Saturday night in Kelowna, the UNBC Timberwolves women’s basketball team (2-6) dropped the back-half of their weekend double-header to the UBC Okanagan Heat (4-4). Jaeli Ibbetson put forth another double-double effort for the Heat with 22 points and 15 rebounds while Sofia Ainsa Lluch chimed in with 16 points off the bench. For UNBC it was once again the tandem of Rebecca Landry (14 points) and Sveta Boykova (14 points) who did the heavy lifting offensively. Boykova added 12 rebounds to her totals which secured her third double-double of the season.
Rebecca Landry roared out of the gates for UNBC as she bagged nine of her eventual 14 points in the first 10 minutes of play. Landry’s quickness and grit played out at both ends of the floor as she had three rebounds and was a perfect four-for-four on field goals. Defensively, Sergey Shchepotkin’s club held the Heat to a 30 percent shooting percentage (6/20) and out-rebounded UBCO by a 12-10 margin. One quarter through and the score was dead-locked at 15-15.
The opening three minutes and five seconds of the second quarter proved fruitful for UNBC as Sveta Boykova hit three consecutive shots, and Viktoriia Filatova and Sophia Fuller both nailed jumpers to stake the visitors to a nine -point lead at 25-16. However seven of the next eight field goals belonged to the Heat and thanks largely to a 13-point output from Sofia Ainsa Lluch, the Twolves found themselves trailing 43-31 at the half.
UBCO found their next gear in the third quarter as they outscored UNBC 20-7. The Timberwolves struggled going just 3/15 from the field while UBCO hit six field goals and added five free-throws. The third quarter catalyst for UNBC was rookie Viktoriia Filatova who notched five of the seven total TWolve points.
Jaeli Ibbetson (five points) and Nicole Pajic (six points) combined for 11 of UBCO’s 19 fourth quarter points as the hosts outscored UNBC 19-8 in the final 10 minutes. Amrit Manak nailed a three while Rebecca Landry, Sveta Boykova and Adaiah Tupas-Singh all found the scoresheet for UNBC who would ultimately fall by an 82-46 score.
For the second night in a row Sveta Boykova played tough, steady, two-way basketball. The Moscow product’s 14 points, 12 rebounds, and relentless overall effort were big factors in getting her the Earls Road Warrior of the Game award for the second time in as many nights.
The TWolves will return to action in the early days of 2024 on home soil. The Timberwolves play host to the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns beginning Friday, January 5th at 6:00 pm PT.