Metro Vancouver…..The KPU Eagles men’s basketball team dropped both weekend games on their Island road-trip, bringing their 2015 PACWEST regular season record to 2-17 for seventh place in the conference. The Eagles fell 76-49 to the fifth-place Camosun College Chargers in Victoria, BC on Friday, and 136-63 to the first-place VIU Mariners in Nanaimo, BC on Saturday. KPU will travel to Douglas College in New Westminster, BC to take on the Royals at 8:00pm on Thursday, February 26th. The final game of the regular season will take place against the Langara College Falcons on Saturday, February 28th at 8:00pm in Vancouver, BC.
Game recap versus the Camosun College Chargers, season series 3-0 for Camosun
The Eagles came out strong in the first quarter with great shot selection to keep within a three-point deficit of the Chargers, 23-20 after 10 minutes. A low-scoring second quarter pushed KPU to an eight-point gap, 35-27, but the third and fourth quarters saw the Eagles struggle. The Chargers offense out-scored the Eagles 21-11 in the third quarter and 20-11 in the fourth as KPU lost their sixteenth game of the season to Camosun, 76-49.
First-year guard Brenden Bailey, Coquitlam, BC led the Eagles (16 points, one rebound, two steals) in scoring. First-year power forward Matt (Madison) Cooley, Delta, BC (13 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, four blocked shots, two steals) continues to prove he is a strong inter-university competitor on both ends of the court. This is Cooley's sixth season double-double. The Eagles shot 62% from the line and pulled down 40 boards.
Leaders for Camosun included third-year forward AJ Beaudry, Winnipeg, MB (11 points, nine rebounds, two assists, three steals) and third-year forward Kevin Transchel, Victoria, BC (11 points, nine rebounds, one assist, one steal). The Chargers had 56 team rebounds and shot 76% from the line.
“We played well on Friday in the first-half against Camosun, it was an 8-point game at the half. We played as a team, we rebounded well and limited turnovers,” said Eagles head coach Vladimir Nikić, “In the second-half we ran out of energy and were not able to compete against a fit team for the full 40 minutes.”
Scoring:
KPU: 20+7+11+11=49
CAM: 23+12+21+20=76
Rebounds:
KPU: 21+19=40/CAM: 22+34=56
KPU power forward Nick Smith shoots from the line against VIU
Game recap versus the VIU Mariners, season series 3-0 for VIU
Similar to the night before against the Chargers, the Eagles played a strong first quarter, but were unable to maintain their momentum against the number one-ranked Mariners. Turnovers, rebounds, and fatigue played factors as the young Eagles squad fought to generate consistent leverage on offense and defense. Down at the half 67-29, the Eagles fell 136-63 after 40 minutes; KPU’s traveling partner, the CBC Bearcats, fell to a similar fate the previous night to VIU 121-59.
First-year Eagles forward Trevor Schulz fought hard for the Eagles and led the team in scoring for the night (14 points, five rebounds, one assist, one steal), followed by Cooley (12 points, one rebound), and Bailey (11 points, one rebound, four assists). KPU ended the night with 25 rebounds and shot 83% from the line.
VIU was led by fourth-year guard Justin King, Las Vegas, NV, USA, (28 points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals) and second-year guard Bryson Cox, Nanaimo, BC (20 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three steals). The Mariners shot 92% from the line and pulled down 54 boards.
“We played strong for the first eight minutes, matched up well, even played man-on-man defense and contained them on boards,” said Coach Nikić, “But then things fell apart because we ran out of energy. We had a tremendous amount of turnovers and were out-rebounded. On both days our layups were below 30%, our three-point shots were below 0% and at this level we can’t afford to miss those. We’ve got some work to do.”
Scoring:
KPU: 12+17+19+15=63
VIU: 33+34+36+33=136
Rebounds:
KPU: 12+13=25/VIU: 25+29=54
The KPU Eagles men's basketball program will host their 2015 Player Identification Camp on April 16, 2015, from 5:00pm to 8:00pm at the Eagles’ home gymnasium on the KPU Surrey campus. The purpose of this camp is to identify any Grade 11 and 12 students or any prospective or current KPU students who are interested in playing interuniversity/collegiate varsity basketball at the PACWEST CCAA levels for the KPU Eagles.
Please pre-register for the men's basketball camp* online by filling out the webform and waiver (see links below) prior to Friday, February 27th 2015. The completed waivers and payment of the $20.00 fee must be submitted to our KPU Eagles staff at the field before warm-ups in order for you to participate.
*Any players 18 years of age and under are required to have their waiver signed by their parent or guardian.
Photo Credit: KPU Sports Information
For more information on the men's basketball 2015 Player Identification Camp, please contact Vladimir Nikić, head coach, at mbasketball@kpu.ca.
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.