Photo Credit: Jan Bosmann, Bosmann Photography

Prince George, BC - UNBC Timberwolves men's basketball team pulled out a convincing home victory Friday night at the Northern Sport Centre. The Timberwolves (2-5) defeated the UBC Okanagan Heat (2-5) 83-74.

The Timberwolves were led by fifth year forward Franco Kouagnia (Yaounde, CMR). Kouagnia posted his second double-double of the season with 20 points and 11 boards. Three other Timberwolves chipped in double-digits, Billy Cheng (Richmond, BC) added 16, Devin McMurtry (Surrey, BC) added 14, and Rhys Elliott (Adelaide, AUS) put up 13 points.

Mitch Goodwin (Kelowna, BC) was the Heat's leading scorer with 18 points and six rebounds. David Manshreck (North Vancouver, BC) chipped 15, while Aldrich Berrios (Burnaby, BC) contributed 17 points.

A fast paced game saw the Timberwolves hit their stride in the second quarter. Two early back to back threes, the first from Cheng and the second from Elliott tied the game at 17 and forced a UBCO time out. After the timeout Cheng came down the floor to hit his second three of the game, starting the Twolves out on an 11-0 run. Netting 14 points in the second quarter alone, Cheng played a big part in UNBC outscoring the Heat 27-6. Heading into the break UNBC held a 15 point lead over the Heat, 38-23.

The Timberwolves had found their stride, a two-handed slam from Kouagnia off a McMurtry bounce pass lite up the crowd. Ball movement and quick transition play kept UBCO in the game. Trading possessions both teams pushed the ball and found the open man. A buzzer-beater from UBCO's Cameron Servatius (Chilliwack, BC) gave the Heat the momentum they were looking for heading into the final quarter.

Kouagnia stepped up in the final 10 minutes for the Timberwolves. The veteran forward established position and was able to net 13 of his 20 points in the final 10 minutes. The Heat were not without an answer, David Manshreck tallied 10 of his 15 points in the final quarter as well. Twice the Heat chipped away at the Twolves lead and brought it back to 10 points but were unable to break into single digits. At the final whistle the Timberwolves notched their second win of the season with a 83-74 win over the UBCO Heat.

The UNBC Timberwolves and the UBC Okanagan Heat return to the Northern Sport Centre tomorrow night for their final league game before the holiday break. The game is set to tip off at 7 p.m. and will be streamed live at canadawest.tv