The UBC Okanagan Heat lived up to their nickname from beyond the arc, raining down three-pointers on their way to a 91-79 win over the University of the Fraser Valley men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon in Kelowna.
The Heat were white-hot from the opening tip, swishing their first six attempts from downtown en route to an early 25-6 lead. The Cascades battled all the way back and led briefly in the third quarter, with
Zubair Seyed (25 points) leading the charge, but UBCO warmed up once again from distance to pull away down the stretch.
Kevin Hamlet had a big night for the hosts, racking up 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
The Cascades (8-5) and Heat (2-11) conclude the weekend series on Sunday (12 p.m., CanadaWest.tv presented by Co-op).
"They got into a rhythm in the first four or five minutes, and it felt like we were able to, in the second quarter, kind of weather that storm," UFV assistant coach
Cassidy Kannemeyer said afterward. "But it felt like as soon as Hamlet came in in the third, he was right back where he started, and it had a contagious effect on the rest of their roster. We've got to do a better job of having them shoot more contested shots and not allow them to get into the rhythm."
Hamlet lit the fuse for the Heat – he went 3-for-3 from the land beyond in the first quarter, totalling 14 points as the Heat led by as many as 19. The Cascades eventually found their footing, fashioning a 12-4 run capped by a Seyed three-pointer to cut the deficit to 29-18 at the end of the frame.
UFV locked it down on defence in the second, keeping the Heat off the scoreboard for just shy of five minutes, and they were able to draw even at the half, 36-36, with
Dylan Kinley scoring seven points in the quarter.
Vick Toor's circus layup to open the third quarter gave UFV its first lead of the game, but the Heat caught fire once again from three-point range, hitting five in the frame, with two apiece from Hamlet and Jonathan Haughton. The hosts stretched the lead to 61-47 on a Dallas Hancox dunk.
The Cascades rallied in the fourth, scoring five points in a row to get to within 72-70 with five minutes left. But Haughton answered with – what else? – a three-pointer to kick-start a 7-0 surge, and UFV never threatened again.
UBCO finished 13-for-29 from downtown, compared to the Cascades' 6-for-23 performance.
Seyed shot 8-for-17 from the field and added three assists, Toor scored 13, and
Kyle Claggett posted 11 points and seven boards.
The Heat dominated on the boards, out-rebounding UFV 51-38, and Hamlet led the way with 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Guz Goerzen scored 18, and Hancox contributed 11 points for UBCO.
"I think that Hamlet's rhythm was a big part of their success," Kannemeyer said. "Today he was just on. He did a great job of kind of rallying their troops. Their role players stepped up – Hancox and Haughton gave them good minutes. They outplayed us on the glass, and they shot the ball better than us today. We've got to get back to winning the rebounding battle tomorrow."
