Katie Langdon more than earned her keep Saturday night on the Ken and Kathy Shields Court at CARSA Performance Gym.
The third-year University of Victoria Vikes forward turned in a gritty effort, battling UNBC Timberwolves’ post Vasiliki Louka down low all evening as the locals gutted out their eighth-straight victory in a 76-64 basketball win over the visitors.
Langdon finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds as the Vikes improved to 12-4, clinched their Canada West playoff spot over the weekend and now look for home-court advantage in the post-season.
Tasked with facing Louka, Langdon bore down, particularly in the second half, while youngsters Aleah Ashlee and Ashlyn Day were equally as determined in the win.
Amira Giannattasio led the way offensively for the Vikes with 13 points. Day, Ashlee and Kristy Gallagher all finished with 10 points apiece.
Louka had a game-high 19 points and 12 boards, but she had reached 15 and 10, respectively, by halftime. Maria Mongomo added 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Timberwolves and Madison Landry had 13 points.
“She’s a very good player, a very elite player in this league and probably one of the best post players we’ll meet,” a tired looking Langdon said of Louka afterward. “I think in the second half, we just really locked down on defence, got the boards.
“We rebounded a lot better in the second half and I think that was the big thing for us. She gave me a good battle.”
Louka and Mongomo took their turns eating up the Vikes inside in the first half, developing a 40-36 lead at the break after trailing 18-17 after the first quarter.
The biggest lead of the opening half was just five points as the Timberwolves led 29-24 midway through the second quarter. It was a tussle throughout until the Vikes opened it up in the dying minutes.
“They’re tough,” said Vikes coach Dani Sinclair. “Landry, Mongomo and Louka — those are starters on any team in our conference and they’re real tough.
“Katie deserves a lot of credit. In the first half, a lot of those points were put-backs. I think, in one possession, Louka had three offensive rebounds, but Katie limited her to one shot only and we brought some help to her. You know Louka is going to get her points, but we did a much better job in the second half.”
Sinclair was delighted with yet another team effort.
“We have kids who just play for the team and play hard, and Aleah is a prime example of that. She does whatever the team needs. She was guarding Mongomo all weekend and she did a good job.”
In men’s play, the Vikes bounced back with authority with an impressive 106-77 win over UNBC to improve to 9-7.
Justin Kinnear led the way with 29 points, while Graeme Hyde-Lay added 21 and Mason Loewen 18, rebounding from a disappointing loss on Friday.
Both UVic teams are at home next weekend as Mount Royal of Calgary ventures in with Friday night’s clash serving as the annual Shoot for the Cure game as the Vikes continue their support and for breast cancer awareness.
mannicchiarico@timescolonist.com
Twitter/tc_vicsports
