LANGLEY, B.C. – Trinity Western's
Marcus Shankar (Campbell River, B.C.) dropped a buzzer-beating lay-up to lift the Spartans to a 104-102 overtime victory over Western University in preseason action Thursday at the David E. Enarson Gym.
Jerric Palma (Richmond, B.C.), who was playing his former team after transferring to TWU from Western this year, led the Spartans with 27 points in front of a boisterous crowd inside TWU's on-campus gym.
Juice Belvin (Long Beach, Calif.) added 24 points and
David Mutabazi (Delta, B.C.) had 19, as TWU rallied from a double-digit deficit to beat the Mustangs.
Western tied it up with a late three in regulation, but it was the Spartans sending the crowd into a frenzy in the extra session with Shankar taking a pass in the paint from
Connor Platz (Langley) and putting in off the glass for the game-winner.
QUOTABLE
Trevor Pridie, TWU Head Coach
"The fans were awesome tonight. The gym was packed and it was just an unreal crowd. I love playing here. They were amazing. As for the game, to get a quality team like Western out here, it was a great experience for our team. It was really cool to get a win for Jerric against his former team. I thought his compete level was awesome and he made winning plays. We found a way to win, which was great for this group. We also had a chance to see guys in different spots and try a few things out. It was cool to see
Caleb Gremaud (Kamloops, B.C.) play his first game and hit a couple of threes. He was incredible. It was also great to see
Kyle Christoffersen play his first game in a long time and have an impact. Overall, it was a quality game against a good team."
NEXT UP
The Spartans will continue their preseason schedule Friday with a road game against Simon Fraser University. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. at SFU's West Gym in Burnaby, B.C.
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby and women's and men's disc golf. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 14 U SPORTS team championships and 34 Canada West team championships.
About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning, holds three Canada Research Chairs, and wins national championships in CIS sports. More importantly, lives are changed at TWU through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education. With a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree-completion programs, TWU equips leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.
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