Shorthanded and undersized, the UNBC Timberwolves fought valiantly before falling short against the TRU WolfPack, dropping a 68-57 decision on Friday at the Northern Sport Centre.
The WolfPack and T-wolves have a history of low-scoring games against each other, and in the first quarter the two teams combined for just six made shots and 20 points. The score after 10 minutes was 11-9 in favour of the visiting Pack.
“I thought we fought hard and we got really good looks, we just didn’t hit shots today,” said UNBC forward Daniel Kopf. “You have to trust your teammates and the work we have put in, be solid on defense and believe if we get another good look, we will hit it.”
In the second quarter, things opened up. Relatively. For UNBC, inside presence Spencer Ledoux found his stroke for a trio of tough buckets, while TRU used their considerable length advantage to get to the rim for easy baskets. Daniel Bost paced TRU with seven points, while big man Brad King added six points and three rebounds. UNBC was led by Tyrell Laing who had 13 points.
In the third frame, the WolfPack started to heat up, led by Simon Crossfield who made a pair of big three-pointers to help TRU build a mild lead. The Pack did get up by 10 points, before UNBC’s Vova Pluzhnikov made a pair of treys to help the T-wolves claw back into the game. Heading into the fourth quarter, TRU held a 51-45 lead.
However, it was the final stanza where the weary Timberwolves dug a hole they couldn’t get out of. Missing big men Fareed Shittu (suspended) and Rohtash Mattu (ankle injury), UNBC ran out of gas, and faced an even bigger challenge when Ledoux fouled out of the game early in the quarter. Daniel Kopf and Chris Ross fought valiantly in the paint, but King was a force, leading to good looks for Crossfield and Brendan Sullivan.
Ultimately, UNBC ran out of time, falling 68-57 to the tough WolfPack. Crossfield was the story, going 4-for-4 from beyond the arc in the second half, and making five for the game. His 17 points led TRU, while King added 10 points and six rebounds, and Sullivan chipped in with 13 points.
For UNBC, Laing was the high man, scoring 21 points. Ledoux added 13 points, while Ross had nine points and 10 boards. Pluzhnikov had six points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists.
The two teams play a rematch Saturday at 6 p.m. at the NSC.
“We need to get a good rest, just trust our plan, and hopefully we hit our shots,” said Kopf. “When we have Roh and Fareed, they help us clean some of our mistakes. We can’t make those mistakes.”
