A trip to Calgary was worth the effort for the UBC Okanagan Heat men’s and women’s basketball teams as each picked up their first wins of the Canada West season.
On Friday night, the Heat women used overtime to knock off the Mount Royal Cougars 87-72.
Sarah Allison paced the UBCO attack with 32 points, as the Heat dominated overtime outscoring Mount Royal 17-2.
After losing in overtime a week earlier against Fraser Valley, the Heat was determined not to let it happen again.
“They just knew they were going to win,” said UBCO coach Heather Semeniuk.
Shenelle Tamminen also had a big night for the Heat scoring 19 points, including a three-pointer in the final two minutes of regulation and two more in the extra frame.
UBCO was unable to complete the sweep on Saturday as Mount Royal scratched out a 60-55 victory.
The Heat led 47-40 with eight minutes remaining, but the Cougars rallied with a 20-8 run to earn a series split.
“Mount Royal just played better down the stretch and we didn’t respond when we needed to,” said Semeniuk.
Fifth-year guard Angela White led UBC Okanagan with a season high 14 points and hauled in seven rebounds, while Jessica Jazdarehee finished with a game high 14 boards.
The Heat (3-1) will host the 3-1 MacEwan Griffins for a pair of games this Friday and Saturday at the UBCO gym.
Heat men
After losing on Friday night, the Heat rebounded Saturday for their first victory of the season with a convincing 62-44 win on Saturday night, with four starters scoring in double figures.
Rookie guard Aldrich Berrios was the lightning rod of the Heat’s electric ensemble, with a game-high 14 points, 10 of which were scored in the first half.
David Manshreck added 12 points, while Mitch Goodwin, and rookie Buzz Truss each had 11, as four of the starting five hit in double-digits. Manshreck had a near double-double with nine boards. The Heat’s transition strategy worked wonders as they forced 20 turnovers out of their opponents to create 19 easy points
On Friday night, the Cougars prevailed over the Heat 88-73.
Manshreck had a team-high 20 points for UBCO, while Mitch Goodwin added 15.
The Heat (1-3) are back home this weekend, as they host the MacEwan Griffins for a back-to-back series, Friday and Saturday on the UBC Okanagan hardwood.
