6'1" Josh Whyte knifed through a pair of Laval defenders for the winning layup with 1.7 seconds remaining in the game and a subsequent buzzer beating attempt by 6'5" Etienne Labrecque from close in just rimmed out, allowing the host T-Birds to edge Rouge et Or in what was described by Laval Head Coach Jacques Paiement Jr. as a "great game... back and forth." Whyte led UBC with 16 points including some very tough shots down the stretch while 6'3" Blaine Labranche added 15 points off the bench including 8 consecutive in the fourth quarter to help UBC take the lead late. Labrecque and 6'4" Jerome Turcotte each finished with 22 points for Laval who also got 12 points in only 13 minutes from 6'3" J.F. Beaulieu-Mahieux, seeing his first action of the season after returning from a hamstring injury.
After Whyte's tough finish, Laval got the ball at halftime following a timeout and Rouge et Or were able to run an out-of-bounds play that freed Labrecque for a good shot that did not go down. 6'5" Kamar Burke had 9 points and 8 rebounds and drew special praise from Paiement for his efforts. 5'9" Xavier Baribeau added 12 points for Laval.
The battle between two likely Top 10 teams resulted in a tremendous game and finish. Laval continues their trip out west tonight with a game at Simon Fraser while UBC, which lost in the CIS National championship game and is replacing their top scorer 6'3" Chris Dyck as well as their starting front court from last season, will host Windsor Lancers tonight. Windsor defeated Fraser Valley on Thursday night.
Laval 23 18 20 17 - 78
Ubc 15 25 22 18 - 80
Laval/UBC game report from UBC web site
The UBC Thunderbirds kicked off the 2009 exhibition season with a nail-biting 80-78 victory against the visiting Laval Rouge et Or Thursday night at War Memorial gym.
A surprisingly intense first game of the season came down to the final seconds with the two squads going blow for blow down the stretch.
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