By Dan Elliott (Manager, Media Relations)

The UBC Thunderbirds women's basketball team opened up the Darcel Wright Memorial Classic with a convincing 69-42 victory over the OUA's York Lions Friday evening in Toronto. The annual tournament features eight teams from across the country including UBC, York, McMaster, Cape Breton, Calgary, Guelph, Saskatchewan, and host Ryerson.

The Thunderbirds jumped out to a 25-10 first quarter lead and never looked back. UBC led 40-14 at the break, thanks in large part to shooting 58.3 per cent from the floor, on route to the 69-42 victory.

Eleven of UBC's 12 players scored in the game. Fifth-year post Harleen Sidhu led all scorers with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Adrienne Parkin and Kara Spotton also finished in double figures, scoring 12 and 10 points respectively.

Courtney Osborne was the high scorer for the Lions with 14 points.

"We had good intensity and were able to set the tone and tempo in the first half," said UBC head coach Deb Huband. "We were able to get a good look at our roster which is important for determining roles moving forward. We look forward to the challenge from McMaster tomorrow."

The Thunderbirds were strong on both ends of the court limiting the Lions to 35.7 per cent shooting from the field, while only turning the ball over nine times. 

UBC will face the McMaster Marauders in the semifinals of the tournament. The Marauders defeated Cape Breton 64-51 on Friday.

Game time is set for 2 p.m. (PT) tomorrow at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto.

IMAGE CREDIT: Rich Lam/UBC Thunderbirds