Friday, Jan. 4: Cascades (8-4, T-3rd in Canada West) vs. Brandon Bobcats (2-8, 15th in Canada West), 8 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 5: Cascades vs. Bobcats, 7 p.m.
Envision Financial Athletic Centre
Webcast: CanadaWest.tv

The Cascades men's hoopsters cruised into the Christmas break with a ton of momentum, having won seven straight dating back to an 80-73 upset victory on Nov. 10 over the Alberta Golden Bears, the No. 5-ranked team in the nation at the time.

Head coach Adam Friesen's squad has played hard-nosed, disciplined basketball throughout the streak. They take great care of the basketball, ranking third in Canada West by surrendering just 11.7 turnovers per game. And they do outstanding work on the glass, sitting third in the conference in rebounding margin (+5.0 per game).

"As a group, we're hungry to continue playing good basketball, and our leaders are staying focused on what the objectives are for the season," Friesen said.

The Bobcats, meanwhile, boast the conference's top scorer in Tyvon Cooper, and they'll provide a stiff test for the Cascades' defence. Brandon, though, has struggled at the defensive end, allowing a league-worst 93.8 points per game and 1.14 points per possession.

"Defensively, we have to make sure we're first getting back in transition and making Tyvon work for those baskets, making him see a lot of bodies between him and the rim," Friesen analyzed. "Offensively, we need to keep doing what we're doing – working until we find a great shot, and not settling for the first decent opportunity we see."

Players to watch: Cascades fifth-year forward Mark Johnson is putting an exclamation point on his university career. The 6'6" Palm Springs, Calif. product is averaging 14.4 points per game, second-most on the team, along with a team-best 8.8 rebounds, ranking fifth overall in Canada West in that category. The UFV squad relies on him not only for his production, but for leadership as well. The aforementioned Tyvon Cooper is in the midst of an outstanding season for the Bobcats. The 6'2" guard's 23.4 points per game not only lead Canada West, he's ranked third in the nation in scoring. Cooper is a dangerous shooter from beyond the arc, hitting 42.9 per cent, and shoots 7.3 free throws per game, tied for second-most in the conference.