VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds (12-2) put on another stellar defensive performance to secure a 69-46 win over the Manitoba Bisons (3-11) on a Saturday afternoon at War Memorial Gym. The T-Birds swept the two-game series against the Bisons and moved into sole possession of second place in Canada West in the process.
For the second consecutive day, UBC's
Mona Berlitz led all scorers. She finished with 20 points, shooting 70 percent from the field, while also gathering nine rebounds.
Stella Lagrange dropped a career-high 15 points off the bench, making four of five shots from beyond the arc, while
Olivia Weekes added 13 points, 12 rebounds, and four steals.
Emily Johnson led the charge for the Bisons, finishing the game with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Emily Mandamin contributed 11 points and tallied four rebounds and two steals.
"I think we just saw more layups go through the hoop," said UBC head coach Isabel Ormond. "We did a better job reversing it and getting to the second side. We pushed really well in transition and found some layups that way, which was great, but a lot of our success comes from our defensive intensity. We took care of some pieces on the defensive end, and that led to our offense."
That defensive intensity translated to 21 Bisons turnovers and limited them to shooting just 25 percent from the field.
A slow start to the game didn't rattle the Thunderbirds. After going scoreless in the first two minutes, the 'Birds scored on three consecutive possessions, but the pace then slowed down until the end of the quarter.
Late in the first, Mandamin gave the Bisons their first field goal of the game, but the T-Birds quickly struck back. UBC forced five consecutive turnovers that they turned into an and-one for Berlitz and a triple from Lagrange, making it 21-9 for the 'Birds at the end of the first quarter.
The Bisons came out hot to start the second. Mandamin, who is shooting a stellar 42.9 percent from three on the season, knocked down a triple, followed by an and-one layup by Emily Johnson.
However, UBC second year
Stella Lagrange then proved that she was hottest shooter in War Memorial.
She knocked down another three before
Olivia Weekes scored a bucket in transition and then found
Sofia Bergman inside on a high-low pass to make it 31-17 with three minutes left in the first half. Lagrange pushed the T-Birds' score to 34 with another three-pointer, her fourth in the first two frames. The half ended with a 15-point lead favoring the Thunderbirds, 34-19.
The 'Birds went off on an early 9-0 run in the second half, ignited a fire the Bisons could never quite put out. Berlitz beat Emerson Martin to the rim to get a layup, followed by another opportunity underneath the rim and a triple from the top of the key, as Weekes used her size advantage to get another bucket down low early in the third.
The teams traded buckets the rest of the way, with Manitoba more or less keeping pace with UBC, but never seriously threatening to close the gap, resulting in a comfortable 69-46 T-Birds victory. The win was the eight in a row for the blue gold as they also improved their home record to a perfect 7-0
Next week, the Thunderbirds will head to Prince George to pay a visit to UNBC Timberwolves. The Bisons will look to bounce back when they host the Victoria Vikes.
