Season opens in Abbotsford for men's basketball this weekend

Heat men's basketball will be the last UBC Okanagan team to start their conference season, they will finally do so this Friday and Saturday versus the UFV Cascades. Tip off on Friday is at 8 p.m. and on Saturday at 7 p.m.

UBC OKANAGAN HEAT (4-2, 0-0 Canada West)
CIS National Ranking: //
CanWest Standings: //
Last week: //
Streak: //
2014-15 CW Regular Season Record: 3-172014-15 CW Playoff Record: /
2014-15 Overall Record: 4-26
Last CW Title/Total CW Titles: NA
Last CIS Title/Total CIS Titles: NA

• SCHEDULE
• ROSTER
• STATS
• STANDINGS

KELOWNA, B.C – The UBC Okanagan men’s basketball team are set to begin their new campaign this weekend as the Heat will be looking to improve  on their previous season. UBCO will be beginning their 2015-16 conference schedule when they travel to Abbotsford to play the University of Fraser Valley.

The two Explorer Division foes will first be playing on Friday, 6^th November, with the game set to begin at 8 p.m. The second game will be played on Saturday, 7^th November with the game set to begin at 7 p.m. Both the games will take place at the Envision Athletic Centre in Abbotsford.

2014-15 Season – The Heat finished their previous season in sixth place in the Explorer’s division, winning three and losing 17 of the 20 games they played. With three of the six team's qualifying for the play-offs the Heat will play with the target of qualification for the playoffs this season.

Pre-Season – The Heat have enjoyed an excellent pre-season, winning four and losing two of the six games they have played. The team will be looking to build upon their solid pre-season and continue their good form into the games now that they count.

Key Stat – Although young and generally undersized, the Heat had a promising rebound rate in 2014-15, at 37.5 rebounds per game at the end of the season, putting them 10^th on the charts.

Head Coach – Pete Guarasci (4th season)

Head to Head : UFV Cascades currently lead the head to head 8-2, winning all the games in the previous season.

Number of new players: 4  // Key Recruits (Name (POS/Hometown/Last Team: Patrick Dujmovic (6-4 W, White Rock-Semiahmoo); Paulius Makulavicius (6-4 G, Vancouver-Kitsilano, Capilano (CCAA)); Randall Mosca (5-11 PG, Calgary-Bishop Grandin, St. Mary’s University College(CCAA)); Spencer Thomas (6-2 G, Pickering (Ont.)-Pine Ridge);

Number of departing players: # 3 // Key Losses: Ryan Linttell (G/2); Noma Obaseki (G/1); Travis Worthing (F/2)

Key performer:  Mitch Goodwin is the lone senior on the team, the outstanding guard is just in his fourth year and with more talent alongside of Goodwin in the backcourt than ever before the multi-talented Goodwin will be freed up from ball handling duties and be given much more freedom offensively, look for the talented guard to score 20 on any given nights. Not one dimensional the 6-foot two fourth year is also a strong rebounder and will grab a defensive rebound and start the break several times a game. 

Coach Quote:  “It’s about building the program with a core group of players and seeing them and the program grow for three, four, five years. Last year we brought in over eight recruits, seven right out of high school. This is a very young group and we are continuing on a journey and looking to see where we can get and grow to. Not just in a few months, but in a few seasons.” - Pete Guarasci  // 4th year as coach of the UBC Okanagan men’s basketball team.

Key storyline:  Starting three players straight out of high school last season, with a lone second and third year player the heat were more than a young CIS team, the were relative babies compared to the rest of the rosters around Canada West. As expected growing pains happened and losses mounted, this year the rosters has not really changed but everybody is a year older and the returnees have an unusual amount of minutes under their belts for their age. A pair of college backcourt players were brought in to supplement the roster and the Heat are hoping the growing pains of last season will turn into consistency and wins for this still very young team.  

FRASER VALLEY CASCADES (5-3, 0-0  Canada West)            
CIS National Ranking: //
CanWest Standings: //
Last week: //
Streak: //
2014-15 CW Regular Season Record: 17-3
2014-15 CW Playoff Record: 3-1
2014-15 Overall Record: 20-4
Last CW Title/Total CW Titles: /
Last CIS Title/Total CIS Titles: /

• SCHEDULE
• ROSTER
• STATS
• STANDINGS

University of Fraser Valley Cascades – After enjoying an immensely successful 2014-15 season, the Cascades will begin their new season when they host UBC Okanagan this weekend. The squad from Abbotsford will be in the lookout to start off on a positive note as they open their conference at home.

2014-15 Season – The previous season saw the Cascades enjoy an incredibly successful run, finishing first in the explorer’s division, winning 17 and losing three of their 20 games. That Fraser Valley team eventually went on to clinch the Canada West bronze medal as they beat the UBC Thunderbirds in the third place match last March.

Pre-Season – The Cascades have had a good pre-season which has seen them win five and lose three of the eight games they have played so far. They also enjoy a four game winning streak and will want to take it forward into the conference.

Key Stat : The Cascades average 81.3 points per game which put them in third place on the charts last season. They also enjoyed an impressive 42.6 rebounds per game which also happened to be the highest in the conference.

Head Coach- Adam Friesen (4TH season)

preseason preview courtesy of Canadawest.org

Number of new players: 7 // Key Recruits (Name (POS/Hometown/Last Team)): Mark Johnson (F/Palm Springs, Calif./College of the Desert), Matt Cooley (F/Coquitlam, B.C./Kwantlen Polytechnic University), Brandon Burke (G/Toronto, Ont./Algonquin College)

Number of departing players: 4 // Key Losses (Name (POS/number of years with team)): Jasper Moedt (F/5), Kadeem Willis (F/2), Dominique Brooks (G/1)

Key performer: Kevon Parchment – The fifth-year guard from Scarborough, Ont., is coming off a 2014-15 campaign which saw him earn Canada West third team all-star honours. Parchment is a tenacious two-way force who paced the Cascades in scoring last season with 14.7 points per game, and his 6.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists both ranked second on the squad.

Coach Quote: “We’re a talented group. We have some guys being put in different roles, but I think we’re a deeper team than last year, and also more versatile,” Cascades head coach Adam Friesen said.

“I think our goals are the same as last year. It’s yet to be determined whether we can be better than last year’s team, but the opportunity is there in front of us to go after it.”

Key storyline: The Cascades are seeking a fifth straight trip to the Canada West Final Four, and to qualify for the CIS national championship for the first time since 2012.

Coming off a 2014-15 campaign which saw UFV finish first in the Pioneer Division at 17-3 and go on to win the Canada West bronze medal, head coach Adam Friesen has a nice mix of seasoned veterans and promising newcomers at his disposal.

Guards Kevon Parchment and Manny Dulay and power forward Nate Brown comprise a solid veteran core for Friesen to build around. Fifth-year shooting guard Parchment was a Canada West third team all-star last year and paced the Cascades in scoring with 14.7 points per game. Point guard Dulay was one of Canada West’s most prolific and efficient three-point shooters last season, hitting 38.9 per cent of his attempts from downtown, while Brown averaged 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds in his first season as a Cascade.