The Peak

SFU sends the Wesmen packing

By Matt Lee

SFU’s historic and unblemished record of 54 consecutive wins unfortunately came to an end over the course of the Olympic break, as the top-ranked Clan dropped a narrow 63-61 decision to the University of Victoria on February 13.

Debbie Yeboah nailed a buzzer-beating jumper with only seconds remaining in the game to end the Clan’s bid for a perfect year. The loss was SFU’s first since October 31, 2008, when the very same Victoria Vikes eked out a 58-57 win.

While the loss proved that Canada’s best basketball program was indeed beatable, Bruce Langford’s squad marched right back onto the court for practices the following day. The club proceeded to head into Abbotsford on February 17 as they took on the University of the Fraser Valley, looking to remind the rest of the CIS they were still the best team in the league.

The team’s crushing 96-38 victory indeed reminded the rest of the opposing teams that SFU wasn’t the number-one ranked school in the country for nothing. The 58-point difference in the Cascades game was SFU’s widest margin of victory since the team spanked Brandon University by a 102-43 score in mid-November.

Four players recorded double digits in points, as Robyn Buna, Laurelle Weigl, Lisa Tindle, and Kate Hole all scored 10 or more in the game. Katie Miyazaki once again led the team in minutes played with 30, while also registering a team-high nine rebounds.

The win allowed Simon Fraser to close out the regular season portion of their schedule on a winning note, giving the club some momentum heading into their postseason series with the Winnipeg Wesmen. The winner of the best-of-three series would advance to the Canada West Final Four as the road to the CIS National Championships draw near.

On Thursday, SFU opened the series with the Wesmen and showed no mercy, crushing Winnipeg by an 87-54 score.

Weigl was a lethal 7-for-9 from the field and connected on four of her free throw attempts to finish with a game-high 18 points. Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe and Buna also finished in double digits with 14 and 12 points respectively. Raincock-Ekunwe and Miyazaki both registered a game-high seven rebounds in the winning effort.

Heading into the affair, coach Langford expressed the need for the team to outcompete their opponents in order to win the game and was satisfied with his team’s intensity.

“I thought in the first quarter we came out and competed hard. We experimented a little bit throughout the game and know we’ve got to stay focused and play hard.”

The Friday night game was an even more impressive result, as the ladies ended Winnipeg’s season, handing the Wesmen their lunch and a 96-49 defeat.

Right from the get go the Clan came prepared to put away the Wesmen, exploding out of the gate on a 19-0 run. By the end of the first quarter the Clan were carrying a ridiculous 26-1 lead, with the single Winnipeg point coming in the form of a free throw.

Kate Hole exploded for a game-high 21 points, the most of any player in the two-game series. Joining the senior Clan player in double digits were Buna and Weigl, who finished with 18 and 15 points respectively.

Buna was especially lethal from beyond the arc, as all 18 of her points came in the form of three pointers. She was a sharp 6-for-9 from downtown.

The Clan were especially dominant from the line, connecting on 11 of their 13 free throws.

Once again, Miyazaki saw more court action than her teammates, seeing 25 of the game’s 40 minutes. Freshman guard Kristina Collins also saw 25 minutes of action.

Following the game, it seems as though the Clan will push senior Lisa Tindle to her physical limits for the the remainder of the season. Tindle, who has been hampered this season by knee injuries and has missed a number of contests, played 20 minutes, registering six points.

While their next opponent remains to be decided, Simon Fraser will be hosting the Canada West’s Final Four tournament this Friday, with game action to get underway at 6:15.