Weekend Preview: Basketball Huskies ready for strong challenge on home court from Kodiaks, Trojans
One week after the Keyano Huskies Volleyball teams took on the Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks and SAIT Trojans on the road, the Basketball Huskies will take center stage as they play host to the Kodiaks and Trojans in the final home weekend for basketball in the first semester.
Women’s Basketball Preview
Game: Friday, November 22 vs. Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks (4-2) at 6:00pm, Saturday, November 23 vs. SAIT Trojans (6-0) at 6:00pm
Location: Syncrude Sport & Wellness Centre
Watch: https://acactv.ca/ & Telus Optik 1998
At 4-2, the Huskies rank third in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference’s (ACAC) North Division with an important opportunity ahead of them. They can either keep pace with the Lakeland Rustlers and TKU Eagles or slip into the middle of the division. The gap of six points between the Huskies and the non-playoff teams will be tested in the final two weekends of the regular season.
In the Kodiaks and Trojans, they’ll face two sides looking to create room in their own divisional race. Both South Division squads enter the weekend ranked in the top three though with second through sixth separated by just two points, both sides will be eager to create breathing room.
The Trojans enter the weekend as the lone undefeated team from the South Division, leading with a 6-0 record. They’ll face the Huskies after coming off what is sure to be an intense matchup against the Lakeland Rustlers Friday night.
Player to watch: Arian Batallones (Whitehorse, Yukon) started her first game of the season in the team’s win against the St. Mary’s University Lightning but had been a strong presence off the bench before. The Huskies will need more of those contributions outside of their starting five if they’re going to be successful moving forward.
On a young team, their rookies have a chance to take that forward step and it’s perfectly understandable that they’ll take time to grow into that role. There’s also room for them to wait for the rookies to seize that opportunity on nights where the team’s starters can account for upwards of 80 per cent of the offence and play big minutes.
Down the stretch and into the playoffs though, that need for scoring from the bench will become greater.
Men’s Basketball Preview
Game: Friday, November 22 vs. Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks (4-2) at 8:00pm, Saturday, November 23 vs. SAIT Trojans (4-2) at 8:00pm
Location: Syncrude Sport & Wellness Centre
Watch: https://acactv.ca/ & Telus Optik 1998
The Keyano Huskies Men’s Basketball team will add two more chapters to their rivalries with the Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks and SAIT Trojans this weekend on the home court.
While the Huskies have won the two meetings against the Kodiaks in the regular season since interdivisional play resumed, both matchups were close deep into each game. Both teams are enjoying strong starts to their season but enter the weekend facing different predicaments.
At 5-1, the Huskies want to use this weekend to create more room between themselves and the teams chasing them in the North Division. Despite being 4-2, the Kodiaks actually find themselves on the outside of the playoffs at the moment. They’ll be motivated to use this weekend to change their standings for the better and could be a handful for the Huskies in that sense.
Saturday, the Huskies and Trojans will meet at the Syncrude Sport & Wellness Centre for the first time since last year’s ACAC Men’s Basketball semi-final. The two sides faced each other in Calgary during the exhibition season with the Trojans taking a seven-point win.
After two losses to the perfect Briercrest Clippers to begin the regular season, the Trojans have reeled off four-straight wins and will look to make it five and six on their trip through the North Division this weekend. Marcus Masters is once again leading the Trojans, averaging 22.0 points per game. The Huskies will also have to contend against the top-shooting team in the conference from beyond the arc with the Trojans shooting 35.6 percent on their three-point attempts this season.
Player to watch: Evan Meyer (Oshawa, Ont.) hasn’t had to be the biggest offensive option for the Huskies this season, but he’s excelling all the same. Despite averaging three fewer minutes per game this season, Meyer has seen increases in rebounds, assists, and blocks per game. He’s also kept his shooting percentage from the field at 50%, placing him among the top student-athletes in the conference.
It’s one of the telling signs to the Huskies’ success this year that it’s by committee and everyone has been handling their business to date.