VICTORIA – The University of Calgary Dinos men's basketball team continued their hot start to the young season, cruising to an easy weekend sweep of the University of Victoria with a 97-72 win Saturday night at the CARSA Performance Gym.

After a season opening defeat at home, the Dinos have now reeled off three straight wins. Head Coach Dan Vanhooren credited this streak to more aggressive play. "The first game we played safe basketball, the guys wanted the home opener to go right, and because they wanted it to go right, they didn't take enough risks to be successful. Since then we've gone the opposite route. Playing a lot freer and working hard defensively, while taking risks that way as well, and it's paying off."

Both teams started out on fire with Calgary hitting their first four shots and Victoria connecting on three of their first five, all three-pointers. This furious pace continued right until the buzzer sounded, with Thomas Cooper connecting on a long three-pointer in isolation at the end of the quarter. The Dinos shot 56% from the field in the opening frame, while the Vikes were able to connect from beyond the arc six times, leading to a small 25-23 lead for Calgary.

The torrid start dampened slightly in the second quarter, as each team finished the first half shooting close to 50% from the field. Victoria got production from an assortment of players, while Calgary relied heavily on the efforts of Cooper and guard Mambi Diawara, who combined to score 30 of the Dinos 47 first half points.

Calgary blew the game wide open in the third, outscoring Victoria 21-11 in the quarter. The Dinos were able to limit any extended runs by the Vikes, before stretching their lead to 17 by the end of the frame. This lead grew larger before the final whistle blew, finishing at a comfortable 25.

After relying heavily on Cooper and Diawara in the first half, the Dinos employed a more well rounded attack in the second, with every player recording at least one basket on their way to 50 second half points. Calgary finished the night shooting an even 50% from both the field and beyond the arc, while turning the ball over only six times.

Coach Vanhooren recognized his teams depth in tonight's win. "When you add Lars Schlueter and David Kapinga's production [to Cooper and Diawara], we have a fair amount of depth from a scoring perspective. Not to forget the kind of production Jasdeep Gill gave us last year at the National Championship, I'm thrilled. The biggest change in the last couple of weeks though is our post play. We're starting to create opportunities on second chances, while protecting our rim a little bit better."

Calgary (3-1) has next weekend off with a bye, before taking on Lethbridge (3-1), in a home and home series starting November 24th in Lethbridge. Tip-off is at 8 p.m. at 1st Choice Savings Centre.

-UC-