CALGARY – In a provincial battle of 7-1 teams, the visiting University of Alberta Pandas wrapped up conference play in 2015 with a 70-64 win over the University of Calgary Dinos Saturday night.
The result snaps Calgary's seven-game win streak and gives the Pandas (8-1) sole possession of second place in the Pioneer Division heading into the December exam break.
It was a weird one in the Jack Simpson Gym, with the Dinos managing just one field goal in the first quarter, then coming out firing and shooting nearly 50 per cent in the second half. While Calgary was able to recover from its anemic start, the Dinos were unable to bounce back from an epidemic of turnovers in the fourth quarter: after taking a 50-47 lead into the final frame, the home side committed nine turnovers in the final 10 minutes, leading to 11 Alberta points.
On the other side, as went Jessilyn Fairbanks, so went the Pandas. The fifth-year guard scored a total of 24 points on the night: eight of which came in the first quarter, with another 10 in the fourth as the Pandas came back to win. With Calgary leading 59-54 and just six minutes to play, Fairbanks scored five in a row to tie it, then stole an inbound pass to assist on Maddie Rogers' bucket that put the Pandas up for good, and the Dinos couldn't recover from there.
Megan Wickstrom and Renee Byrne added 13 points apiece for the Pandas, while Elle Hendershot was a handful under the hoop all night, recording 12 rebounds.
Brianna Ghali was Calgary's leader, recording the game's only double-double with her 14-point, 12-rebound effort.
Kelsey Lund led the Dinos in scoring with 15 points, while
Kristie Sheils and
Claire Colborne also ended up in double digits with 11 points apiece.
Despite their slow start, the Dinos managed to shoot the ball 35 per cent on the night but only hit 2-for-10 from beyond the arc. The Pandas, on the other hand, attempted 13 more treys and knocked down five more than the Dinos on 7-of-23 shooting from long range.
The two teams will meet again February 20 in Edmonton. Alberta begins 2016 by hosting Victoria Jan. 15-16, while Calgary opens a week earlier against the first-place Saskatchewan Huskies, Jan. 8-9 in the Jack Simpson Gym.
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