Posted: Feb 14, 2018
Jack Pengelly | UC Dinos
CALGARY – Following their first-round bye, the No. 5 University of Calgary Dinos men's basketball team takes on the Saskatchewan Huskies at the Jack Simpson Gym in what is expected to be a quarter-final series chalked full of offence.
DETAILS:
Date: Friday, Feb. 16, Saturday, Feb. 17, & Sunday, Feb. 18 (if necessary)
Start Times: 8 p.m. MT Friday, 7 p.m. MT Saturday, 3 p.m. MT Sunday (if necessary)
Venue: Jack Simpson Gym
HEADLINES:
- Saskatchewan comes into the game fresh off their 82-80 victory over the Victoria Vikes. The Huskies took the lead with less than 10 seconds to play and were able to stave off the Vikes.
- Calgary swept Saskatchewan in early December, defeating them 92-77 and 77-68. From that point onwards, the Huskies closed the season with an 8-2 record.
- This marks the second consecutive year Calgary and Saskatchewan have met in the Canada West Playoffs. Last season the Dinos defeated the Huskies 111-106 in overtime to claim the bronze medal.
No. 5 CALGARY DINOS (16-4)
- The Dinos ended the regular season with the third-best offence and second-best defence in Canada West. Leading the nation in steals, Calgary has been unyielding against opposing offences all season.
- Head Coach Dan Vanhooren must decide how deep to take his rotation in playoffs. Calgary has received invaluable contributions from the second and third units throughout the season, in their previous two matchups, The Dinos bench outscored the Huskies bench 55-3.
- Entering the weekend at a torrid pace, the Dinos have won seven of their last eight games. Calgary has been able to consistently control the pace of the games during that stretch and will look take advantage in transition of a Huskies team that sees all five starters average more than 29 minutes per game.
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (10-10)
- Fourth-year guard Lawrence Moore will look to get back on track this weekend. In their victory against the Vikes, Moore was limited to 6-18 from the field for 13 points, however, in each of their previous 10 games he had registered over 20 points and finished second in Canada West with 24.0 points per game.
- The extent to which Saskatchewan runs a tight rotation cannot be overstated. In their victory over the Vikes, only seven players saw the court for the Huskies, including second-year guard Emmanuel Akintunde who played all 40 minutes.
- Joseph Baker led Canada West with 10.4 rebounds per game, however, the Huskies find themselves second to the bottom in team rebounds. Taking care of the basketball and getting extra looks offensively will be paramount against the stingy Calgary defence.