Heat ride into Prince George on three game winning streak

Looking to build on their record number of wins in Canada West the UBC Okanagan women's basketball team will play two versus UNBC this weekend. Tip-off on Friday night at 6 p.m. and the rematch is set to tip-off  on Saturday at 5 p.m. (PST).

UBC OKANAGAN HEAT (13-8, 8-3 Canada West)
CIS National Ranking: //
CanWest Standings: Tied 2nd - Explorer
Last week: 2-0 // (Fri W, 44-40) (Sat, W 68-53) at MRU
Streak: Win - 3
2014-15 CW Regular Season Record: 6-14
2014-15 CW Playoff Record: /
2014-15 Overall Record: 7-18
Last CW Title/Total CW Titles: NA
Last CIS Title/Total CIS Titles: NA

• SCHEDULE
• ROSTER
• STATS
• STANDINGS

This week: The Heat will continue their season on the road as they will travel to Prince George to play the UNBC Timberwolves this weekend. The first game of the weekend series will take place on Friday (Jan. 22) with tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m. The second game will follow on Saturday January 23rd with a start time of 5 p.m.

Current Form:  The UBC Okanagan women’s basketball team finished their second weekend of their 2016 campaign with a sweep of Mount Royal giving them a (8-3) record which has now put them tied for second with rivals Thompson Rivers in the Explorers division.

Team record in wins: With the two wins from Mount Royal, the Heat are now improving on their best-ever record since entering the CIS in the fall of 2011. The eight wins surpasses the previous high win total of six done twice in Canada West (2014/15 and 2012/13).

Key Players: Third year captain and point guard, Claire Elliott has been a huge contributor to the Heat’s winning streak, and overall success this season, she finished the weekend series against Mount Royal with a combined 26 points and led the team in scoring in both nights. With the team struggling to score it has been Elliott taking care of business scoring nearly 25-percent of the teams points in Calgary. Senior Kayla McFadden is also putting up big numbers for the Heat and finished the weekend with a combined 21 points and third year Shenelle Tamminen also finished the weekend with a combined 12 points in limited minutes.

Thievery: Claire Elliot has also been a leader on the defensive side of the ball, so far she has captured 30 steals during the 2015/2016 season putting her in third in the conference. Her backcourt mate, fourth year, Emily Kanester is eighth in the conference with 27 steals. Overall the Heat are averaging 11.7 thefts per game, tops in Canada West. 

Head to Head: The Heat lead (7-3) in the head to head between the two sides. UBC Okanagan were able to claim two wins off of the Timberwolves in Kelowna in November to start their regular home season. The Heat will be looking to keep their three game winning streak alive as they travel to Prince George, they must remain focused because two of their three losses historically against UNBC have been in the Charles Jago Sporting Centre gym in Prince George.

UNBC TIMBERWOLVES (/-/, 2-10  Canada West)            
CIS National Ranking: //
CanWest Standings: 5th - Explorer
Last week: 1-1 // (Fri W, 63-47) (Sat, L 83-56) at UFV
Streak: Lost 1
2014-15 CW Regular Season Record: 2-18
2014-15 CW Playoff Record: Did not qualify
2014-15 Overall Record: 2-18
Last CW Title/Total CW Titles: none
Last CIS Title/Total CIS Titles: none

• SCHEDULE
• ROSTER
• STATS
• STANDINGS

Current Form: The Timberwolves go into this game with a 2-10 record and stand in fifth place in the Explorer division after splitting the weekend on the road against Fraser Valley. UNBC finished last weekend with a Friday night win (63-47) and a Saturday night loss (83-56) and will be looking to build off of that road win in their upcoming series against UBC Okanagan.

Key performer: European import, Vasiliki Louka  is putting up big numbers for the Timberwolves and finished the weekend series against UFV, with a combined 28 points. As a 6’3 forward Louka is also known for her ability to block opponents and has a total of 14 rejections so far this season putting her seventh in that category. Rookie, Maria Mongomo is also putting up big numbers for UNBC and finished the previous weekend with a combined 31 points. Mongomo is also tied with Elliott in the conference for steals (30) putting her in third for that category.

preseason preview courtesy of Canadawest.org

Number of new players: 4 // Key Recruits (Name (POS/Hometown/Last Team): Emily Holmes (G/Prince George, B.C./Duchess Park Secondary); Maria Mongomo (F/Las Palmas, Spain/Gran Canaria [Spain])

Number of departing players: 4 // Key Losses (Name (POS/number of years with team): Sarah Robin (G/5 years); Kellieanne Fluit (F/4 years)

Key performer: Hannah Pudlas, Guard - Heading into her second year at UNBC, Pudlas has been named a co-captain for her hometown Timberwolves this season. The Prince George native and Academic All-Canadian will be asked to take on much more responsibility on and off the court with the departure of five-year veteran Sarah Robin, and her maturation as a player will be key if UNBC wants to take the next step.

Key storyline: For the women’s basketball Timberwolves, it will likely be a tale of development and carving out a competitive place in the Canada West conference.

With Academic All-Canadian Sarah Robin having completed her eligibility, Vasiliki Louka will be counted on to become an even stronger force for the Timberwolves as the lone UNBC player who averaged more than 10 points per game from the 2014-15 season.

The Athens native was a bright spot in a tough season, finishing fifth in Canada West with 8.4 rebounds per game, including seven double-doubles. Louka leads a team with a strong European influence, including fellow Greek import Eleni Steriopoulou and Spanish forward Maria Mongomo, who will be looked upon to acclimate herself to North America quickly and become a focal point.

They join a leadership group including Preety Nijjar and Kylie Pozniak, complemented by emerging backcourt leader and Prince George product Hannah Pudlas.