CALGARY - Following disappointing splits of their two-game series in Winnipeg last weekend, the Dinos basketball teams head back out on the road this weekend – this time heading west.
Both Dinos teams opened with wins over the Manitoba Bisons last Friday, then proceeded to head across town to face the Winnipeg Wesmen Saturday night. In the women's game, the Lady Wesmen were able to hold the high-powered Dinos offence to just 58 points on the night, winning 63-58 in a tight defensive struggle. On the men's side, Robbie Sihota brought his 'A' game with 24 points and 13 rebounds against Winnipeg, but the rest of the team combined for just 44 points as the Wesmen shocked the Dinos 82-68. Calgary defeated Winnipeg 98-62 in their lone meeting of the 2007-08 campaign.
With the mixed results in Manitoba behind them, the Dinos head out for a more grueling road trip. Calgary opens the weekend against the Fraser Valley Cascades in Abbotsford, B.C., before hopping on the bus for the four-hour drive to Kamloops, where they will face the Thompson Rivers WolfPack Saturday.
The Dinos women are 2-0 all-time against Fraser Valley since the Cascades joined Canada West in 2006, taking a 93-72 win in Abbotsford in 2006-07 and a 108-102 double overtime classic in the Jack Simpson Gym last season.
The Cascades (1-1), who graduated conference all-star Samantha Hill in the off-season, split their opening weekend series with the Dinos' other opponent this weekend, the Thompson Rivers WolfPack. Fraser Valley took the opener 78-75 in overtime, with TRU fighting back a night later with a razor-thin 65-63 victory.
The Dinos have also enjoyed success against Thompson Rivers in the WolfPack's short tenure in CIS basketball. In four games, not only are the Dinos 4-0, but they have outscored TRU 382-244. The only time Calgary failed to crack the 90-point barrier in these four games was the first-ever meeting, an 89-64 Dinos win.
Seniors Whitney Haswell and Courtney Coyle along with junior Ashley Hill are all in the top 10 in conference scoring in the early going for the Dinos, who were the highest scoring team in the nation last season. Alyssa Gaukel leads Fraser Valley with 24 points, mirroring the total of Thompson Rivers' leader Sarah Cameron.
Calgary's women were ranked No. 7 in the initial CIS Top 10 poll of the 2008-09 season earlier this week.
The Dinos men have enjoyed similar success against these two teams in their brief history, but both have improved significantly – especially the Cascades – and both have coaches early in their tenures at the schools. Former CIS coach of the year Barnaby Craddock (Brandon) leads Fraser Valley, which is 2-0 early in the season after a sweep of Thompson Rivers last week. Their lineup features no fewer than eight rookies and, with just one fifth-year and a couple of fourth-year players on the roster, the Cascades' youth movement will be about gaining experience in the tough Pacific Division this season.
UFV took the two-game series against Thompson Rivers last week by 10- and nine-point margins, led by second-year guard Tristan Smith's 18-point average. Freshman Gurjote Jhaj, a highly-sought recruit out of St. Georges High School in Vancouver, looked impressive in his foray into CIS basketball, averaging 12.5 points over the two games.
Calgary's previous meetings against the Cascades ended 109-76 and 90-76 in the Dinos' favour.
Thompson Rivers went through significant transition in the off-season with the reassignment of head coach Nevin Gleddie elsewhere within the university. After a woeful 3-20 season in 2007-08, Thom Gillespie takes over as coach following a very successful 12-year stint at the University of New Brunswick, first as an assistant, then as the head man.
Jeff Friesen, a holdover from TRU's time in the BCCAA, returns to the lineup after a two-year absence, and his 6'7” frame will certainly provide trouble for opposing defences. Seven-foot-two Greg Stewart also returns to the program after spending some time with the WolfPack men's volleyball program.
Fourth-year guard Drew Bleth joins Friesen as the WolfPack's top two scorers early in the season, with both reaching the top six in the conference after Week 1.
Sihota's 37 points in two games is good enough for a sixth-place tie in the conference, with Henry Bekkering sitting 13th with 31 points.
Previous contests between the Dinos and WolfPack have been high-scoring, especially their last meeting on Jan. 26, 2008 in the Jack Simpson Gym. Led by 34 points from Henry and 21 from Tyler Fidler, the Dinos scored at least 25 points in all four quarters to defeat TRU 117-100.
The Dinos debuted at No. 8 in the CIS Top 10 this week.
Calgary returns home for their long-awaited home openers next weekend when the Brandon Bobcats and Regina Cougars pay a visit to the Jack.
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