Winnipeg, Man. – The top-seeded University of Victoria men's basketball team captured their third-straight Canada West conference title with a 96-91 win over the third-seeded University of Winnipeg, Feb. 25, at the Investor's Group Athletic Centre.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Winnipeg jumped to a 7-0 lead over the first two minutes of the game until Diego Maffia drilled a three to put the Vikes on the board, 7-3, with 7:45 to go in the first frame.
• The Wesmen's lead grew to double-digits before a Griffin Arnatt three brought their lead back down to nine, 20-11, with 5:13 remaining in the first.
• Four points from Robinson on a jumper and two free throws brought the score to 33-19 with 32 seconds to go before the Wesmen put the final points on the board to hold a 35-19 advantage after one quarter of action.
• Aaron Tesfagiorgis' three opened the second quarter scoring, and after Maffia jumper matched one by the Wesmen, brought the score to 37-26 with 8:10 to play until halftime.
• A Robinson three and layup in consecutive possessions made it a 10-point game, 43-33, with 6:39 still on the clock, and led to Winnipeg calling a timeout.
• Fouled on a made layup attempt, Maffia missed the extra point from the free throw but it was rebounded by Elias Ralph, leading to a Robinson three to pull the Vikes within six, 48-42, with 3:54 to go until halftime.
• A steal and fast break layup by Robinson with 15 seconds to go brought the Wesmen's lead down to 52-46 at the end of the first half. The Vikes outscored Winnipeg 25-17 during the second quarter.
• A Robinson floater opened the third quarter scoring for the Vikes, bringing the Victoria within four, 52-48, with 9:17 to go in the third.
• Back-to-back layups from Robinson and Maffia pulled the Vikes within three, 58-55, with 6:49 on the clock, before a Maffia three tied the game, 58-58, at the 6:15 mark of the frame.
• A quick Winnipeg run put the Wesmen back ahead 68-62, but a Robison three, Ethan Boag put-back, and second Robinson three at the buzzer put the Vikes ahead, 70-68, at the end of the third quarter.
• Boag's layup and ensuing three-pointer to match one by the Wesmen led to a four-point Vikes lead, 75-71, with 8:05 to go in the fourth quarter, before a layup from Robinson made it a six-point game, 77-71. 
• Though Winnipeg pulled within one, 83-82, Maffia's layup put the Vikes' lead back to three, 85-82, with 3:13 to go, and was followed by a Smid put-back to match Winnipeg's layup and keep UVic's lead at three, 87-84, with 2:39 to go.
• Doubling the Vikes' lead, Ralph's three put the Vikes up 90-84 with 1:39 still on the clock, and was followed by a Smid dunk for a 92-84 lead with 57 seconds to go.
• Five Winnipeg free throws in the final 20 seconds make the score 96-91 with five seconds to go, but the Vikes' lead was enough to hold off the Wesmen and claim their third-straight Canada West title. 

WORTH NOTING

• Robinson led the Vikes' offence with 33 points, adding three rebounds, three assists, and two steals in the win.
• Maffia, Smid, and Ralph added double-digit scoring nights with 18, 14, and 10 points, respectively.
• Boag led the Vikes in rebounds with 10, also recording seven points in 15 minutes on the floor.
• The Vikes' third-straight conference championship marks the first three-peat in Canada West history since seven-straight gold medals were won by the Vikes from 1978-1984. The Canada West title also marks the 18th in program history.
• The Canada West final featured the Vikes and Wesmen for the second-straight season, as the Vikes also defeated Winnipeg by a score of 95-80 to capture the 2023 conference title. 
• Victoria overcame sharp shooting by the Wesmen in the first half, as Winnipeg held a 62.5% shooting percentage to the Vikes' 47.4% after two quarters of play, translating to an 18-point deficit that the Vikes came back from in the win.
• The Vikes sit at 20-3 on the year and 3-0 in playoff action with the championship win.

THOUGHTS FROM HEAD COACH CRAIG BEAUCAMP
"There are so many good teams in our conference, as was displayed here this weekend. I think the biggest testament for me is the quality of teams in Canada West- for us to find a way to scratch out three wins in a row is obviously a great accomplishment, but we also have bigger aspirations and would like to another step when we get to the national tournament. 

"We knew we were going to face an awfully good Winnipeg team. And though Diego [Maffia] and Elias [Ralph] have carried us, I thought Renoldo [Robinson], Ethan [Boag], and Shadynn [Smid] really stepped up for us and made big plays, and that was big for us." 

UP NEXT
The Vikes await seeding for the U SPORTS Final 8, set to take place March 8-10 at Université Laval.