After coming up short on Friday against Mount Royal, the UBC Okanagan Heat showed some resilience with a 78-71 win over the Cougars Saturday in Canada West women’s basketball action.
Jessica Jazdarehee’s game-high 20 points paced the Heat to its fourth victory of the season, keeping UBCO in the playoff chase.
Kayla McFadden added 13 points, while Claire Elliot chipped in with 11 points and six rebounds.
The Heat made significant adjustments on defense from a night prior, and their work showed in limiting the Cougars to 35 per cent shooting.
The victory keeps the Heat (4-8) in the hunt for playoff spot in the Explorer Division, as they trail third-place Fraser Valley (6-6) by four points for the final berth.
“This was the kind of game that we needed to motivate us and teach us that we need to use each other more to be successful,” said Claire Elliot. “So it was a good starting point for what we have to do if we want to make the playoffs.”
On Friday, Mount Royal defeated the Heat 81-71.
Kayla McFadden put up 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds for UBCO.
This weekend, the Heat heads to Abbotsford for a pair of key games against the Cascades.
Heat men
The UBC Okanagan men came up empty in two Canada West home games against Mount Royal.
On Friday, Noah Lewis hit five three-balls as the Cougars earned a 74-69 win.
Heat rookie Noma Obaseki, from East Vancouver, had a standout game, scoring 12 points and six rebounds while going 4-for-5 from the free-throw line in 24 minutes en route to Heat Player of the Game honours.
Aldrich Berrios led the Heat with 15 points.
On Saturday, Berrios had 25 points but it wasn’t enough in an 85-70 loss to Mount Royal.
The Heat (2-10) face a tough task this weekend as they head to Fraser Valley to take on the unbeaten Cascades.
Meanwhile, Saturday’s games were part of the CIS Shoot for the Cure event. UBC Okanagan collected $285 through various donations, t-shirt sales, and raffle tickets.
