Skip to content

Grewal leads the way as Cascades sweep Cougars, Bobcats

The University of the Fraser Valley men's basketball team turned in a pair of gritty performances on one of their most grueling road trips.
1664abbotsfordCascadesLogo-color

The University of the Fraser Valley men's basketball team turned in a pair of gritty performances on one of their most grueling road trips of the season, as they beat the Regina Cougars and the Brandon Bobcats on the weekend.

Kyle Grewal led the charge for the Cascades – the fourth-year power forward racked up 23 points and 10 rebounds in an 86-73 win over Regina on Friday, and posted 21 points and eight boards in an 85-75 triumph in Brandon on Saturday.

"It's a very difficult road trip, and it's nice for us to put together back-to-back solid performances," said Cascades coach Barnaby Craddock, noting that his team had settled for splits the previous two weekends after winning on Friday.

"We played hard, and we maintained our focus for 48 minutes both nights. For our group, that's key. When we play our game with focus, we're going to be in the game down the stretch with any team in the country. Unfortunately we lose focus once in a while, and we have those off nights. But we're working on that – to put together a strong performance every night – and we definitely did that this weekend."

Joel Friesen, the Cascades' leading scorer, sat out Friday's game at Regina – he was suspended after accruing five technical and/or unsportsmanlike fouls this season.

In Friesen's absence, his backcourt mates Sam Freeman and James York had big games. Freeman tied Grewal for team-high scoring honours with 23 points, while York turned in a quietly effective performance, stuffing the box score with six points, six rebounds, six steals and four assists.

On Saturday at Brandon, centre Jasper Moedt notched a double-double (15 points, 15 rebounds) as the Cascades (9-5) tightened their grasp on third place in Canada West's Pacific Division.

UFV WOMEN'S HOOPSTERS SPLIT

In women's basketball action, the Cascades faced opponents at both ends of the Canada West spectrum.

On Friday, UFV dropped a 78-61 decision to the undefeated Regina Cougars, the top-ranked team in the nation. They pushed the Cougars, though, trailing by one point heading into the fourth quarter before the hosts pulled away down the stretch. Nicole Wierks and Kayli Sartori paced the Cascades with 14 points in the loss.

On Saturday, the UFV women had an easier go of it – they crushed winless Brandon (0-14) by a score of 65-30. The Cascades limited the Bobcats to 14.9 per cent shooting from the field, and Courtney Bartel and Celeste Dyck tied for team-high scoring honours with 15 points each.

The Cascades women (10-4) are second in the Pacific Division, trailing the UBC Thunderbirds (10-2).

SHOWCASE VS. SPARTANS COMING UP

Saturday is a big day for the UFV basketball program, as they host the Trinity Western Spartans in a doubleheader at the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre.

The women's game tips off at 5 p.m., followed by the men at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at the AESC box office, as well as the two other local box office locations at Matsqui Recreation Centre and Abbotsford Recreation Centre. They are also available on both university campuses. For more information, contact UFV's David Kent at 604-309-7658 or david.kent@ufv.ca.