EDMONTON - Kyle Varner scored 11 points in a decisive third quarter to lift the Alberta Golden Bears over the Lethbridge Pronghorns 86-69 Friday night at the Saville Centre.

It was a tale of two halves, as the Pronghorns were impressive in the first two quarters but could not hold off a dominant Golden Bears run that started late in the third quarter. Alberta outscored Lethbridge 51-34 in the second half, carried by a scorching 52% mark from the field that included seven triples.

While Varner was the pacesetter for the home side, it was truly a deep offensive effort as all nine Bears that saw the floor scored at least a bucket. With the win, the Bears maintain their position over the Mount Royal Cougars for second place in the Prairie Division at 13-6, an important spot as with a victory in the quarterfinals, it guarantees a hosting berth for the semis.

The Pronghorns played well, particularly in the first half where they shot 45% from the field and at times had the Bears on their back heels. However, the momentum stopped late in the third, when they were unable to defend against a titanic shooting performance from the home side. Kymani Pollard and Jaxen Perrett paced the offence with 13 points apiece, and Joe Lemieux came close to a double-double with a 10-point seven-rebound effort. They fall to 6-13 on the year, and are now eliminated from playoff contention as the Regina Cougars have eight wins in the seventh and final spot.

The Bears opened the game hot, going on a slick 10-0 run to begin the game and certainly stole the early momentum amidst a loud home crowd. However, the Pronghorns would recover, and on a subsequent 8-4 run they were able to get back into the game near the end of the first. Alberta held an 18-15 lead heading into the second, with Matthew Osunde pacing the hosts with five points while the Pronghorns Kymani Pollard led all scorers with six.

The second was a run-and-gun frame, with the Pronghorns firing back thanks to a hot offensive led by former Bear Bryce Solis who finished with a quarter-high six points. Both sides were effective in the paint, with 25 of 37 combined points being scored from that area in the quarter. The duo of Ethan Egert and Nate Waldron scored eight points for the Bears, but the Pronghorns were able to knot the score up at 35 before the break.

The third quarter started back-and-forth, with both teams struggling to grab and hold the momentum. It was a 45-45 game with four minutes remaining, when the Bears went supernova. They rattled off a 21-5 run with the remaining time in the frame to take a commanding 66-50 lead into the fourth. They hit four threes on the run, including two from Kyle Varner who finished with a frame-high 11 points as the Bears looked to close it out down the stretch.

The fourth saw an improved Pronghorns effort, particularly on the defensive end, but it was not enough to stop Nash Semeniuk, who scored 11 of his game-high 19 points in the quarter to put a bow on the 86-69 victory.

The teams finish their regular season up tomorrow with a 7 PM rubber match at the Saville Centre.