If whiplash swings of fortune and emotion are your thing, then CARSA gym is turning into the place to be this U Sports basketball season. At least it was last weekend. Both sa国际传媒 West men鈥檚 games in the University of Victoria Vikes two-game split against the Regina Cougars were not decided until the final shots both nights.
The UVic women鈥檚 team, meanwhile, rallied from a 35-point loss the night before to stun national power Regina on a last-gasp basket by Katie Langdon for the dramatic victory in the second game.
Up tonight and Saturday on Ken and Kathy Shields Court are sa国际传媒 West games against the Fraser Valley Cascades. The Vikes (7-5) and Cascades (9-5) meet in the women鈥檚 game tonight at 6, while the men鈥檚 game between UVic (5-7) and Fraser Valley (10-4) is at 8 p.m. Game times Saturday are at 5 and 7 p.m., respectively.
Vikes women鈥檚 head coach Dani Sinclair said she was talking to legendary former UVic coach Kathy Shields following the lightning turnabout in games last weekend. Shields, who guided the Vikes to eight national titles, told Sinclair she always hated winning big on Friday night because it was sometimes harder to motivate the players for the Saturday game, not that Shields ever seemed to have any problems doing so.
Sinclair said she knew her players were capable of responding to the blowout loss last Friday against Regina.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to beat anybody back to back. There鈥檚 that momentum shift and keeping players motivated,鈥� noted Sinclair.
鈥淲e challenged the girls. The biggest difference between the two games is that we competed in the second game. We still very well could have lost that game against a very good Regina team, but we would have still been proud of the effort. We were much better at moving and sharing the ball and playing a team game.鈥�
The task doesn鈥檛 get any easier against Fraser Valley as both the Cascades women鈥檚 and men鈥檚 programs seem to be blooming.
鈥淔raser Valley is a big, strong and physical team that plays hard,鈥� said Sinclair.
鈥淲e need to manage the excitement of last weekend and build on it but not get too ahead of ourselves.鈥�
The Vikes men, meanwhile, go into this weekend missing injured starting point-guard Mason Loewen. The athletic and dynamic Loewen is believed to have a sprain or hyperextension of the knee and is listed as week-to-week but is definitely out against the Cascades. But the Vikes didn鈥檛 miss a beat as Scott Kellum from Issaquah, Washington, stepped in at point guard to lead the Vikes to last Saturday night鈥檚 victory over Regina. Not that third-year import player Kellum鈥檚 performance wasn鈥檛 expected. He was, after all, sa国际传媒 West rookie of the year in his freshman season on Ring Road.
鈥淪cott has been our sixth man all season but he can easily be a starter,鈥� said UVic head coach Craig Beaucamp.
鈥淗e is one of our most consistent performers and he stepped up and led us offensively. In fact, everyone pulled together and rallied in that second game.鈥�
They will have to again against a difficult matchup, especially inside, against the Cascades.
鈥淔raser Valley is a taller, heavier team with length and size relative to us,鈥� said Beaucamp.
鈥淪o, defensive boards will be key for us. Rebounding as a whole will be important.鈥�
It is a classic matchup between the primarily outside-shooting Vikes and inside-the-paint game of the Cascades.
鈥淲e have to shoot the ball well while also finding different ways to get people to the post and into the elbows,鈥� said Beaucamp.
鈥淏ut shooting is still the key for us.鈥�
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