EDMONTON - The University of Alberta Golden Bears rode a balanced offensive showing and a commanding presence on the glass to an 80–69 win over the MacEwan Griffins on Friday night at David Atkinson Gymnasium.
Matthew Osunde led the way with 19 points, shooting 5-for-8 from deep while adding three assists and a steal.
Kyle Varner added 16 points on 5-for-7 shooting and pulled down four rebounds, while
Isaac Simon delivered a steady two-way effort with 10 points, seven assists and seven rebounds.
Ethan Egert added nine boards of his own to go with eight points, and Caden Kushnir chipped in eight points and six rebounds.
Alberta set the tone early, building a 24–15 first-quarter lead behind Osunde's hot start. He opened with three straight makes from beyond the arc, including a three at 7:30 and another at 2:06, both assisted by Simon and
Fahad Yusuf respectively. Varner added a key triple at 5:55, and
Nate Waldron converted a layup at 4:41 off a Varner feed. Osunde closed the quarter by hitting a corner three with two seconds left.
MacEwan responded in the second, outscoring Alberta 22–16. Varner steadied the Bears early with a string of free throws at 9:35 before tipping in a rebound at 9:04. Kushnir threw down a dunk at 8:51 from a Simon assist, but the Griffins surged late. Job Janda hit a three at 0:29, followed by a jumper from Hugo Alonso at 0:02 to trim Alberta's halftime lead to 40–37.
The Bears reasserted control in the third quarter, pushing the margin back to double digits. Egert scored inside at 9:25, then knocked down two free throws at 8:29. Simon added a mid-range jumper at 7:57, and Varner drilled a three at 7:03 off an Osunde pass. Kushnir followed with a layup at 6:18 and a dunk at 5:30, both set up by Simon and Osunde.
Owen Hickey capped the frame's scoring with a layup at the three-second mark, sending Alberta into the fourth up 64–50.
Alberta's depth carried them through the final quarter.
Nash Semeniuk knocked down a three at 8:39, Egert scored at 7:29 from a Kushnir assist, and Osunde hit another triple at 7:03 off a Simon feed. Hickey added a three at 5:58 before Osunde sealed the win at the line, hitting two free throws with 43 seconds remaining to close out the 11-point victory.
