The 2015-16 season has been anything but a smooth ride for the women’s basketball team. But after a 9-11 regular season, it's now time for the Thunderbirds to wipe the slate clean as they hit the road this weekend to take on the UFV Cascades.
The next match against UFV will be a best-of-three contest to determine who advances to the Canada West quarterfinals. For the T-Birds and the Cascades, the upcoming weekend will be their first encounter since the 2013-14 regular season, which ended in a split. The T-Birds notched a 56-54 win in the first game before dropping a 71-43 decision in the second.
Against an opponent that came out with a 13-7 regular season record and one of the most stellar players in Canada West, the T-Birds will have to expect some difficult odds ahead.
One of the main obstacles that will be standing in the Thunderbirds’ way this weekend is Kayli Sartori who led in scoring for Canada West with 368 regular season points. Sartori was also the Cascade’s leader in steals and blocks.
Even against a high-octane team, there is hope that UBC’s defence can keep the Cascades from drowning the ’Birds. During the regular season, the T-Birds allowed an average of 62 points per game, the 19th lowest of all 47 CIS teams.
On the offensive side, the T-Birds will be counting on their seniors — Adrienne Parkin and Diana Lee along with third-year Kara Spotton — to provide firepower for the team. Last Friday, Lee scored a career-high 32 points against the University of Winnipeg Wesmen to lead UBC to a 77-57 win. Last month, Spotton had a 38-point game against the University of Manitoba Bisons that nearly tied the school record.
It really wasn’t all that surprising that the T-Birds’ season turned out the way it did. With the departure of top scorers like Kris Young and Harleen Sidhu after the 2014-15 season, head coach Deb Huband knew from the start that the season was going to be a challenging one.
That being said, it’s fair to say that the ’Birds have adapted fairly well. Although the season was off to a shaky start, UBC beat Winnipeg by 48 points last week for a spectacular finish, the biggest win the team has seen since an 88-21 victory over the Brandon University Bobcats in 2011.
It’s going to be a challenging weekend ahead. But with the regular season now in hindsight, what the T-Birds need to focus on is getting those two wins to advance to the quarterfinals.
The games will kick off live this Friday and Saturday at 6 p.m. If necessary, a third game will take place Sunday at 5 p.m.