Vasilki Louka was getting frustrated.
Double- and triple-teamed by the Manitoba Bisons whenever the ball came near her Saturday at the Northern Sport Centre, the six-foot-four UNBC Timberwolves forward protested a late-game mauling by the Bisons while contesting a loose ball and got no love from the officials.
Slapped with a technical foul, Louka, the leading rebounder in the Canada West conference, tried to keep her temper from reaching the melting point.
At that point, with about two minutes left in the game, the T-wolves had the game well in command, leading by nine on the way to a 90-81 victory which gave them a split in their weekend series with Manitoba.
While Louka didn’t dominate the boards like she usually does, she still managed 20 points and 10 rebounds – just another day at the office for the fifth-year veteran from Athens, Greece.
“They play a pretty good defence and they are a tough team and it was hard for us to go the basket and it was really difficult to score but in the end we found our way and got this win,” said Louka.
“I played with a double-team the entire game and they didn’t give me any fouls so I was kind of mad. Obviously (the technical call) was my fault. I’m a fifth-year so I should hold myself accountable and not get mad.”
Maria Mongomo set the tone early, hitting her first four attempts from three-point range to give her team a 10-point bulge after one quarter. She finished with a game-high 25 points and led all players with 17 rebounds. Madison Landry contributed 23 points and had five assists, Alina Shakirova had a 13-point game and Abby Gibb handed out eight assists for the T-wolves.
“This year we have a lot of players who can score and contribute different ways on our team and I think that’s why our record is better than last year and the other years,” said Louka.
Bisons fourth-year forward Emma Thompson lit it up, nailing seven of 13 three attempts for a 23-point game. Taylor Randall was also a three-point threat while collecting 21 points and Nicole Konieczny contributed nine assists and 11 points.
The Bisons, skunked in all six trey attempts in the opening quarter, heated up in the late stages of the half. Thompson hit both her long shots and Randall also found the range to keep it within nine, down 45-36 heading into the final 20 minutes.
In the third quarter, Thompson and Randall continued to have the hot hands and in the final minute of the quarter the Bisons drew a couple of fouls and forced a turnover during a seven-point run which gave them a 62-60 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Shakirova’s defensive hustle under the rim led to more turnovers. Mongomo was money in the bank for UNBC when she was able to get free and Gibb delivered a timely three in the middle of a nine-point run which gave the T-wolves the lead again. Landry and Skakirova then traded points the rest of the way to seal it.
The win improved UNBC’s seventh-place record to 9-5. The Bisons, who beat UNBC 76-69 Friday, dropped to 6-8, 11th in Canada West.
Thompson knew it was going to be tough to sweep the two games and the T-wolves were tougher to contend with in the rematch.
“They stepped it up at every angle today and our defence wasn’t great in the first half and we got ourselves into a hole,” said Thompson. “We pushed back but they’re an outstanding team, they rebound hard and they pass well.”
In the men’s game that followed, Manitoba beat the T-wolves 69-65, a day after they edged UNBC 66-63.
“We have been struggling on offence, so we have some things to figure out,” said T-wolves forward Anthony Hokanson. “We can hang our hats on the fact that we had a good defensive weekend, but we really need to get our offence going forward.
“They threw some different looks at us, switching up some zone coverages and man coverages. If we can be faster in recognizing what teams are playing, that will help us.”
The T-wolves came into Saturday’s game averaging 84 points per game. Both teams struggled in the offensive end and after three quarters the T-wolves trailed 46-38. They got the deficit down to five with about three minutes left when James Agyeman nailed a three and Hokanson hit both his free throws
Then with 1:07 left, Jovan Leamy stole the ball and found his three-point range to make it a 67-65 game. Leamy missed on his jump shot with 32 seconds left and Austin Chandler got the rebound but couldn’t put it in. James Wagner iced it with 16 seconds left when he sunk both his foul shots. Vova Pluzhnikov’s buzzer-beating attempt fell short of the target.
Wagner led all shooters with 16 points and had 10 rebounds. Rashawn Browne had 14 points and forced eight turnovers.
For UNBC, Hokanson and Pluzhnikov each finished with 14 points, while Leamy had 13.
The UNBC men (7-7) have now lost three straight and they remain seventh in Canada West. The two wins in Prince George left the Bisons (5-9) 14th in the 17-team league.
Both T-wolves teams hit the road the next two weekends, playing at UBC and Alberta before they return home to end the regular season with a two-game set against Lethbridge.
