For the first time, Canada West’s women’s basketball tournament is being held in Abbotsford, and kicked off on Wednesday, Feb. 21. After compiling a remarkable 17-3 record this season, the UFV Cascades have shed their “underdog” label, earning a first-round bye for finishing in the top-four teams. The Cascades’ first game of the tournament will be against Regina on Thursday, Feb. 22
Hosting this tournament is an event that UFV has been building towards as a team for multiple seasons, head coach Al Tuchscherer explained.
“We have a pretty good team right now. We’ve been together for a few years — we’ve been building this team since 2019 and the players have had lots of experiences now. They have experienced stuff together, they’ve worked hard together, and I wouldn’t say we’re an underdog at this point, so let’s go and get er’ done.”
The Cascades are relishing the opportunity to play host, having established a thorough home-court dominance this season, winning nine of ten on their own floor. In a tournament as condensed and competitive as this, coach Tuchscherer expects the team to draw on their regular season success at home to give them an edge.
“I think it’s really exciting to play on your home court. You can keep the event a bit more normal by sleeping in your own bed and keeping some of the routines, and just the comfort of playing on your court in front of your friends goes a long way, for sure.”
Deanna Tuchscherer, a forward in her fourth year, described the team’s motivation to make Abbotsford a tough place to play for opponents.
“I think it’s a pretty special opportunity, when we get to play at home, on our home court, in front of our friends, family, and the kind of community that we have here in Abbotsford. So it’s definitely not something we take for granted, and we’ve kind of talked about that throughout the year, about making that an advantage for us just knowing that we do have playoffs here this year.”
UFV ended the regular season with back-to-back wins over Trinity Western, extending their streak of victories to seven games. Coach Tuchscherer says the wins are a result of how close the team has become.
“We’re feeling pretty good about our game right now. I think, just in general, we’re a pretty close team. We’re a tight-knit group, and the girls play really hard for one another and you know, I think we’ve just continued to get better and better as the season has gone on… We’re going in with a real positive frame of mind.”
Deanna Tuchscherer expressed her team’s objectives remain short-term, keeping focus on the upcoming game at hand.
“I don’t really think we think about streaks; we just want to play the best basketball we can, the way that we know how to play, and if we can do that every game, every possession, whatever it is, and just focus on what we’re doing at that point in time, then we’ll be fine”
The type of success UFV has had this season is driven by contributions from up and down the roster. At the conclusion of the regular season, the Cascades ranked higher than average in both rebounding and steals, while ranking far lower than average in turnovers committed. “I think we have a team that has a lot of depth and a lot of trust in each other,” said the power forward, who specified that what has contributed to their success is “the ability to lean on each other and trust each other on the court and off the court, to lean into our individual roles.”
Coach Tuchscherer and his staff are preparing for the tournament by reviewing video and looking into how to analytically get the most out of his team once the pressure starts in Game 1 on Feb. 22.
“You’re going to look at different stats and the analytic side of things,” said coach Tuchscherer. “Video is a super important part of what we do… you have all that information so readily available to you. That stuff does become important, just in how you’re breaking your team down. We’re a pretty solid team at both ends of the floor; we have pretty good numbers both ways.”
Tickets for the tournament at the UFV Athletic Centre are available through the Cascades’ website. The Cascade is sending positive energy and good luck — not that they’ll need it — to the team as they begin their home court defence.
