Men's Basketball Huskies return to win column with pair of triumphs in Grande Prairie

In a pair of weekend wins against the Northwestern Polytechnic Wolves, the Keyano Huskies Men’s Basketball team returned to the win column to reaffirm their positioning at the top of the North Division.  

“For us, we’re still trying to figure out how to get better and figure out how to make sure we’re doing all the right things,” Head Coach Jeremy Wielenga said. “I think we got off to a slow start this weekend, but obviously they played real well.  
 
“I was very very happy with the second half on Saturday.”  

Friday’s 79-73 win saw the Huskies open a 12-point gap to begin the game, only for the Wolves to close that gap to six at the half. A trio of Huskies in double digits, led by 26 points from Omeechi Williams, helped keep the Huskies in front, though the Wolves hung around enough to draw some flashbacks to their previous week’s loss.  

Keenan Miller added 18 points and Yasser Abdullahi contributed 15 in the win while Keellaa Gatwech came off the bench with seven.  

Saturday, the Huskies were in control en route to an 87-55 win. Leading by eight at the half, the Huskies outscored their hosts 44-20 in the final half to secure back-to-back wins.  

Williams led with 27 points while Miller added 23 and Nahshon Hurst chipped in 10. Fifteen of Williams’ 27 came from beyond the arc as the defending ACAC North Division Player of the Year found his rhythm to return to a level his coach knows he can perform at. 

“We know what Omeechi is capable of,” Wielenga continued. “I think he’s been battling injuries the whole first half of the year and I think that break at Christmas did some good and he’s just feeling healthy.   

“He’s just getting back to his normal self.”  

After adding 11 points in Friday’s win, the Huskies bench was responsible for 19 Saturday. Focusing on the performance of Gatwech, Wielenga emphasized how important the seven players on the bench will be down the stretch.  

“Keellaa was big for us this weekend in terms of energy, blocking shots,” Wielenga said. “He had a couple big dunks for us as well. We’re confident that we know that Keellaa can help us off the bench.  
 
“With his athleticism it’s just good to see him get those in-game experiences. He’s only going to continue to get better.”   

Up next for the Huskies is a return trip home to the Syncrude Sport & Wellness Centre for a pair of games against the Lakeland College Rustlers (9-3) this weekend. Friday’s tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm with a 2:00pm tip-off Saturday.