VICTORIA - The UVic Vikes men's basketball team hosts the Fraser Valley Cascades in a weekend doubleheader at McKinnon Gym, and both teams are locked in a battle for a shot at the Canada West playoffs.
GAME INFORMATION:
Fri. Jan. 29 vs. Fraser Valley Cascades (McKinnon Gym) - 8pm
Sat. Jan. 30 vs. Fraser Valley Cascades (McKinnon Gym) - 7pm
SCOUTING THE VIKES
At 7-6, the Vikes are a half game behind Fraser Valley for a shot at the post-season. With only three berths from the Pacific division guaranteed, the Vikes need to at least crack the top four to be included in the wildcard selection. UVic is coming off weekend road losses to Calgary (74-91OT) and Lethbridge (63-74), but are 5-2 at home. The Vikes boast the league's no. 2 ranked defence (70.2 p/g) and leading scorer #Cyril Indome# is one of the Canada West's top sharp shooters, averaging 12.2 points and connecting on 42 percent of his three-point attempts.
SCOUTING THE CASCADES
Fraser Valley doesn't rank particularly high in the league's offensive and defensive measures, but the Cascades are loaded in the backcourt with guards Zeon Gray, Sam Freeman and Joel Friesen ranking 1-2-3 in team scoring. Freeman was the Canada West's top frosh last season, and the rookie Friesen is trying to deliver Fraser Valley its second straight ROY award. The last time a school had consecutive Rookie of the Year winners? UVic's Chris Trumpy and Orlando Ferguson went back-to-back in 2000-02.
HEAD TO HEAD
Since the Cascades joined the CIS ranks in 2006-07, the Vikes own a 9-1 advantage in the series. The two teams hooked up earlier this year, in the pre-season Guy Vetrie Memorial Tournament, and UVic took a 76-64 decision with #Zac Andrus# netting 16 points.
MARKETING & PROMOTIONS
Friday: Free slices of pizza from our friends at Hot House Pizza, get here early as supplies are limited... Halftime earn a chance to win a semester of free pizza (over 8 weeks worth) with our shoot-to-win contest; Saturday: The Ocean 98.5FM are bringing a truckload of free prizing including t-shirts, gift cards, concert tickets and more... Halftime entertainment is provided by the UVic Dance Company.
