Men's Basketball Tips Off Second Half

Men’s PACWEST basketball tips off the second half of the season this weekend with three games on the schedule.

VIU Mariners @ CBC Bearcats – Friday January 10, 7:00pm | WATCH HERE

The top team in the Conference, the VIU Mariners travel to CBC to battle the Bearcats in a weekend doubleheader beginning on Friday.

The Mariners (12-0) ran the table in the first half and went undefeated which included a pair of wins over the Bearcats in October with an average margin of victory by 34 points.  They shot 41% from the field led by Kameron Bender who averaged 18 points game.  That said, they had very balanced scoring as three players averaged double figures.

As the second half opens the Bearcats (5-7) find themselves tied for fourth place in the PACWEST standings and have won four of their last five games, all before the holiday break.  They will need to play solid defence against the Mariners this weekend and slow down their fast break offence.  During the doubleheader in October they shot 33.3% and were led by D’Andre Palmer-Ormsby who averaged 13.5 points.

These teams will meet again on Saturday afternoon at 2:00pm.

Okanagan Coyotes @ Camosun Chargers – Friday January 10, 8:00pm | WATCH HERE

The second half of the season for both the Chargers and Coyotes opens on Friday night in Victoria. 

The Chargers (9-3) have solo possession of second place coming into the weekend and won four straight heading into the break.  They haven’t seen the Coyotes since the first weekend of the season, earning a sweep with wins by 42 and 25 points respectively.   They shot a blistering 50.7% from the field and Marc Parma averaged 12.5 points each game.

Despite the lopsided scores the Coyotes (1-11) played much better in the second game and will look to build off of that performance this weekend.  In the two games against the Chargers they shot 36.4% and Damani Green led their offence netting 11 points a game.  Heading into the holiday break, the Coyotes captured their lone win of the first half.

These teams will meet for the final time this season on Saturday at 3:00pm.

Douglas Royals @ Langara Falcons – Friday January 10, 8:00pm | WATCH HERE

A pair of schools with high hopes for the second half meet each other this weekend when the Falcons entertain the Royals in a weekend doubleheader.

They met back in October and the Royals (4-8) earned a weekend sweep with both games highly competitive as the Royals won by seven and three points respectively.   Those wins were part of a three-game winning streak by the Royals early on, but they struggled heading into the holiday break, winning just once in their last seven games.  Against the Falcons they shot 32.9% led by Scottie Austin dropping 16.5 points a game.

Meanwhile the Falcons (5-7) have not been as consistent as they would like.  They split heir last four games before the holiday break and need to find some more consistent play here in the second half to make a push towards the playoffs.  In their two meeting at Douglas in October they shot 34.4% and Cameron Vaughn was their main offensive threat averaging 16 a game.

These two meet again on Saturday night at 7:00pm.