The VIU Mariners made a statement with convincing wins against the toughest opposition the PacWest has to offer.
Vancouver Island University’s first-place men’s basketball team handily defeated the second- and third-place Quest Kermodes and Langara Falcons on the weekend, and VIU’s women’s team also beat Quest and Langara by wide margins.
The Mariners men defeated the Kermodes 77-52 on Friday in a packed gym, then followed up with an 82-62 victory over the Falcons the next day.
“We knew it was big games, the second- and third-ranked teams in our conference…” said Josh Ross, VIU forward. “It was big to just take one game at a time and not look forward.”
Matt Kuzminski, coach of the VIU men, said his team is getting better of late.
“We’re making progress and I think it’s a good time to make progress,” Kuzminski said.
He felt much of the team’s success on the weekend came because of its effort on the defensive end of the court.
“Guys seem a lot more committed, they’re communicating with each other, which helps out a lot and they’re making an effort to stay in stance…” Kuzminski said. “Making teams beat us by making plays instead of us gambling and giving them opportunities.”
The M’s had to deal with adversity as two starters – point guard John Thompson and centre Jerod Dorby – were injured in the first half of Saturday’s game and didn’t return.
“[Players] just stayed ready, which was good,” Kuzminski said. “Guys came in and there wasn’t much drop-off, especially with the effort on the defensive end. And we’ll need those guys going forward, too.”
The injuries to Thompson and Dorby aren’t believed to be significant.
Ross led all scorers Saturday with 29 points and also had 14 rebounds and seven assists. Jason Fortin scored 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Ross also led the team with 20 points on Friday. Fortin had 13 points and 14 boards and Dorby scored 16.
Mariners women pick up the pace in wins
Meanwhile, the Mariners women were feeling good about their games on the weekend, too, as they defeated the Kermodes 68-49 and the Falcons 69-49.
“We played like a team and a lot of people got a bunch of points,” said Sara Simovic, VIU point guard. “That’s the only way we’re going to win.”
Bill McWhinnie, M’s coach, didn’t like his team’s start on Saturday but noted that the women have been good at raising their game in the second half.
“They’re kind of into the game [by then], they should be warm, they should be mentally focused, and then we make adjustments and they come out harder in the second half,” he said.
VIU’s women especially overwhelmed the Falcons early in the second half when they employed a press system.
“When we do press in spots, like we did today – and we did some of that yesterday – it’s effective,” McWhinnie said. “We’re athletic, we’re long and it kind of changes the pace of the game. I think we need to play a little quicker and that kind of quickens up things.”
Emily Clarke led all scorers Saturday with 19 points, Simovic added 18 and Sienna Pollard scored 17 to go with 10 rebounds. On Friday, Pollard had a huge game with 24 points and 21 rebounds and Lanae Adams scored 19 points and made seven steals.
GAME ON … VIU’s basketball teams head off on the road Friday (Feb. 12) and Saturday to take on the Capilano Blues and the Douglas Royals, respectively.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com
As requested, here’s Morgan Proctor’s 4th-quarter dunk from today as VIU beat Langara 82-62… pic.twitter.com/ZIiYSoqK4q
— Greg Sakaki (@BulletinSports) February 7, 2016
