edmonton. You can catch the action live on
Canada West TV.
