LANGLEY, B.C. – The Alberta Pandas put together a staunch 40-minute defensive effort to earn a 62-36 win over Trinity Western Friday at the Langley Events Centre. 

After holding TWU to 22 points in the first half (37-22), the visitors were even better defensively in the second half, giving up just 14 points. 

Vanessa Wild had 13 points to lead the Pandas (13-2) while Sydney Fedick had 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. 

The Spartans Teanna Bradshaw (Oshawa, Ont.) had a season-high nine points, while adding 10 boards, to lead TWU (3-12). Nicole Fransson (Edmonton) added 12 rebounds to go with six points. 

The Pandas finished the night shooting 42.4 per cent from the field (25-59) while the Spartans shot just 17.5 per cent (10-57). TWU had a 47-52 edge on the glass.

Alberta came of the gate shooting 64.3 (9-14) from the field in the first quarter on route to a 19-10 lead through 10 minutes. The Spartans meanwhile shot just 25 per cent (4-16). 

The Pandas pushed their lead to 15 points by halftime, outscoring the Spartans 18-12 in the second quarter to take a 37-22 edge into the break. Both teams operated with a balanced attack, as Alberta had nine players hit the scoresheet, with no one scoring more than six points, while the Spartans had seven players score, with no one collecting more than five points. 

The third quarter was close throughout, but the Pandas pushed their lead to 18 points after 30 minutes after outscoring TWU 13-10.

Both teams put up a defensive wall early in the fourth quarter, with neither side able to score for the first 3:13. From there, the defence continued the rest of the way, with Alberta putting up 12 points to the Spartans four in the final frame.

TWU finished the second half holding the highly-touted Pandas who average 69.5 points per game, to just 25 points. 

QUOTABLE
Cheryl Jean-Paul – TWU Head Coach
"There is a lesson to learn in every game we play. Every time we got over half court, we learned what a good defensive team is all about. They force you and put you under pressure the entire game. Despite that fact, I thought our defensive statement in the second half was one of the best ones we've made this semester. That's what we have to build on. When we're ready, we're going to be a good offensive team and a good defensive team. We're just not ready to do both yet. But it was really nice to see our team fight to the end. I'm excited to see what we learn from today's game because we've done a good job this year of learning from tough lessons and getting better.

NOTABLE
•    The Pandas have won nine games in a row and sit in sole possession of third place.
•    The Spartans won their previous two games against Alberta, which came at home during the 2017-18 Canada West quarter-finals (Feb. 15-16, 2018).

NEXT UP
The rematch between TWU and Alberta is Saturday at 5 p.m. at the LEC.

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.

-TW-