CALGARY – The University of Alberta Golden Bears followed up on their one-point victory Thursday night in Edmonton, riding a 28-point performance by Brody Clarke to a 103-87 win and a sweep of the University of Calgary Dinos.
The Bears shot out to a 32-16 lead after the first quarter and didn't look back, using their size to hold off the Dinos, improving to 17-1 on the season while dropping their provincial rivals to 16-2.
In front of a packed house in the Jack Simpson Gym, the Bears shot better than 54 per cent from both the field and three-point land, scoring 39 via the triple on the night. Fifth-year shooter Ivan Ikomey led the way with five-of-seven shooting from beyond the arc, and Alberta's hot shooting provided an answer every time the Dinos looked to gain some offensive momentum.
"It's not the result we're looking for," said head coach
Dan Vanhooren. "In all honesty, we won the possession battle 87-80, defensively we can't give up 100, we scored enough points to win but we have to defend better."
After struggling through the first quarter, the Dinos fought back in the second to outscore the Bears by one and shoot 52.9 per cent from the field, winning the second 24-23. It didn't change much from there, with a 16-point edge in the first quarter for Alberta matched by the Bears' final margin of victory as they take over sole possession of first place in Canada West with just two games left on the schedule.
Leading the Dinos Saturday were
Max Eisele with 16 points and fourth-year law student
Brett Layton with another double-double of 15 points and 15 boards.
Mason Foreman added 13,
Simon Kutzschmar 12, and
Edwin Jeudy 10 to the Dinos' cause offensively.
In addition to Clarke's 28 and 21 from Ikomey, the Bears got a solid night out of Tyus Jefferson, who picked up 16 points and six assists on the evening.
The two teams close out the regular season next weekend, with the Bears hosting Saskatchewan for a two-game set in Edmonton while the Dinos embark on a home-and-home series with their crosstown rival Mount Royal. That action gets underway Thursday night in the Jack Simpson Gym with an 8 p.m. tip-off, with the season finale set for Saturday, Feb. 8 at MRU's Kenyon Court.
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