By Kyle Balzer (Contributor) – Email
Date Posted: October 20, 2011
Print Edition: October 19, 2011
This past Saturday night, the UFV men’s basketball team hosted the UNBC Timberwolves. The team got off to a good start in the first quarter with veterans Kyle Grewal and Mike James dominating on both ends of the court.
Coach Barnaby Craddock, who is in his fifth year as head coach, explained, “We need to stick with our defensive principles for longer periods of time and that’s going to be a necessity to get some wins this season.”
By half-time, the men in white led the game 42-34. After a scare in the third quarter, with UNBC getting to within four points, the Cascades pulled away. Guard Sam Freeman scored nine of his game-high 18 points in the third quarter; it was his efforts that kept the Timberwolves at bay.
“We’ve been happy with Sam’s play. He played very strong during the third quarter when we started to pull away. He is one of those players that has been setting the tone for the team this year,” coach Craddock said.
After a wide open fourth quarter, UFV was able to hold on for the win by a score of 94-76. Sam Freeman was the top scorer, with 18 points, followed by Kyle Grewal and Joel Friesen, who each scored 17 points.
Although this is the pre-season, coach Craddock is satisfied with the way the team is looking. “Once we start to play the other universities in the next few weeks, we need to put four good quarters together to get some wins. We are pleased with our pre-season, but we got some work to do.”
The Cascade’s season doesn’t officially start until November 11, but you can still catch their pre-season action as they host the Honda Way Tournament starting October 28.
