Metro Vancouver…..The KPU Eagles men’s basketball team fell 87-59 to the Quest University Canada Kermodes on Friday and 104-72 to the Capilano University Blues on Saturday at home in Surrey, BC. The Eagles record is now 2-8 in regular season PACWEST CCAA play, including 0-2 in a three-game series this year with the both the Kermodes and the Blues. The Eagles continue their January home-stand in Surrey when the Langara College Falcons and Douglas College Royals come to town.
Game recap versus the Quest University Canada Kermodes
The first quarter saw the Kermodes gain 19-point run at the expense of the Eagles due to KPU’s shooting difficulties and some costly turnovers. The scoring gap would extend to 23 in favor of Quest as the KPU trailed the visitors 41-18 at halftime. The Eagles would continue to struggle to find offensive momentum, but played with heart and energy through until the final buzzer. Quest left the Eagles Nest with a win of 87-59.
“I think we needed to get more to the three-point line in the second half than we did. We needed to be more aggressive offensively and we should have attacked the front rim better,” noted Eagles Head Coach Vladimir Nikić, “I think we played well against a top team in the PACWEST, we were engaged with every possession but we have some things that we need to improve on.”
First-year guard Brenden Bailey, Coquitlam, BC led the way for the Eagles in scoring for the night (22 points, four rebounds, three assists, one steal). This past week Bailey was nationally-ranked in the CCAA, tied for 10th place in scoring (8 games played, 176 points, 22 average points/game). First-year power forward Matt Cooley, Delta, BC, was also a leader for KPU (12 points, five rebounds, one assist, two blocked shots). Cooley was also nationally-ranked in the CCAA this past week as 30th in rebounds (8 games played, 63 rebounds, 7.88 average rebounds/game). The Eagles shot 20% in the first half and 57% in the second for a game average of 42%.
Leaders for the Kermodes included third-year guard Dallas Searles, Kirkland, WA, USA, (22 points, nine rebounds, one steal) and third-year forward Theo VandenEkart, Sultan, WA, USA (17 points, four rebounds, eight assists, one steal). Quest shot 71% in the first half and 63% in the second for a game average of 65%.
Scoring:
KPU 6+12+25+16 = 59
QST 19+22+18+28 = 87
Total Rebounds:
KPU 11+16=27/QST 31+23=54
Game recap versus the Capilano University Blues
Saturday night’s game against the Blues saw the Eagles keeping the game within reach, down by seven points at the end of the first quarter and then outshooting the Blues in the second to only trail Capilano 43-39 at halftime. Similar to the previous night’s game against the Kermodes the Eagles struggled in the second half as they struggled with their shots and lost a number of valuable possessions. The Blues won 104-72.
Bailey finished the night as KPU’s scoring leader (20 points, three rebounds, nine assists, three steals), followed by Cooley (19 points, 10 rebounds, one assist, three blocked shots), and first-year shooting guard Jaiten Rana, Delta, BC (14 points). First-year forward Trevor Schulz, Richmond, BC had a strong defensive game (six points, seven rebounds, one assist, five blocked shots). The Eagles struggled on the line with 0% in the first half and 36% in the second for a game average of 30%.
The Blues were led by second-year guard Andrew Morris, Burnaby, BC (21 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, one blocked shot, one steal) and second-year guard Paulius Makulavicius, Vancouver, BC (20 points, eight rebounds, four assists, one steal). Capilano shot 77% from the line in the first half and 62% in the second for a game average of 67%.
“We shot well in the first half, our shooting percentage was good, but we ran out of gas. We played really well last night but we ran out of gas today,” commented Coach Nikić, “We gave up too many offensive rebounds and didn’t move the ball. Defensively we didn’t stay in front of the ball and they dribbled through us. We needed the energy that we had last night, so we have some things we need to work on before the next games coming up.”
Scoring:
KPU 16+23+17+16 = 72
CAP 23+20+32+29 = 104
Total Rebounds:
KPU 16+24=40/CAP 30+35=65
The Eagles will spend the entire month of January at home in the Eagles' Nest, for full schedule, please visit http://www.kpu.ca/athletics/teams/basketball-men/schedule-results1415. The next game will be Thursday, January 22th at 8:00pm versus the Langara College Falcons and then Saturday, January 24th 2015 at 8:00pm versus the Douglas College Royals.
The Eagles women's basketball team are proud to announce their second-annual Canadian Breast Cancer Awareness Night on Friday, January 30th 2015. The Eagles will host a silent auction and t-shirt sale starting at 5:30pm to raise funds for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation's BC & Yukon chapter. The event is cash-only and gate, silent auction, and shirt sales will be donated to Breast Cancer Research.
Photo Credit: KPU Sports Information
For more information on the Department of Athletics & Recreation, please contact Junelle Mah, sports information and marketing, at 604-786-0804 or at junelle.mah@kpu.ca.
The KPU Eagles Department of Athletics & Recreation enters its 14th season of interuniversity competition. The Eagles are members of the PACWEST conference and play in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) with 100 student-athletes participating on eight varsity teams in men’s and women’s basketball, soccer, badminton and golf. KPU athletics plays its home games at the Eagles’ Nest (Surrey Campus), Northview Golf & Country Club, Newton Athletic Park, all located in Surrey, BC and the Ace Badminton Centre in Richmond, BC. The Eagles are active in the conference with staff members on various advisory committees and competing to host both provincial and national championships. The student-athletes are mainly from the lower mainland but KPU’s rosters have included student-athletes from North America, South America, Asia and Europe.
Follow the Eagles on Twitter @KPU Eagles, on Facebook www.facebook.com/KPUEagles, or on our website www.kpu.ca/eagles.