It took six weekends of play, but the University of Victoria Vikes finally have their first sweep.
It couldn’t come at a better time for the men’s basketball team, which followed up Friday’s lopsided 35-point victory over the UBC Okanagan Heat with a 75-65 triumph on Saturday in Kelowna.
The Vikes come home for four straight and six of their final eight in the Canada West regular-season schedule, hoping to secure a playoff spot. With the two victories, UVic improves to 5-7 while the Heat remains ice-cold at 2-12.
“We knew that tonight wouldn;t be easy,” said Vikes coach Craig Beaucamp. “We shot the ball so well [Friday].
“For the most part, we played solid. We gave up a couple of runs in the second half.”
Grant Sitton had a red-hot start to the night, hitting his first three three-point attempts in building up 16 points by the half. He finished with a game-high 24, despite struggling with a charleyhorse injury. Justin Kinnear collected 18 points and 10 rebounds and Claremont grad Taylor Montgomery-Stinson added 12 points.
“He had a really good weekend and he’s a guy who has come on for us,” Beaucamp said of Montgomery-Stinson.
The Vikes turned down the Heat early, taking a 23-4 advantage after the first quarter and a 39-26 lead at the half. A 62-45 lead after three disappeared as the Heat closed to 68-62 late.
In women’s play, the Vikes improved to 8-4 with their fourth straight victory by way of a 75-52 win over the Heat.
Nicole Karstein led the way for a second straight night for coach Dani Sinclair’s Vikes, following up Friday’s 22 points and 10 rebounds with 17 points and eight boards. Off to a quick 10-3 lead, Karstein had eight of those points before stalling out at 11 at the half.
Jenna Bugiardini finished with 15 points and nine rebounds while Jenna Krug added 12 points.
Unlike Friday’s back-and-forth tussle, the Vikes took command early and never relented in building up 22-13, 46-24 and 58-41 leads by quarters.
“Winning on the road on a Saturday night is not easy,” Sinclair said. “Our girls came out and executed really well from the start and mostly at the defensive end. We were really active defensively.”
As for Karstein, Sinclair was delighted with her weekend’s work that included 39 points and 18 rebounds.
“We knew we wanted to try and take advantage inside and she was up to the task,” said Sinclair.
Both Vikes teams will be home to the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Friday and Saturday at the CARSA Performance Gym.
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