By Sarah Taylor

The University of Winnipeg Wesmen defeated the UBC Thunderbirds 90-81 in the opening game of a weekend series Friday evening at the Dr. David F. Anderson Gymnasium in Winnipeg.

The victory by the Wesmen is their first against UBC since the 2005 season.

Winnipeg with the win climbs above the .500 mark with a record of 4-3. UBC with the loss sits with a record of 1-4.

Fourth year forward Jelane Pryce had his third consecutive double-double finishing with 25 points and 10 rebounds (both game highs). Christopher Baxter added 19. Travis Krahn scored 13 points, including three-three pointers. Jamar Farley added 10 points. Fifth year guard Jordan Clennon had nine assists and eight points.

Tommy Nixon led the T-Birds with 21 points. Brylle Kamen and Kedar Wright added 14. Connor Morgan scored 11 points and grabbed seven rebounds.

The teams were dead even at 19-19 until Jordan Clennon drained a half court shot as time expired to give the Wesmen a 22-19 lead after the opening 10 minutes.

Winnipeg continued their hot shooting outscoring the T-Birds 27-20 in the second quarter to carry a 49-39 lead into the halftime break.

Both teams shot reasonably well in the opening half. UBC connected on 16-of-30 (53%) while the Wesmen were 19-of-36 (53%).

The hometown Wesmen extended their lead to 68-52 after three quarters as Winnipeg outscored the T-Birds 19-13 in the quarter.

The T-Birds made a charge in the final quarter and were able to cut the Wesmen lead into single digits. Both teams took turns exchanging three-pointers but it was not enough as the T-Birds were forced to foul with time ticking away. Winnipeg responded and drained their free throws down the stretch to earn a 90-81 victory.

The teams will face off again on Saturday at 5:00pm.