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Russian post Boykova brings Universiade experience to T-wolves

First it was a season-ending knee injury that spoiled her Canada West debut, now it’s the pandemic. But do not despair UNBC Timberwolves fans.
04 UNBC basketball Svetlana Boykova
UNBC Timberwolves post Sveta Boykova dribbles the ball in a game in July 2019, when she was captain of Team Russia at Universiade in Napoli, Italy. The 24-year-old from Moscow is looking forward to playing her first Canada West games for the T-wolves next season.

First it was a season-ending knee injury that spoiled her Canada West debut, now it’s the pandemic.

But do not despair UNBC Timberwolves fans. Svetlana (Sveta) Boykova will eventually get to play basketball in Prince George and she plans to stick around for at least the next five seasons.

The six-foot-one post from Moscow, who twice represented Russia at Universiade, also known as the World University Games, gives the T-wolves an immovable anchor in close proximity to the net, the size and strength they’ve lacked ever since all-star post Vasiliki Louka graduated to the professional ranks two years ago.

The Canada West season has already been canceled, with no national championship to play for, and during the current pandemic lockdown teams are not allowed to play exhibition games or even scrimmage in practice. That means  the 24-year-old Boykova won’t get show off the slick moves and stoic leadership that made her Russia’s choice as captain national team for the Universiade tournament in Napoli, Italy in July 2019.

The T-wolves signed her two summers ago. The mother of a friend of hers in Moscow knows head coach Sergey Shchepotkin and his wife Alla - both former national team players in Russia - and told them about Boykova. After talking to her on the phone, Sergey arranged to meet Boykova on a basketball court in Russia for a couple one-on-one sessions. Having heard the positive endorsements from her coaches he knew what to expect and wasn’t disappointed.

“I wanted to see her on the court and I played against her in practice and she convinced me she can play at this level and I was happy to take her,” said Shchepotkin.

 “It’s challenging to recruit to UNBC so I was happy to find that experienced (player) who I don’t have to teach the fundamentals,” he said. “She already knows how to be tough under basket, she has high basketball IQ, she knows how to help on defence. She’s tough to play against. On offence, she’s a good shooter and she’s a good rebounder. She was a captain of Russia’s university team so she has a lot of leadership. I’m pretty sure she can be a leader.”

Louka played five seasons for the T-wolves from 2014-2019 and was the first UNBC female athlete to be named to the Canada West first all-star team. She’s the team’s all-time leader in points, rebounds, block and minutes played.

“We needed to replace Vasiliki and Sveta’s style looks like Vasiliki’s,” said Shchepotkin. “ She has big experience playing on the student national team in Russia and she likes to play under the basket and she has a good shot, like Vasiliki. But it’s not my purpose to compare her with Vasiliki, it’s just good to know we cover all those areas.”

Boykova is one of two Russians on the T-wolves’ roster along with fourth-year guard  Alina Shakirova of Moscow. Shchepotkin’s contacts in Europe also led to the signing of six-foot-two forward Laura Garmendia Garcia, who also red-shirted with a knee injury last season. Garmendia Garcia is from Spain, the same country that produced T-wolves’  point guard Maria Mongomo, who graduated last spring after five stellar seasons.

Boykova, who hurt her knee last summer in a game against the T-wolves alumni squad, is convinced the T-wolves will be competitive against Canada West opponents once they have the green light to start playing again. The short-staffed T-wolves advanced to the second round of playoffs a year ago while four players sat out with knee injuries and two others were sidelined with concussions.

“I like my team,” said Boykova. “They’re really good, they have skills, they have good personality and our coach is amazing. They’re pretty young but they have good backgrounds and they really want to grow. And I know that I can help them and that coach can improve their skills.”

Boykova has been playing basketball since she was seven, when she was first identified by the Russian sports school system, and she grew up in a specialized program with her academic schedule built around basketball training sessions. She’s played the game in 24 countries and has been exposed to a wide range of basketball styles and strategies, based on the physical size of the teams she faced, which helped develop her defensive versatility.

Universiade is a mini-Olympics and the highlight for her was the athletes’ village in Taiwan, where for 2 1/2 weeks she and her teammates were grouped together with athletes in all the other sports from each of the countries.  Russia finished fourth in the 2017 Universiade in Taiwan and placed fifth in Napoli two years later.

Boykova spent her first semester in Prince George living with the Shchepotkins and their two kids and that helped her learn English in a hurry. Boykova switched to the commerce program at UNBC last fall and has just begun a double-major in finance and accounting which will take five years to complete. The 2020-21 Canada West season has been cancelled because of COVID and because she was unable to play for the T-wolves last season and red-shirted that means Boykova could end up being part of the team for seven seasons by the time she graduates.

This year won’t count against university eligibility for U Sports athletes and the T-wolves could potentially return eight veterans for 2021-22, including seniors Madison Landry and Emma VanBruinessen, fourth-year Shakirova, third-year vets Cevanna Carlson and Lucy Guan and sophomores Anastasia Soltes and Rebecca Landry.

VanBruinessen is graduating after the current term and won’t be back next season but there’s still a chance the all-star forward, Madison Landry will return if she doesn’t get into medical school. Boykova and Garmendia Garcia head the T-wolves’ rookie crop along with forwards Bella Mesquita and Maggie Mowser and guards Sarah Kuklisin and Jenna Korolek, a Kelly Road Secondary School grad.

The T-wolves last played two months ago when they traveled to Kamloops for two exhibition games against Thompson Rivers University and one against UBC-Okanagan – all wins. They were all set to host TRU for a couple more games at Northern Sport Centre the following weekend when the order came down from the province to restrict teams from traveling.

“I can’t say the games I played in November were my best games, because I was not in my normal shape and conditioning because I skipped one,” said Boykova.  “But I will say that now it’s January, I’m doing better than in the games in November.”

“I’m really happy we’re having face-to-face practicing. A lot of the teams in the province are just practicing on Zoom (due to COVID restrictions), and I have no idea how that works.”

Provincial health orders currently in place until Feb. 5 forbid any team scrimmages but the team is allowed to run no-contact drills as long as the players maintain at least three metres of separation from each other on the court. They will continue practicing at least until the end of February. If the ban on games/scrimmages is extended Shchepotkin said there won’t be any more games scheduled until players return to Prince George in the summer.