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UNBC Timberwolves men's basketball officially eliminated from playoff contention

Despite win, men bow out of playoff race
Jess Balzer
Jess Balzer
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(via UNBC Athletics/Rich Abney)

Only one of the UNBC Timberwolves basketball teams will play beyond the regular season. 

The women locked up a playoff birth already last week, but are now jockeying for position to see if they'll get to host at The Charles Jago Northern Sport Centre.

The task was simple for the men: they needed to win both games this weekend (Feb. 7 and 8) against the MacEwan Griffins but they also needed help from another team.

They checked one of those boxes last night with an 89-72 win at home, but UNBC also needed Manitoba to sweep Brandon to get into the postseason.

Any other combination would not be enough, and that's exactly what happened as the Bobcats prevailed on a 90-87 comeback victory over the Bisons last night.

The Timberwolves came out firing in the first, knowing their season was on the line, holding on to a 29-15 lead after the opening 10 minutes of play. 

They kept the pressure up in the second, playing with urgency and speed. MacEwan continued to struggle to stop the Timberwolves offense and UNBC took a 54-29 lead into the locker room. 

“We wanted to be aggressive and play with pace,” said UNBC's Tyrell Laing. “Play fast, and make them guard us in transition. That was the plan.”

Prince George's team didn't let up in the third, pouring the pressure on with Fareed Shittu contributing largely on the offensive end to help give the T-Wolves a 72-49 lead. 

The fourth was much of the same, which gave the men an 87-69 win. 

Tyrell Laing finished with 20 points, while Vova Pluzhnikov added 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.

Fareed Shittu had a game of his own with a double-double; 12 points, 11 rebounds, six steals and four assists. 

Both UNBC basketball teams close out the 2019-20 season tonight at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. respectively.