VICTORIA – The University of Victoria men's basketball team completed the sweep of the University of Saskatchewan with a 79-58 victory, Jan. 27 at CARSA Performance Gym.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Back-and-forth for most of the first quarter, the Vikes created some separation on two Elias Ralph jumpers and a Diego Maffia three, taking a 17-11 lead with 1:49 to play in the opening quarter.
• Scoreless for the remaining time, the Vikes' lead went down to two, 17-15, after the first 10 minutes of play.
• Though Sask took the lead at the start of the second quarter, a Sergio Pereira layup and Maffia three put the Vikes back up by four, 22-18, with seven minutes until halftime.
• The Vikes' lead continue to grow, with a Maffia three making it a 28-20 game for UVic with 5:18 to go.
• Saskatchewan would use the final minutes of the second quarter to pull back within one, 30-29 with 1:33 to go, before a Renoldo Robinson jumper brought the halftime score to 32-29 for the Vikes.
• Four-straight Shadynn Smid points opened the third quarter scoring for the Vikes, making it a 36-29 game with 8:32 remaining.
• Reaching a 10-point lead on a Ralph three at the halfway point of the quarter, 31-21, the Vikes would extend that advantage to 16 after finishing on a 5-0 run to take a 60-44 lead into the final quarter.
• Outscoring the Huskies 19-15 in the final quarter, the Vikes came away with the 79-58 win.

WORTH NOTING

• Maffia led the Vikes with 31 points, adding a team-high seven assists in 32 minutes on the floor.
• Aaron Tesfagiorgis and Ralph each added double-digit scoring performances with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
• Griffin Arnatt led the Vikes in rebounds, tallying a season-high 12 in the win, adding five points, one steal, one assist, and one block to his stat line.
• The Vikes move to 11-3 on the year with the win, while the Huskies drop to 8-8 after the loss.

UP NEXT
The Vikes host Brandon University at CARSA Performance Gym, Feb. 2-3.