UBC Okanagan defeats the home team Griffins (87-82). Victorious again, the Heat win second game in a row within the final seconds.
Friday, November 27th, 2015
City Centre Campus, at MacEwan University, Edmonton, AB
FINAL 1 2 3 4 T UBC Okanagan (4-3) 16 21 23 27 87 MacEwan (2-5) 8 17 30 27 82
EDMONTON, AB - The UBC Okanagan men’s basketball claim their their fourth straight win of the Canada West regular season (87-82) against the home MacEwan Griffins at the City Centre Campus.
The Heat's record improves to (4-3), while the Griffins record falls to (2-5) in the Explorer Division.
The Heat opened the scoring early in the first quarter and quickly built a lead by shooting 50 percent from three, led by Aldrich Berrios (Burnaby, BC) with six points - both threes. The Heat held MacEwan University to eight points and led by eight after the first frame.
The Griffins came alive in the second running off eight straight points in an 11-2 run to pull within one point at 16-15, before the Heat reeled off six straight points to open a lead that would grow to 12 at the break. UBC Okanagan shot a tremendous 75 percent from the floor in the second quarter, led by Cameron Servatius, (Chilliwack, BC) with 10 points, eight in the second quarter.
The second half belonged to MacEwan University as they shot over 60 percent to close the gap to five points after the third quarter. The Griffins came out running and had two eight point runs to tie the score three times in the final quarter. The final time was at 80 each, with under two minutes remaining, before UBCO called a time out and went on an (7-2) run to earn their fourth conference win.
The Heat’s impressive scoring ultimately lead to their win, as the team shot (34-65) 52.3 percent from the field compared to the Griffins (27-65) 41.5 percent. The Heat also went (10-17) from the three point line giving them 58.8 percent. Second year, Aldrich Berrios, was a huge contributor to the Heat’s success from the three point line going (6-7), giving him an 85 percent average from beyond the arch. The Griffins were unable to match this scoring going only (6-27), a mere 22.2 percent.
Berrios would finish with a team high of 21 points. Berrios went (7-11) from the field giving him a 64 percent average and he was able to claim five of his team’s rebounds. Cameron Servatius followed with 12 points and went (5-9, 56 percent) from the field. Senior, Mitch Goodwin had 10 points and went (4-8,50 percent) from the field. The Heat had 10 of its 12 player make the score sheet. This distribution of points played an instrumental role in the visiting squad's win. Of the 87 points scored by UBC Okanagan, 34 were from the team’s subs.
The Heat’s ability to capture boards also contributed to their success as they claimed 38 rebounds compared to the Griffins 33.
UBC Okanagan men's coach Pete Guarasci noted: "The guys came out with the right assertive mentality to put in a position to win. I felt we did a good job controlling the game for the most part."
The Griffins were paced by Thadius Galvez (Ogden, UT) with 17 points. The Arts major also recorded six rebounds, two assists, and four steals to be named the MacEwan University “player of the game.” The offense was spread tonight as five different Griffins were in double figures.
Moving into their final game of the regular season before the winter break coach Guarasci mentioned: "We had far too many breakdowns on ball screens and our defensive glass which we'll need to address for tomorrow but we responded to each of MacEwan's runs tonight and fought till the end for a tough road win against a good team."
The Heat will look to continue their winning streak as they extend their weekend series in Edmonton tomorrow night (Nov. 28) against the Griffins. Tip off is at 6 p.m. (PST) at the City Centre Campus, at MacEwan University.
~ Tia Sandler // Heat communications
~With notes from David Kent // Griffins Athletics