Sunday, March 6: No. 3 seed Cascades vs. winner of Round of 16 game (No. 6 Winnipeg vs. No. 11 Mount Royal/No. 16 Thompson Rivers winner), 7 p.m. MT / 6 p.m. PT
Mount Royal University / Calgary, AB
Webcast: CanadaWest.tv presented by Co-op

THE MATCH-UP

The Cascades, ranked No. 8 in the latest U SPORTS national poll, are off to Calgary for Canada West's new 17-team, March Madness bracket-style playoff tournament. As the West Division champions, they're the No. 3 seed overall and will enjoy a double bye all the way to the quarter-finals.

Their opponent in the quarters will be the winner of a Round of 16 match-up between the Winnipeg Wesmen and the survivor of a first-round clash between the No. 11 Mount Royal Cougars and the No. 16 Thompson Rivers WolfPack. The Wesmen are heavy favourites to advance to face the Cascades – they're a deep veteran team that went 14-2 in conference play and currently sits No. 5 in the U SPORTS national rankings.

RECENT FORM

The Cascades had a seven-game win streak snapped in their regular-season finale, as they fell 68-63 to the UNBC Timberwolves on the road last Thursday. That result cost the UFV squad in terms of playoff seeding, but their double-bye was intact as they'd already clinched the West Division.

Whoever the Cascades end up facing will likely find points tough to come by – UFV led Canada West in opponents' field goal percentage (29.9 per cent) and ranked second in points allowed per game (55.0).

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Deanna Tuchscherer, UFV – The Cascades' outstanding sophomore forward finished fourth in the CW scoring race, averaging 17.6 points per game, and she also ranked among the conference's per-game leaders in rebounding (7.6, 10th) and assists (3.0, 12th). Her versatile skillset means she can impact the game in a number of ways, and she'll be a handful for the Cascades' quarter-final opponent.

Keylyn Filewich, Winnipeg – The reigning Canada West player of the year had a banner campaign as a senior, averaging a double-double (17.3 points, 10.5 rebounds) in highly efficient fashion (51.7 per cent shooting from the field). If the Wesmen advance, UFV will have work to do to keep Filewich off the glass. In the event of a Round of 16 upset, keep an eye on the top scorers for Mount Royal (Jenika Martens, 13.2 ppg) or TRU (Kyla Smith, 7.6 ppg).

QUOTABLE

"I think we got away from our identity in that last game (vs. UNBC). Something we always pride ourselves on is defence, and in that second game, you could tell we lost some of that grittiness. This week, it's about going back to the basics, or the non-negotiables as we call them." – Cascades senior guard Alexis Worrell, on how last Thursday's loss at UNBC has helped her team refocus heading into the playoffs

"I feel like we're approaching the playoffs the same way we have all season, and during the COVID year as well. There have been a lot of unpredictable things that have happened to us over the last couple years, things you just have to work with. So I think it's about coming in with the mindset that we're ready to adjust. It's about being prepared to make adjustments, and go with the flow, and not let those unpredictable things or unknowns draw us away from our game plan." – Cascades sophomore guard Maddy Gobeil, on how her team is approaching the playoffs