Weekend Preview: Kodiaks back in action Saturday

The Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks are back from winter break with the basketball teams kicking off the second half of their season at home against the St. Mary’s Lightning.

The women play at 6 p.m. Saturday followed by the men at 8 p.m. The Kodiaks Association will also be in attendance and ready to give free snacks to fans.

Basketball
WBB Kodiaks (4-6) vs STMU Lightning (5-5)

Saturday, Jan. 10 | 6 p.m. | Val Matteotti Gymnasium

The Kodiaks women’s basketball team will take on the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association’s (CCAA) sixth-ranked team and current top squad in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) South Conference, the St. Mary’s University Lightning. Despite the rankings, only two points separate the Lightning and the Kodiaks in the conference standings.

Lethbridge will need to maintain consistency throughout the entire game to match the Lightning’s intensity. When the two teams met earlier this season in an exhibition matchup, the Kodiaks led after the first quarter but gradually lost momentum as the game went on.

The Kodiaks will look to their top scorers, Summer Long (first year, General Arts and Science, Raymond) and Chase Wells-Creighton (second year, Exercise Science, Standoff), to lead the offensive charge.

MBB Kodiaks (7-3) vs STMU Lightning (6-4)

Saturday, Jan. 10 | 8 p.m. | Val Matteotti Gymnasium

The Kodiaks men’s basketball team returns from the break ranked 11th overall in the CCAA and third in the ACAC South Conference. St. Mary’s should not be overlooked, however, as they sit just behind Lethbridge in the standings and feature the league’s overall points leader on their roster.

The two teams met earlier in a pre-season matchup that saw the Kodiaks come out on top in a tightly contested game. Lethbridge will look to carry over its momentum from before the break, having entered the hiatus on a three-game winning streak.

Offensively, the Kodiaks are led by Levi Balderson (second year, General Arts and Science, Welling), who ranks second overall in the league for three-point shooting percentage at 44.9. His perimeter shooting helps stretch the floor, creating driving lanes for other Kodiaks leaders such as Nathaniel Hosannah (second year, Business Administration, Tacoma, Wash.), who is highly effective at attacking the basket.