EDMONTON, AB - The Saskatchewan Huskies opened their 2023-24 season on the road in Edmonton against the Alberta Golden Bears on Friday night. Impressive performances from Alberta's veteran players elevated the Golden Bears to a 86-72 victory over the Huskies. 

Fifth-year guard Lars Ishimwe had a game high 21 points for Alberta. Flanked by fellow fifth-year Adam Paige who added 18 of his own including 11 in the fourth quarter helped quell a Huskies comeback bid. The Huskies saw a great performance out of guard Fisayo Moibi who had a team-high 15 points and hit three triples.

It is the Bears eighth straight win over the Huskies, who made their first trip to Edmonton since the 2022 U SPORTS Final Eight.

It was a tight first half, with Alberta entering the second half with a slim 40-37 margin. Both teams impressed offensively, hitting 10 cumulative threes with Alberta's Brandon Meiklejohn leading all scorers with 14 at the break.

Alberta started to pull away in the third thanks to the play of guard Logan Powell and Ishimwe who led the hosts to a 62-48 advantage heading into the final frame.

Saskatchewan would try to emulate what happened in the women's game earlier, where the Huskies ripped off a 20-3 fourth quarter to beat the Pandas by three, and for a minute it was looking similar.

Saskatchewan guard Chan De Ciman would provide a spark to a struggling second-half offence to eventually trim the home lead to just five with four minutes remaining. However, fifth-year Paige would score on three straight possessions, including a dagger three with a minute left, to settle the waters for a 86-72 Alberta victory.

Moibi lead the Huskies in points on Friday night with 15, followed closely by Emmanuel Bonsu with 13. 

NEXT UP
Game two of the season opener series against the Golden Bears is set for Saturday at 7:00 PM. Fans can tune into the live stream on CanadaWest.TV.