KAMLOOPS - Points were at a premium in a defensive showdown between the TRU WolfPack and UBCO Heat, with both teams making life difficult for opposing shooters. Eventually, it was the Heat who managed to find enough offence to pull away, handing the WolfPack a 57-41 setback on Sunday, November 1 inside the TCC.
The early parts of the first quarter were marked by both programs working to get their respective offences going, combining to make just two of the first 17 field goal attempts in the quarter. Both the Heat and 'Pack's defensive approaches were effective through ten minutes, and the score clock read just 10-7 in favour of UBCO at the end of the opening frame.
The opening minutes of quarter two continued to see the Pack generate offensive looks, but have many of their attempts not fall through the cylinder. At the other end, the Heat started to put points on the board, with Kanani Coon and Temi Aina making jumpers for Bobby Mitchell's team.
Hailey Merrigan, reigning Canada West Player of the Week, eventually broke the TRU cold streak, cutting the Heat lead to 18-11 midway through the frame, as Scott Clark's program looked for some momentum to salvage a frustrating offensive half of basketball. A pair of Morgan Eichenberger buckets in the final two minutes gave the WolfPack something to feel positive about heading into halftime, but the home team found themselves down 25-20 at the half.
Merrigan led the way with eight points to go along with four rebounds, while Eichenberger hauled in 12 rebounds. Kanani Coon, fresh off a 29-point performance to open the season, had six points to lead UBCO after 20 minutes. While both teams struggled to score, the Heat advantage could be attributed to their 11-3 edge on the offensive glass, leading to 12 more field goal attempts than the Pack.
The duo of Merrigan and Eichenberger continued to look to assert itself for the Pack, but at the other end, Aina, Coon, and Sydney Lewis helped the Heat stretch their lead to a dozen points. Clark called a timeout at the 2:36 mark of the third quarter, looking to find some secondary scoring to cut into the deficit. Thankfully for TRU, their defence continued to hold strong, but they found themselves trailing 43-30 with ten minutes to play. Merrigan and Eichenberger both had 12 points after the third, but no other TRU player had more than two points.
The clock was not the WolfPack's ally in the final quarter, as every time they showed life, the Heat would make a timely basket at the other end. Ultimately, UBCO did enough to keep any TRU comeback aspirations at bay, topping the WolfPack 57-41.
Kanani Coon led the way with 18 points and 6 boards for the Heat, while Sydney Lewis added a 12-point, 12-rebound double double. Merrigan would finish with 14 points and 14 rebounds, playing 38 minutes in the process. Eichenberger would score 15 points, and tied the TRU single-game program record with 20 rebounds.
With the victory, the Heat would improve to 2-0 on the season, while the WolfPack fall back to .500 with a 1-1 record. TRU will have a bye week next weekend, before hitting the road for matchups with the UFV Cascades and UBC Thunderbirds.
