LANGLEY, B.C. – A brand new chapter in Trinity Western men's basketball is set to launch this weekend, as first-year coach
Trevor Pridie leads a turned over Spartans roster into the Canada West season, starting Friday at Thompson Rivers University.
With an entirely new coaching staff, which is led by Pridie, who was an assistant coach with Raptors 905 in 2018-19, and only six returning players from last year's roster, the Spartans are a new team with exciting possibilities.
Every Spartans men's basketball game will be available live and on demand this season on Canada West TV – the official streaming home of the conference. Passes are now on sale.
COACH TREVOR PRIDIE
"We've had some moments in the preseason where we look like we're going to be really competitive this year. But it's been hard to gauge because we haven't played a lot of U SPORTS teams and we've been dealing with some injuries. I think the guys are excited and I'm excited. I think we'll be able to be competitive. I don't know exactly how good we'll be but I feel that we're improved and that we have some guys who can play and who have bought in. We're going to play a fun style. We're going to get up and down. We have some dynamic athletes and we'll play a fast-paced style and shoot a lot of 3s."
GUARDS
Led by fourth-year transfer
Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath (Amarillo, Tex.), the Spartans will be have an exciting contingent in the backcourt, with a group of five players set to largely fill out the 1, 2 and 3 positions. While Gilbreath has been the star of the preseason and will certainly be one to watch for TWU – he capped the Spartans exhibition slate with a 25-point effort against Mount Royal – the likes of third-year transfer
Riley Braich (Abbotsford, B.C.), who joins the Spartans from the University of the Fraser Valley, second-year transfer
Gabe Mannes (Chilliwack, B.C.), who comes from Columbia Bible College, and returnees fifth-year
Ethan DaSilva (Calgary) and second-year
Isaiah Reimer (Abbotsford), the Spartans have a tidy collection of talent at the guard position.
Last year, Mannes averaged 22.0 points and 4.3 assists per game with CBC, while Braich averaged 7.7 points per game in seven games with UFV in 2017-18. DaSilva and Reimer are TWU's top two returning scorers from last year, as they averaged 9.2 points per game and 7.9 points per game respectively in 2018-19.
FORWARDS
Up front, TWU will look to returnees fifth-year
Jack Nadelhoffer (Tigard, Ore.), second-year players
Daniel Stead (Langley) and
Andrew Goertzen (Langley) and third-year
Aaron Paetkau (Parksville, B.C.) to lead the way. Nadelhoffer, who was limited to just 10 games last year due to injury, was second on the Spartans in scoring in 2018-19, with 11.8 points per game and will be a key piece this year. Similarly, Stead only played in four games last year and will be targeting a much larger role this year as a hybrid option for Pridie. Goertzen and Paetkau will both have expanded opportunities this year, after 2018-19 seasons in which Goertzen averaged 4.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game and Paetkau averaged 3.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. Look for third-year transfer
Adam Gehrig (Toowoomba, Australia) and first-year
Ree Compton (Toronto) to also figure into the mix, as Pridie's style will require the Spartans to use a deep bench.
BY THE NUMBERS
2018-19 CW regular season record: 0-20, 17th
2018-19 CW post-season record: N/A
Head coach:
Trevor Pridie (1st)
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 0
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 2nd (2010-11)
2018-19 CW regular season ranks:
Offence: 73.2 PPG, 15th
Defence: 96.3 PPG, 17th
2018-19 CW regular season leaders:
Points per game: 17.6 –
Vartan Tanielian, G
Assists per game: 5.0 –
Josiah Meppelink, G
Rebounds per game: 7.8 –
Borja Soriano, F
Blocks per game: 0.5 –
Jack Nadelhoffer, W and
Borja Soriano, F
Key additions (name / position / eligibility / hometown / last team):
Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath / G / 4th / Amarillo, TX / Lubbock Christian
Gabe Mannes / G / 2nd / Chilliwack, BC / Briercrest
Adam Gehrig / F / 3rd / Brisbane, AUS / Clackamas
Riley Braich / G / 3rd / Abbotsford, BC / UFV
Key losses (name / position / hometown / years with program):
Vartan Tanielian / G / Byblos, Lebanon / 5
Josiah Allison / G / Abbotsford, BC / 5
Josiah Meppelink / G / Lynden, WA / 3
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 11 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes in the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL) in men's hockey and as an independent team in men's rugby. The men's and women's hockey programs will begin playing in Canada West and U SPORTS in 2020-21. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 27 Canada West team championships and two BCIHL championships.
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