CALGARY – It wasn't a playoff game, but it certainly felt like one.
A tight game, a big crowd, officiating controversy, and an outcome in doubt until the very end were all featured prominently, and in the end the unranked Trinity Western Spartans escaped with an 83-79 win over the No. 4 Calgary Dinos.
BOX SCORE
Just one point separated the teams in the second half, and it was superior outside shooting, particularly early, that led the Spartans to victory. An early 10-2 run by TWU set them up with a lead they would hold for virtually the entire night, even if it was not a commanding one. A 23-16 lead for the visitors showed on the clock after the opening period, and Calgary coach Dan Vanhooren pointed to the first 10 minutes as where the game was won and lost.
“We didn't play that poorly, but we really just didn't do the things we were supposed to early,” he said. “We came out and missed assignments and rotations and gave up easy hoops. Those are the kinds of things our guys need to learn and make sure are taken care of.
“It's too bad we started out so slow and dug ourselves that hole, because it was a totally different game from there.”
A different game indeed. The second quarter saw the lead change hands three times in Calgary's best defensive quarter, where the Dinos held the Spartans to just 13 points and cut the lead to just three by the half. From there, nothing separated the two sides as they went back and forth in a classic battle between two playoff-bound teams.
Calgary had several opportunities to take over the game in the second half, keeping the deficit at no more than five points at any time until late and tying the score on two occasions. But untimely fouls, including several tough offensive foul calls, kept the Dinos from gaining any momentum and the Spartans did not trail from the midway point of the second quarter.
“We just have to do a better job coming out and playing for what we've prepared for,” said Vanhooren. “We spent a lot of time in shooting practice to make sure we were ready this week, but obviously we weren't.”
The Dinos shot 39.7 per cent from the field, with 7-for-25 shooting from beyond the arc. Trinity Western bettered the hosts on both counts, shooting nearly 47 per cent while knocking down 10 threes.
Brian Banman led the way for Trinity Western offensively, putting up 17 points while spending the entire 40 minutes on the floor. Calgary native Lance Verhoeff and point guard Louis Hurd scored 14 points each, Hurd bookending his two treys: an early rainbow extended the Spartans' lead to 10 in the first quarter, and a last-minute shot from beyond the arc that was the final nail in the Dinos' coffin.
Michael Brower also had a solid night for the Spartans, collecting 10 points in just 13 minutes on the floor.
Robbie Sihota and Ross Bekkering both hit double-double territory for the Dinos. Bekkering led all players with 18 points to go with 10 rebounds, six of which came off the offensive glass, while Sihota scored 15 to go with 11 boards. Henry Bekkering, who was honoured in a pre-game ceremony before his final regular season home game, earned player-of-the-game honours for the Dinos with his 17-point effort, 13 of which came in the second half.
The win drops Calgary to 15-3 on the year with four games left to play, though the Dinos have already clinched the Central Division crown. The win was a big one for the Spartans, who move to 14-5 and stay tied for second in the Pacific Division with Victoria – who just happens to be Calgary's next opponent.
The Dinos head on the road to close out the season, beginning with a Pacific swing through Victoria and UBC next weekend before a two-game set at the Main Gym in Edmonton against archrival Alberta. The Spartans, meanwhile, play a home-and-home set with Simon Fraser next week and end the campaign with a trip to the prairies to take on Manitoba and Winnipeg.
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