Down 15 five minutes into their consolation semifinal, the UBC Thunderbirds could not have been in a worse position. Coming into Saturday’s matchup, both the T-Birds and the Laval Rouge et Or had suffered troubling first round defeats. UBC lost after holding a twenty point lead against the Toronto Metropolitan University Bold in a thrilling contest. The ‘Birds were medal hopefuls to start the tournament and looking to win their first national championship since 1972. Laval, on the other hand, kept the first half of their quarterfinal competitive but were then comprehensively outplayed by the now 18-time national champions, the Carleton Ravens.
While both were out of medal contention, there was still something to play for. The winner would keep their season alive for one more game, advancing to the consolation final to play for fifth. For the loser, they’d be eliminated.
With their season on the line, the Thunderbirds came out completely flat. It took them over four minutes to make their first field goal, and the explosive paint scoring that had powered their ferocious start just a day prior was absent.
This was partly due to UBC’s Canada West first team all-star Nikola Guzina checking out of the game early. Just three minutes into the game, Guzina first exited with what looked to be an apparent injury, as he could be seen trying to stretch out on the sidelines. Though he checked back in at the end of the first, after he subbed out two minutes into the second, his day — and his UBC career — was over. After averaging more than 23 minutes per game all year, he ended up playing only seven minutes total in the match.
Guzina’s exit left Karan Aujla to do most of the work in the paint for the rest of the game, and while Aujla played well, Guzina’s absence was felt. However, the Thunderbirds' inability to score in the paint wasn’t entirely self-inflicted.
Laval possess two phenomenal rim deterrents in six-foot-eight Mohamed Keita of Mali and six-foot-ten Ibrahima Sanoh of Guinea. Keita’s paint defence is particularly noteworthy, with 36 blocks in just 16 games this season; good enough for fifth in the country, despite playing in at least three games less than anyone else in the top 30. His impact was felt in this one, as Keita was successfully keeping UBC from getting to the rim. He finished the day with a game-high three blocks.
The ‘Birds had to find another way to score, and with the paint unavailable, they ended up jacking up eight first quarter threes. They only hit one. On the other side of the floor, Laval’s perimeter offence was humming, mostly thanks to Jayden Larosilière. Larosilière scored 11 points in the first quarter and hit all three of Laval’s three-pointers.
The only place UBC was having consistent success on offence was at the free-throw line. The Thunderbirds hit all four of their free-throw attempts in the final minutes of the quarter and along with some transition buckets, they finished the quarter down just four.
Two minutes into the second, Aujla scored, and suddenly, the ‘Birds were now down just one point. But unfortunately for UBC, things turned quickly once again. Starting with a layup from Keita, Laval went on a 15–0 run. Laval’s first-team all-Canadian Christophe Tshibola finally displayed his pedigree after having gone scoreless in the first quarter. Tshibola ended up scoring five points during Laval’s uninterrupted run — his brother Thierry Tshibola assisted on one of his made three pointers — and finished with nine points in the quarter.
Despite a full timeout, UBC was unable to quell the Laval offence. They were in the dark again.
Laval’s defence in the second quarter was also stifling. Remarkably, UBC had an even worse offensive quarter than the first period, being held to just 20 per cent field goal shooting and only scoring 12 points.
UBC could not have dreamt of playing a worse second quarter than they did. The Rouge et Or outrebounded them by nine, and in every metric, the Birds were getting beaten. Fortunately, they could only go up from there in the second half.
In the third quarter, the Birds finally found their identity. They finally had a positive rebounding quarter without Guzina and — at least partially — kept Laval from getting offensive rebounds. This opened up a whole new world of opportunity for the ‘Birds, as they were no longer just playing defence. The Thunderbirds ended up taking two more field goals than they did in the second, but more importantly, their efficiency markedly improved.
After scoring just three points in the first half, Nylan Roberts looked energized. He scored first in the quarter on a tough fadeaway jump shot, finishing the quarter with seven points and a pair of assists. Fifth year point-guard Holt Tomie — who has been UBC’s offensive facilitator all season — also made contributions. Despite still searching for his shot, he was scoring, shooting his 12th free throw of the game in the third, of which he made nine.
Despite the T-Birds’ improvements, they had dug themselves too big a hole. Laval and Tshibola’s level hardly dipped. Tshibola was two for three on three-point attempts and the team still scored 21 points. UBC finished the quarter down 13.
Yet, the ‘Birds kept pushing. After some impressive shot making from Raj Dhadda, with five minutes left in the fourth, Aujla scored in the paint to bring UBC back to within five. Their energy and effort was apparent as UBC tried to keep their season from ending. Unfortunately, Laval proved simply too much for them, once again.
Tshibola was unstoppable. With his quickness, he exposed the Thunderbirds’ lack of interior defence, shooting 11 free throws in the quarter.
With just under three minutes left, the ‘Birds came within six points of recapturing the lead, but the Tshibola brothers effectively iced the game out with free throws, hitting nine between the two of them in the last three and a half minutes.
It was ultimately a very anticlimactic end to what had been an exhilarating Thunderbirds season. UBC fought valiantly, but it was clear that there was a hangover effect from their devastating defeat a day before.
The Thunderbirds will be losing key contributors next season, with both Guzina and Tomie graduating, but the future looks more than bright for the squad. Roberts, Dhadda, and Edouard Gauthier — who all have at least three remaining years of eligibility — all proved themselves as invaluable contributors at different stages of the season.
The ‘Birds have clearly built a solid foundation, and under the new leadership of interim head coach Phil Jalalpoor, a winning culture has definitely been established. Regardless of what the starting lineup looks like this coming fall, UBC fans should be eager to see what the Thunderbirds accomplish next season.
