Bearcats Face Falcons
The first quarterfinal of the playoff tournament features the CBC Bearcats and Langara Falcons
#4 CBC Bearcats vs. #5 Langara Falcons – Thursday March 5, 12:30pm | WATCH HERE
The PACWEST basketball championship tournament will open on Thursday on the women’s side of the bracket when the defending CCAA national champion Bearcats meet the Falcons in a quarterfinal.
They met four times during the regular season with the Bearcats winning three of them by an average of 13 points. They last met in a home-and-home at the beginning of February with the home team each winning the game they hosted.
The Bearcats come into the postseason winning two of their last three games and split their six contests within the month of February. Overall, they shot 33% from the field and scored over 59 points a game but only Kagari Tomita averaged double digits with 12.4 each contest.
Over the course of the season, the Bearcats have traditionally been a slow starting team as the first quarter has been their worst, giving up more points than any other. They usually bounce back in the second frame and finish strong in the fourth. It sounds cliché but they need to hit their shots and opportunities when they present themselves and take care of the ball after averaging over 18 turnovers a game if they want to advance in this tournament.
The Falcons in the meantime are coming into the playoffs on a hot streak winning five of their six games in February and won four straight to conclude the regular season. Their only loss in February was to the Bearcats.
They are scoring over 60 points a game this season and shooting 35% after starting the season losing nine of their first 10 games. Since the semester break, they are 8-4 and seem to be gelling at just the right time. Their offence has been “scoring by committee” without a player averaging double figures. Like the Bearcats they will need to take care of the basketball after averaging over 19 turnovers a game.
One of the reasons for their recent success is the play of their defence holding teams to an average of 62 points a game. Nadia Singh has been an impact player in the paint not allowing many easy shots and leads the club with nine blocks.
This is a do or die game for both schools. The winner advances to the semifinal where they will face the top seeded VIU Mariners, while the loser’s season abruptly ends.