BRONZE CIS championship: No. 1 UBC rebounds, finishes third
Photo credit Nick Pearse
HALIFAX (CIS) – Playing in his final university game, Alex
Murphy scored a career-high 36 points as the top-seeded University
of British Columbia Thunderbirds rebounded from a heartbreaking
semifinal loss with a 111-95 bronze medal win over the No. 3
Saskatchewan Huskies at the CIS men’s basketball
championship, Sunday afternoon, at the Halifax Metro Centre.
Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/mbkb
The T-Birds, who had reached the national final each of the past
two years, let a 16-point evaporate Saturday night against
archrival Trinity Western en route to a 74-72 loss.
The third-place match, which was returning to the CIS tournament
for the first time since 1986, was a rematch of last week’s
Canada West final – won 107-100 by UBC – and last
year’s CIS title game, where the Huskies prevailed 91-81 to
capture the first W.P. McGee Trophy in program history.
With 206 combined points, the conference rivals set an all-time
championship record. The T-Birds also tied the second highest
single-team tally in history.
Murphy, a guard from Richmond, B.C., was one of three seniors
wearing the UBC uniform for the last time this weekend, along with
guard Josh Whyte of Calgary and forward Brent Malish of Langley,
B.C. Whyte, a first-team all-Canadian this season and the CIS MVP
in 2009-10, had to sit out the bronze medal duel due to an
injury.
Murphy, who earned player-of-the-game honours, broke his previous
personal best of 34 points, which he set in last weekend’s
conference final. His 36 points are also a tournament high going
into the championship match. He was nine of 16 from the field,
including a remarkable 7-of-10 from beyond the arc, and went
11-of-12 from the free throw line.
“Alex was sensational. I’m very happy to see him finish
this way,” said UBC head coach Kevin Hanson.
“It’s not an easy game to play, but at least it was
entertaining for the fans.”
Three other Thunderbirds scored in double figures including Nathan
Yu of Prince George, B.C., with 17 points, Malish, with 16, and
Kamar Burke of Mississauga, Ont., who ended the campaign with a
15-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Jamelle Barrett, a third-year guard from California in his first
season with the Huskies, was once again sensational for
Saskatchewan. The 5-foot-10 junior scored 28 points to follow up on
a 28-point performance on Saturday in a 95-83 semifinal loss to
Carleton and a 27-point tally on Friday in a quarter-final win over
Dalhousie.
Michael Lieffers, a 6-foot-8 forward from Saskatoon, had 23 points
and nine rebounds in the losing cause.
UBC was only up 29-28 at the end of an entertaining first quarter
but outscored its opponents 35-18 in the second frame to head to
the locker room with a comfortable 64-46 halftime lead.
It was 89-75 after 30 minutes.
The T-Birds shot 49.4 per cent from the floor, 39.3 per cent from
beyond the arc (11 for 28) and 76.2 per cent from the charity
stripe.
The Huskies kept success rates of 51.4, 33.3 and 76.2 in the same
three categories.
GAME NOTES: The previous tournament record of 201 combined points
dated back to the 1972 gold medal final when UBC defeated Windsor
117-84... UBC’s 117 points in the 1972 title match still
stand as the single-game mark for one team... The Thunderbirds hold
the three best single-game performances of all-time as they also
scored 111 points in a consolation match against Brandon in 1991
(111-81 win)...
STAT LEADERS
UBC
Points: Alex Murphy (36), Nathan Yu (17), Brent Malish
(16), Kamar Burke (15)
Rebounds: Kamar Burke (11), Alex Murphy (6)
Assists: Kamar Burke (8), Alex Murphy (6)
Player of the game: Alex Murphy
Saskatchewan
Points: Jamelle Barrett (28), Michael Lieffers (23),
Trevor Nerdhal (12)
Rebounds: Michael Lieffers (9), Nolan Brudehl (7)
Assists: Jamelle Barrett (10)
CHAMPIONSHIP
SCHEDULE & RESULTS (All times ATLANTIC TIME)
Friday, March 11
Quarter-final #1: UBC 96, Acadia 77
Quarter-final #2: Trinity Western 82, Lakehead 74
Quarter-final #3: Saskatchewan 91, Dalhousie 79
Quarter-final #4: Carleton 73, Concordia 66
Saturday, March 12
Consolation #1: Lakehead 75, Acadia 67
Consolation #2: Dalhousie 76, Concordia 65
Semifinal #1: Trinity Western 74, UBC 72
Semifinal #2: Carleton 95, Saskatchewan 83
Sunday, March 13
Consolation final (5th place): Lakehead 84, Dalhousie 80
Bronze medal game: UBC 111, Saskatchewan 95
17:00 Championship final: Trinity Western vs. Carleton (TSN2
– tape delayed to 19:00 AT)
-CIS-
