The University of the Fraser Valley men's basketball team opened the second semester in fine fashion, sweeping a pair of Eastern road games.
The Cascades improved to 7-5, tied for second place in the Pacific Division of Canada West, after victories at the Winnipeg Wesmen (69-54 on Friday) and the Manitoba Bisons (84-83 on Saturday).
UFV used efficient three-point shooting to down the Wesmen – they shot 9-for-14 from beyond the arc, with Manny Dulay (4-for-5) leading the way in that department. Kevon Parchment stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, eight rebounds and six steals, while Kadeem Willis had a double-double with 13 points and 14 boards.
On Saturday, the Bisons staged a late rally with a trio of late three-pointers, and had a shot to win at the buzzer. But the shot did not drop, and UFV extended its win streak to four behind big games from Jasper Moedt (23 points, 16 rebounds) and Parchment (22 points).
“The Bisons gave us a great test tonight and I feel very fortunate to walk away with the win,” Cascades coach Adam Friesen stated in a press release. “As a team we showed great character and competitiveness throughout the weekend, and that is something we will continue to build on.”
The weekend was more of a mixed bag for the Cascades women. On Friday, they opened an 18-point lead over Winnipeg late in the third quarter, only to watch the Wesmen rally and win 77-74 in overtime.
“Winnipeg did what Winnipeg does. They got on a roll and rode the emotional wave to a great victory for them,” said Cascades coach Al Tuchscherer, who got productive outings from Nicole Wierks (21 points, nine rebounds) and Courtney Bartel (13 points, five steals). “We did what we want to do for about 28 minutes and then we couldn’t match their passion.”
The Cascades bounced back with an 85-68 win over the Bisons the next night, as Kayli Sartori (18 points), Wierks (12) and Katie Brink (10) all scored in double figures.
“A more focused effort tonight from everyone,” analyzed Tuchscherer. “Offensively we really did some nice things in the first half and it was important for us to get back in the win column.”
UFV seized sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division at 8-4, but the Winnipeg defeat saw them slide from No. 7 to No. 10 in the CIS national rankings.
• This weekend, the Cascades hoopsters head to Kamloops to take on the Thompson Rivers WolfPack in a huge two-game series for both teams. The WolfPack men are tied with UFV at 7-5, while the women are also 7-5, just a game back of their Cascades counterparts for first place.