When the 2018/19 men’s basketball season ended last year, the story was better than Cascades fans could have hoped for. After a tough second-round playoff series against UBC that did not favour UFV, there was no doubt that the team had performed up to expectations, if not beyond them. The doubt was about the next chapter, as the Cascades lost three quality players: Mark Johnson, Navjot Bains, and Andrew Morris.
Things didn’t look that much better when fans learned that star centre Sukhman Sandhu would not be rejoining the team. 2019/20 was shaping up to be a major down year for the program.
Yet, there was one question that could change the course of the season for the Cascades: could players step up? Could new and returning players rise for the team?
The answer was yes, but the season began with as much doubt as the last season ended with. Parm Bains, UFV’s senior point guard, showed early that his offensive game was dramatically improving, as he became one of the top three-point shooters of the Canada West conference and U Sports. Senior Matt Cooley, who had played quietly the season prior, jumped up as the Cascades’ starting centre and began systematically altering games with skillful passing and playmaking. Cascades star senior Sukhjot Bains raised his game for the team, showing improvements in his jump shot and his confidence with the ball.
One might think that this spelled a new era for the Cascades, but eight games into the season the team was 3-5 and still looking for its identity without its previous stars. Three seniors raising their games would ultimately not be enough to return to the second round of the playoffs. However, a cold night in January ***would prove to be a pivotal moment for UFV.
2020 started with a weekend clash against arguably the team’s biggest rival, the UBC Thunderbirds, led by former NCAA talents Jadon Cohee and Manroop Clair. The Cascades lost their opening home match of 2020, and the future for UFV seemed bleak.
The next night, things changed. The Cascades fought tooth and nail against the Thunderbirds, battling for rebounds and maintaining the score so that they were never too far out from a shot at a win. When Clair missed the game-winning shot for UBC and the horn sounded, the crowd burst into cheers. It was then that the new version of the Cascades was born.
The Cascades began gathering wins and seeing big contributions from players other than the trio of star seniors. Jaskarn Bajwa, a new transfer, started to show impressive shooting skills, coming down the floor in transition and giving the Cascades a tall wing to throw the ball to. Jordyn Sekhon, a third-year player, stepped up when he started to find his rhythm offensively and improve his shot. If the question going into the season was shooting, the Cascades answered it.
Vlad Mihaila came to UFV as a first-year guard from Semiahmoo Secondary in Surrey and contributed as a rookie. His play-making ability combined with his height of 6’4 proved valuable for the Cascades, especially since the team’s star guards Parm Bains and Vick Toor are shorter players.
The team went on to have a nine-game win streak toward the end of their 2019/20 season; however, the playoffs loomed large for the squad who had come up short a year before. This team, considered by many as less talented, shocked its supporters when it repeated the success of last season and defeated the University of Winnipeg in overtime of their first-round playoff match. A clutch shot from rising star Sekhon sent the game to overtime, where the Cascades ran away with the game to add another playoff victory for Adam Friesen, the head coach of the Cascades.
Their second-round match against the reigning national champions, the Calgary Dinos, would be a very tough test, as star point guard Parm Bains was injured and could not play. UFV lost to the Dinos in a close game which signalled the end of this year’s campaign.
Those who followed the team this year learned one thing: this team is still growing and progressing. The coaching staff, the players, and the drive from the fans have shown spectators that when this team seems to go down, they rise back up. Losing Parm Bains, Matt Cooley, and Sukhjot Bains is a dramatic loss of talent for the team, but as we learned last season, hope is not lost as long as coach Friesen and this group of players continue playing and progressing for UFV.
Image: UFV Athletics
Photo: Daniel Adediran
