PRINCE GEORGE, British Columbia – The Trinity Western Spartans had a slow start and found themselves on the wrong end of a 75-65 decision to the UNBC Timberwolves Friday night at the Charles Jago Northern Sports Centre in Prince George, B.C.
 
The Spartans fell behind 45-32 at the half and were unable to overcome the deficit despite outscoring the Timberwolves in the second half.
 
Third-year Jack Vandenberg (Vancouver, B.C.) with 20 points, five assists, and two rebounds, fifth-year centre Connor Platz (Langley, B.C.) with 15 points and 10 rebounds, and fourth-year guard Marcus Shankar (Campbell River, B.C.) with 12 points, six rebounds, and four assists led the Spartans. Evgeny Baukin with 21 points and eight rebounds, Tony Kibonge with 19 points, and Justin Sunga with 10 points and 12 assists led the Timberwolves.
 
UP NEXT
The Spartans and Timberwolves will finish the weekend series tomorrow night at the Charles Jago Northern Sports Centre. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. (PT) and can be seen live on Canada West TV
 
AS IT HAPPENED
Kibonge wasted no time getting the NSC rocking, drilling back-to-back threes in the opening 90 seconds to stake UNBC to an early 6–2 lead. The Prince George product followed with a trip to the line, knocking down a free throw before splashing yet another triple — giving him the team's first 10 points and igniting the home crowd as the Timberwolves stormed ahead 10–2.
 
Haukur Davidsson joined the long-range barrage, burying one from the elbow to make it a 14-2 start for the Green and Gold. Not to be outdone, reigning Canada West Player of the Week Evgeny Baukin banked in a three of his own, marking UNBC's fifth trey of the quarter. After one, the TWolves were in command, 22-13 with an astounding 15 points coming from beyond the arc.
 
The fireworks continued into the second. Justin Sunga and Cairo Wells both found their stroke from deep, pushing the lead to 34-21 midway through the frame. Kibonge stayed red-hot, knocking down two more triples to bring his tally to 16 points — 15 of them from downtown. When Sunga capped the half with yet another three, the Northern Sport Centre erupted as UNBC jogged to the locker room up 45–32.
 
At the break, Kibonge led all scorers with 16, while Baukin chipped in 10. Davidsson anchored the boards with five rebounds, and Sunga dished out an impressive six first-half assists to go along with his shooting touch. For the visitors Connor Platz paced the attack with 10 points and six rebounds on 5-for-9 shooting.
It was a tight third quarter battle, with the Spartans edging UNBC 14–12 thanks to a hot hand from Vandenberg, who buried three triples in the frame. But every time the visitors looked ready to steal momentum, the Timberwolves had an answer. Sunga and Isaiah Bias matched with long-range bombs of their own, and Sunga dished a highlight-reel alley-oop to Baukin that brought the crowd to its feet. UNBC carried a 57-46 lead into the final 10 minutes, having already connected on a dozen shots from beyond the arc.
 
Then, history was made. Sunga entered the fourth quarter just one assist shy of tying his own program record—and he didn't stop there. The crafty guard dished out three more dimes, finishing with 12 assists, a brand-new UNBC single-game record.
 
Down the stretch, Milan Pasquale, Baukin and Kibonge kept the three-point barrage alive, each hitting from deep to seal the deal. When the final buzzer sounded, the Timberwolves had secured a statement win, fueled by precision shooting and unselfish play.
 
NOTABLE

• The Spartans finished the night shooting 37.1 percent (26-70) from the field, 29 percent (9-31) from the three-point line, and 66.7 percent (4-6) from the foul line, while UNBC shot 42.2 percent (27-64), 48.5 percent (16-33) and 55.6 percent (5- 9) respectively.
• UBC had a 36-35 edge in rebounds.
• The Spartans finished with 12 turnovers and nine steals to the Timberwolves 15 turnovers and six steals.
• TWU is currently 9-14 lifetime against UNBC.
• The Spartans are currently on a five-game winning streak against the Timberwolves. TWU's last loss, 85-69, was November 5, 2022, on the road in Prince George, B.C.
• Last week, the Spartans split with the Fraser Valley Cascades, winning 83-81 and losing 86-79 at home at the Langley Events Centre.
• Last week, the Timberwolves split with the Alberta Golden Bears, winning 78-77 and losing 74-67 at home in Prince George, B.C.

 
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, hockey and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as in the NAIA in track and field and cross country and 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 33 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 U 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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