Cacti, coyotes and the desert are not exactly three of the first things that come to mind when thinking about Christmas, but the Quest University Kermodes men's basketball team got its fair share of all three this holiday season.
The team embarked on a road trip to the American southwest during the holidays, travelling to Phoenix to take on three different American teams in the El Portal Holiday Classic tournament.
The Kermodes opened the trio of games on Dec. 28 against the Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) Coyotes. Quest was dominated in the first half, falling behind 41-17, but played much better in the second and was outscored just 40-38. Four Coyotes players scored in double figures in the game, with forward Brandon Tuggle leading the way with 18 points. Forward Adam Milkovich and guard Drew Young-Suggs were dominant on the glass for CGCC, picking up 13 and 15 rebounds, respectively.
The next day the team took on the Phoenix College Bears. It was Quest's best result on the weekend but Kermodes still lost 80-58. The final game for the Kermodes took place on Dec. 30 and the team lost to the South Mountain Community College Cougars by a score of 81-49.
The men's team will resume league play on Jan. 14 when the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) Timberwolves come to town for a pair of games. The women's team will also return to league play taking on UNBC for two games. The women's games are scheduled to tip off at 6 p.m. on Jan. 14 and Jan. 15 while the men's games start at 8 p.m. All games will take place at the Quest University gym.
For more information on the teams, visit www.questkermodes.ca.
