It was a disappointing weekend for the Quest University Kermodes men's and women's basketball teams as both sides dropped two games apiece to the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) Timberwolves on Friday (Jan. 14) and Saturday (Jan. 15).
The women's team opened the quartet of games on Friday (Jan. 14) and struggled to score. Quest shot a poor 22 per cent from the field in the first half and head coach Mike Woollard said a lack of teamwork led to the team falling behind early.
"We came out with a lot of energy," he said. "But we didn't play together."
Despite the low shooting percentage, Quest found itself only down by six points at halftime and then fought hard in the second half, nearly escaping with the victory.
"We made some adjustments defensively and began shutting them down, but we fell in love with the dribble today," Woollard said. "We're at our best when we're spreading the ball around and stretching the defence, but we just didn't do that today."
The team also struggled at the free throw line, making only 16 out of 32 in the game. Quest failed to draw close at the end of the game, missing several key free throws and losing 63-57. Forward Nicola Hitchcock was the top performer for Quest as she scored 13 points to go with 10 rebounds.
The men's team didn't fare much better on Friday (Jan. 14) and were simply outgunned by the Timberwolves' high-powered offence. The Kermodes were also victimized by an aggressive defence, which forced Quest to turn over the ball 30 times.
The Kermodes had no answer for the reigning British Columbia College Athletics' Association (BCCAA) player of the year, Inderbir Gil. He dominated on both ends, filling the stat box with 26 points, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds.
"He's a fifth-year guy and an MVP player in this league," said men's team head coach Sean Shook. "He's a guy that probably should be playing in the CIS and had a great game for them."
Shook pointed out that Quest guard Bryce Froberg got into foul trouble early and it caused some matchup problems for the Kermodes. The Timberwolves had a four-point lead after one and built their lead with each ensuing quarter to win 86-57.
"We allowed them to dictate where we started offensively," Shook said. "We didn't take advantage of their aggressiveness and it cost us."
Despite the lopsided score, there were some positives for the men's team. Forward Connor Heinrichs, sporting a new mohawk hairstyle, played his best game of the year. Heinrichs had 13 points and eight rebounds and also managed to stay out of foul trouble. Shook also said it was nice to have forward Tyson Compton back. Compton was studying abroad in the fall and is expected to play a bigger role as he reacquaints himself to the team.
"A game against a strong team like UNBC gets us ready the rest of the league," Shook said. "We know we won't face that kind of defensive intensity again this year."
The men did improve against UNBC on Saturday (Jan. 15), closing the gap to eight points and losing 82-74. However, it was a rough night for the women, who lost 72-58.
With the pair of losses, the men's team is tied for eighth place with a record of one win and eight losses. The women are tied for sixth at 4-5.
Next up for the teams will be a back-to-back set against the Camosun College Chargers on Friday (Jan. 21) and Saturday (Jan. 22). For full details on the games, visit www.questkermodes.ca.
