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UFV basketball swept in Lethbridge

Cascades men’s, women’s teams lose all four games on the road
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UFV’s Matt Cooley scored 12 points off the bench on Dec. 1 for the Cascades.

The UFV Cascades men’s and women’s basketball teams headed into the holiday break on a downer, dropping all four games on the road against the Lethbridge Pronghorns over the weekend.

The men shot lights out on Friday, but couldn’t hold off a late push by Lethbridge to lose 98-87.

The Cascades shot 52 per cent from the field and 46 per cent from the three-point line, and were up 81-78 with 4:37 left in the game but the Pronghorns went on a 15-3 run to earn the win.

Despite the loss, men’s head coach Adam Friesen liked his team’s effort.

“The guys showed a lot of fight and teamwork tonight,” he said. “From the first couple road weekends to now, we’re really pleased with how the team is improving.”

Andrew Morris had a team-high 21 points, while Vick Toor contributed with 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds.

Saturday’s game saw Lethbridge dominate in the middle quarters, as they outscored the Cascades 27-13 in the second and 28-14 in the third to win 101-75.

“We really began playing at their pace,” he said, of those middle frames. “They got us playing the way they want the game to be played, and they did a good job capitalizing. They shot the ball fantastic, and when you play a good team like that, it’s tough to come out with a win.”

A bright spot for UFV was the play of W.J. Mouat grad Kenan Hadzovic. The 17-year-old rookie point guard busted out of a shooting slump in a big way, swishing 6-of-9 attempts from downtown en route to a career-high 20 points in 24 minutes off the bench. Mark Johnson also had a solid performance, with 15 points and 12 boards.

The men head into the break with a record of four wins and eight losses, and they are tied for 11th in Canada West.

The women lost the rebound battle 47-31 on Friday, a big factor in the club’s 75-56 loss.

Shayna Litman led the team with 17 points, while Sara Simovic picked up 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

The Cascades had a better effort on Saturday, drawing to within five points of the Pronghorns in the fourth, but lost 82-74.

UFV was playing with just eight healthy players, and head coach Al Tuchscherer said he liked his team’s improved play.

“I think we can all look at this game feeling happy with our bounce-back tonight, happy with our effort and compete level, and really, even how we executed,” he said. “I think the difference was, we made a number of key mistakes down the stretch that are just characteristic of a young team.”

Simovic was solid again, with 21 points and five rebounds, while Litman grabbed a team-high eight boards.

The women dropped to four wins and eight losses in regular season play, and are tied for 12th in the conference.

Both teams are now off until Jan. 4 ,when they travel to Langley to take on the TWU Spartans. The teams then host the Spartans on Jan. 5.