Lethbridge - After using the long-ball to win the game Friday night, the UBC Thunderbirds put their considerable size advantage to work against the Lethbridge Pronghorns, as the T-Birds dominated the play down low to bury the 'Horns 78-38 Saturday night at the 1st Choice Savings Centre in Lethbridge.
Fourth-year Thunderbird Adrienne Parkin finished one rebound shy of a double-double, leading all scorers with 21 points while pulling down nine boards in the win. 5th-year guard and Canada West third leading scorer Kris Young chipped in with 15 points and seven rebounds for the Thunderbirds, who moved to 7-3 after completing the sweep this weekend.
Lethbridge, losers of three straight, fell to 4-8 on the season. Kim Veldman, the senior standout out of Immanuel Christian high school in Lethbridge, shot 5-13 from the field to pace the 'Horns attack.
First-year forward Kylie Mazutinec opened the scoring for the Pronghorns, who looked to keep pace with the hot-shooting Thunderbirds in the early going. The 'Horns led 6-5 in the opening minutes until the T-Birds erupted for a 16-0 run on the strength of Parkin's play down low. Parkin had a game-high seven points in the quarter as UBC took a 21-6 lead into the first break.
Turnovers and poor shooting hurt the Pronghorns in the opening frame where they shot just 21.4% from the field and gave the ball away six times. The T-Birds shot 52.9% to start the game and dominated the glass with a 15-5 rebounding advantage.
Again the Pronghorns started the quarter strong, going on a 5-2 run in the first two minutes of the second quarter while appearing to work their way back into the game. However, UBC responded with a huge run to extend the lead to 34-11. 6'2" forward Harleen Sidhu and 6-foot Parkin dominated the action down low, getting easy baskets and finding their way to the charity stripe at will.
UBC held a 40-18 advantage after two quarters, as Parkin shot 6-8 from the field to lead all scorers with 13 points. Sidhu added 10 points for the T-Birds, with most of her damage coming from the free-throw line.
Canada West leading scorer Kim Veldman was the lone bright spot for the 'Horns in the opening half as she put up 11 points on 4-8 shooting and pulled down five rebounds. The 'Horns limited their turnovers to two in the quarter but shot just 20% from the floor and made only one-of-12 three point attempts in the half.
UBC led 58-24 at the end of three quarters as Parkin and Sidhu continued to lead the Thunderbird attack with 18 and 14 points, respectively. The T-Birds kept the hot-hand, shooting at a 50% clip in the third quarter while the Pronghorns struggled to find the basket and saw their field-goal percentage dip below 20% for the game.
With the game well in hand the Thunderbirds went to their bench in the fourth quarter as the lead stretched to 42 at one point. The T-Birds kept the 'Horns at bay and cruised to a 40-point victory.
UBC finished the night shooting 49.2% from the field compared to the 'Horns 22.4%. Secondary scoring was tough to come by for the Pronghorns as Mariah Miller and Zoe Dahl, who each contributed double-digit points Friday night, went a combined 0-12 from the field on the night. Allexia Barros, the 'Horns number-two scorer on the season, struggled to find her rhythm all night and shot just 3-15 for eight points.
The Pronghorns will remain at home next weekend, welcoming Southern Alberta rival Calgary Dinos to Lethbridge for a pair of games, including its annual Shoot for the Cure night on Saturday. UBC heads home to take on the Brandon Bobcats in Vancouver.