VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds returned from the Canada West holiday break with a decisive 79-35 decision over the visiting Thompson Rivers Wolfpack on Shoot for the Cure Night at War Memorial Gym on Friday night. UBC's
Mona Berlitz and
Olivia Weekes led the charge for the hosts, each earning double-doubles as the T-Birds improved to a conference best 9-1 on the season.
The 'Birds came out firing in the first quarter, starting with a 7-0 run. The Wolfpack responded quickly by posting a 7-1 run of their own over the next few minutes. That is until Berlitz tapped into her scoring touch and recorded eight straight points for her team as the T-Birds reestablished their lead with force, ballooning it to a 15-point advantage by the end of the frame.
"For me, it was the defence. We saw [Berlitz] attacking the defence, and that led to steals, that led to open layups, that led to more steals, that led to free throws", said UBC Head Coach Isabel Ormond. "She really got it going off that end of the floor, and that fueled her offence for us."
Berlitz picked up in the second where she left off in the first by turning defensive stops into offensive scores. Less than sixty seconds in, Berlitz managed to strip the ballcarrier — one of her five steals on the night — before putting up a clear-path layup. Another minute later, Berlitz had totalled more than half of her team's scoring — tallying 16 points out of her squad's 31. The 'Birds continued to hum on offence and defence until halftime, heading into the break, up 49-22.
Despite the sizeable lead, the Thunderbirds began the second half with the same grit and grind they'd been displaying all night, on both ends of the floor. By the third quarter, the 'Birds had outrebounded the Wolfpack 17-2 on the offensive end. Yet, the Wolfpack weren't going to roll over. The visitors returned the favour by clamping down UBC for the remainder of the quarter, limiting the T-Birds to just 11 points in the frame.
That would be as much momentum as the Wolfpack could muster as UBC continued to play with the same pace and pressure as if they were down by 20-plus themselves. The T-Bird lead ballooned to as much as 44 points in the dying minutes, where it eventually landed, as the Birds earned the 79-35 victory.
"We have a lot of people that are paying attention to defence, so we can really rotate to keep the energy high," said Ormond. "Every game, no matter who we're playing, we're focused on those details we want to execute."
Berlitz ended the night with a game high 22 points and 10 rebounds while being perfect at the line, knocking down 10 out of 10 free-throw attempts. UBC captain,
Olivia Weekes made her presence known in the paint, tallying 13 points and 10 rebounds — seven of which came from the offensive end — while sinking her sole three-point attempt on the night.
Jessica Clarke added 12 points and six rebounds for the 'Birds.
The UBC Thunderbirds will return to their home court on Saturday as they host another one-game matchup, this time against the UNBC Timberwolves (3-5). Tipoff is set for 4:00 p.m. PT at War Memorial Gymnasium.
