BOX SCORE LANGLEY, B.C. – The Calgary Dinos' challenge of qualifying for the postseason got a little more daunting Saturday night as they dropped a 107-97 decision to the Trinity Western Spartans at the Langley Events Centre.
With a 3-7 record and a very difficult schedule down the stretch, the Dinos have an uphill climb to the playoffs - one that starts next weekend when they host the Saskatchewan Huskies Friday and Saturday nights.
On this night, the Spartans were especially dominant in the first quarter as they outscored Calgary by 15 points and then managed to maintain a lead the rest of the way.
Trinity Western was led by Kyle Coston, who had 28 points and seven rebounds, Sean Peter, who had 25 points and four rebounds and Tristan Smith, who had 17 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and four steals.
Calgary was led by
Tyler Fidler, who had 23 points, all of which came in the second half, and
Boris Bakovic, who had 22 points and seven rebounds in his return to the court after missing the first half of the season with a knee injury.
The win moves Trinity Western to 4-6 on the year while the loss drops Calgary to 3-7.
The Spartans got off to a quick start in the first quarter as Coston knocked down a 3-pointer just 13 seconds into the game which seemed to set the tone for what would be an offensive surge in the first half for Trinity Western.
Calgary responded with back-to-back jumpers from
Josh Wolfram to give the Dinos a 4-3 lead but then Trinity Western went on a 6-0 run to retake the a lead that they would never relinquish.
With the Spartans Calvin Westbrook, who finished with 22 points, on fire from beyond the arc, going three for four in the first 10 minutes and collecting a team-high 13 points, Trinity Western built a 15-point lead, 29-14, by the end of the first frame.
In the second quarter, the Spartans dominated the glass, outrebounding Calgary 11-4, and continued to push their lead, opening up a 20-point halftime advantage.
Trinity Western's Kyle Coston had 11 points in the quarter to lead the home side to an impressive opening 20 minutes.
Calgary's Wolfram led the Dinos with 12 points while Bakovic, contributed 11 points, nine of which came from the free throw line.
In the third quarter, the Spartans continued to maintain a healthy double-digit lead as they went back and forth with Calgary for the better part of the frame.
The Dinos got to within 12 points twice, at 62-48 after a
Dustin Reding lay-in, and then again at 72-58 after a
Daan Wiersum lay-in, but couldn't get any closer.
Each time the Dinos got close, the Spartans pulled away again, finishing the third with an 80-61 lead.
In the third quarter it was Peter leading the charge with 11 points in the quarter for Trinity Western.
For Calgary, Fidler responded in the third quarter with eight points to help the Dinos to a 27-point quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Dinos made of a game of it as they closed to within eight points with 2:41 left in the game. But the Spartans didn't allow Calgary to make any long runs late as they held off a Fidler and
Andrew McGuinness-led charge – Fidler had 15 points in the fourth and McGuinness had 12 – to earn the win.
The Dinos got to within seven points after a 3-pointer from Fidler with 25 seconds left but they wouldn't get closer.
Both teams are back in action Jan. 13-14 with the Spartans travelling to UBC-Okanagan to play the Heat while Calgary returns home to host Saskatchewan.
GAME NOTES: The Spartans shot 62.1 per cent from the field while Calgary shot 48.4 per cent…TWU had 35 rebound to Calgary's 31.
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