Calgary, AB – The University of Victoria men's basketball team fell just short in U SPORTS semifinals as Bishop's University prevailed 66-65, March 7 at Jack Simpson Gymnasium.
 
Victoria played disruptive defence in the first, establishing an opening lead.

• Bishop's were having trouble finding their range early in this contest, in large part because of the suffocating defence Shadynn Smid was playing inside the paint.
• Geoffrey James added a pair of deep threes to propel the Vikes to an opening 12-3 lead.
• The Gaiters found their footing as they countered with a scoring run that brought them within four at the conclusion of the first.

 
Back and forth second quarter that set up an exciting second half.

• Cameron Slaymaker found his rhythm as he began to lead the Vikes' offence. The tenacity and grit on display had Victoria being rewarded with trips to the foul line.
• The Gaiters were hanging tough with the Vikes, showing why they were a top team in the nation for most of the season. Bishop's took their first lead of the game midway through the second quarter and held on to take a 35-34 lead to the locker room at halftime.

 
Vikes found themselves trailing late for the first time this postseason.

• The Gaiters continued their scorching ways on the offensive ends, and the Vikes began to slip. A third-quarter scoring run saw the Vikes trailing by double figures for the first time these playoffs. After three quarters of play, Victoria was trailing 59-50.

 
Vikes had no quit but fell just short.

• With their national title hopes on the line, Renoldo Robinson, Geoffrey James, and the Vikes displayed greatness in the face of adversity. Robinson and James carried the scoring load out of the quarter break, prompting a scoring that erased the Gaiters' large lead and had the Vikes trailing by one with six minutes remaining.
• Down the stretch, the game was back and forth as both teams would grab and give up the lead. Entering the final minute, the Gaiters led 66-65 with the Vikes looking to finish off the comeback.
• With 4.9 seconds left and the Vikes down 66-65, Head Coach Murphy Burnatowski called a timeout to draw up the final play of the game. At the buzzer, the shot went just wide.
• Renoldo Robinson was rewarded with the Player of the Game honours for his scoring efforts in the spirited comeback attempt.

 
The Vikes will face the TMU Bold of the U SPORTS bronze medal game tomorrow, March 8, at 12 p.m.