CALGARY – Farewell the Friday night curse.

The Calgary Dinos finally got a series-opening 'W' Friday night by hanging on for a hard-fought 82-79 victory over the Fraser Valley Cascades to ring in 2011 in the Jack Simpson Gym.

BOX SCORE

A 19-point effort from Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson, making his conference debut after recovering from an ankle injury, combined with a solid 22 from Tyler Fidler helped the Dinos overcome a 10-0 deficit to open the game and hold on for the victory.

“We had a great week of practice, but we came out of the gate and tried to do too much too early,” said Calgary head coach Dan Vanhooren. “We kind of got regrouped after that, and our defence was working really well, and our offence improved as the game went on. When we get the ball to the right guys, we get to the line, and that's a big key for us.”

Fidler scored 13 of his 22 from the free-throw line as the Dinos enjoyed a 36-10 edge in attempts from the stripe on the night.

Despite the wide disparity in foul shots, however, the Cascades were able to stay in the game thanks to a barrage of treys – 13 in all. Nearly half of UFV's field goal attempts (35) and points (39) came from beyond the arc, with six different players hitting at least one three-point basket. Zeon Gray led the way with four on six attempts, all of which came in the second half to give him 19 total points on the night. Fifth-year Aussie James Elliott finished with 23 to lead all players, adding 14 rebounds for the double-double. The first half accounted for 18 of his points, while eight of his boards were of the offensive variety.

The game opened in a strange fashion with the teams taking turns on long scoring runs. After the Cascades went up 10-0, the Dinos responded to tie at 10-10 – only to see the Cascades go up 18-10 midway through the second quarter. A 13-0 Dinos run followed to give them their first lead of the night before Elliott exploded for a 7-0 run on his own. A slick inbound play to Elliott for a lay-up as time expired in the opening half gave the Cascades a 29-28 lead heading into the locker room.

The Dinos nearly doubled their point total in the third quarter with 27, taking a four-point lead into the final frame. With the Cascades in foul trouble and the Dinos into the bonus early, it was Calgary's free-throw shooting – which hummed along at an 83.3 percent clip on the night – that gave them a chance to win, and UFV was unable to convert on two three-point chances in their final possession as the Dinos squeaked out the victory.

“We got some luck and gave up two offensive rebounds down the stretch, but we still gave up an open three in the corner in that sequence” said Vanhooren, whose team improved to 5-6 on the season. “We need to value doing the little things more than we have been, and if we can get there, this team's capable.”

Joel Friesen joined Elliott and Gray in double digits for the Cascades with 11 points, adding eight rebounds on the night. The Dinos, meanwhile, saw five players hit double digits in scoring: Fidler, Ogungbemi-Jackson, Philip Labongo and Keenan Milburn (11 each), and Youri Annisovets (10).

The Cascades, who fall to 4-9 with the loss, out-rebounded the Dinos 44-39 – with the offensive glass accounting for the entire difference.

Calgary will look for another season first – a series sweep – Saturday night when they tip off against the Cascades in the rematch at 8 p.m. MT.

-UC-