Abbotsford, BC – Men‘s Basketball: Cascades fend off Griffins’ fourth-quarter rally, win 80-77
The University of the Fraser Valley men’s basketball team was firmly in control for most of Friday evening’s game in Edmonton, but the host MacEwan Griffins made them sweat in the fourth quarter.
The Cascades held a 14-point lead late in the third quarter, thanks in large part to some red-hot three-point shooting – for the game, they went 12-of-24 from downtown.
But the Griffins staged a frantic fourth-quarter rally, trimming the deficit to three points, and the Cascades had to weather a pair of potential game-tying treys in the dying seconds by MacEwan’s leading scorer Thadius Galvez. But both shots clanged harmlessly off the rim, and UFV secured an 80-77 victory.
The Cascades (9-4) tightened their grip on second place in the Explorer Division, while the Griffins fell to 5-8. The two teams wrap up their weekend series on Saturday in Edmonton (7:30 p.m. Mountain time, webcast at ufv.canadawest.tv).
“We played some of our best basketball for the first three quarters,” UFV head coach Adam Friesen said afterward. “We’re not yet a great road team, and closing out games hasn’t been easy for us this year. MacEwan made a great push like we knew they would, and we were fortunate to hang on.”
The Cascades led 27-21 at the end of the first quarter, and pushed the advantage to 15 on the heels of an 8-0 run in the second, highlighted by triples from Vijay Dhillon and Marcus Morgan.
The Griffins battled back to get to within six points in the third quarter, but UFV responded with a 14-5 run and led 66-52 in the final minute of the frame.
MacEwan kept pushing, though, and Galvez’s trey with 41 seconds left in regulation made it 80-77. After the Cascades came up empty on their next possession, Galvez had two shots at forcing overtime – his initial miss was rebounded by teammate Ryan May – but both came up empty.
Kevon Parchment scored a game-high 20 points and added 12 rebounds for his fifth consecutive double-double. Manny Dulay notched 18 points, and Navjot Bains (12 points, nine boards) and Nate Brown (11 points) also scored in double figures.
Chris Mooney paced MacEwan with 17 points, while Denzel James (14 points) and Ryan Coleman (13 points) were productive off the bench. Galvez finished with 11 points.
“I thought our ball movement on offence was the best I’ve seen in a while,” Friesen said, reflecting on his team’s strong play through three quarters. “We controlled the pace of the game, and we got high-percentage shots.
“In the fourth quarter, it was them playing inspired basketball, and us going away from what we had been doing. We became hesitant in what we did – slowed things down. We’ve got to learn to be aggressive until the end.”
Women’s Basketball: Griffins weather Sartori’s 27-point outburst to top Cascades
The MacEwan Griffins overcame a season-high 27 points from Kayli Sartori, pulling away in the fourth quarter to defeat the University of the Fraser Valley women’s basketball team 76-61 on Friday evening in Edmonton.
For the first three quarters, the Cascades and Griffins battled back and forth, with neither team able to fully seize the momentum. But after mustering 44 points through three quarters, Explorer Division-leading MacEwan shook loose for 32 points in the final frame en route to victory.
The Cascades (7-6) and Griffins (10-3) renew hostilities on Saturday in Edmonton (5 p.m. Mountain time, webcast at ufv.canadawest.tv).
“I don’t necessarily think the final score was indicative of the type of game it was – it was a good game, for the most part,” UFV head coach Al Tuchscherer said, alluding to the fact his team was up 54-53 with just under seven minutes remaining in regulation.
“They got a six- to eight-point lead with five minutes to, and we had to open things up, and that’s not really our style. They’re a veteran team, and they know how to close out games. We’re still trying to figure that out, unfortunately.”
Sartori, the leading scorer in Canada West at 19.6 points per game, was on fire from the opening tip, scoring eight points in the first quarter to spark her team to a 12-9 lead at the end of the frame. The Griffins gained some traction in the second quarter and took a 27-24 advantage into halftime, and the game remained close through three quarters with MacEwan leading 44-43.
The Cascades began the fourth trading buckets with the Griffins – Sartori scored eight quick points, and Katie Brink swished a three-pointer from the top of the key as the Cascades went ahead 54-53.
But the hosts reeled off a 13-2 run at that point, and the Cascades were unable to answer. It didn’t help matters that Sartori was assessed her fifth and disqualifying foul with 2:40 left.
Brink notched 11 points for the Cascades on 5-of-10 shooting from the field, and Shayna Cameron chipped in with 10 points.
Four of the Griffins’ five starters scored in double figures, led by Megan Wood (17 points) and Kelly O’Hallahan (15).
