The University of Regina's men's basketball team hung tough with Calgary for much of the night, but the defending national champion Dinos squad used a pair of big runs and ended up winning 91-68 on Friday night at Jack Simpson Gym in Calgary.

The two teams played tight through the first quarter and a half, but the first of the big Calgary surges came in a four-minute span just before halftime. That one - a 15-4 run bookended by a pair of Mambi Diawara three-pointers, the first of which resulted in a four-point play as he was fouled when shooting - helped turn what had been a three-point game into a 41-28 Calgary lead at the break.

Calgary's lead reached 20 at one point in the third quarter, but the Cougars chipped away at that advantage and eventually got to within 10 points after Samuel Hillis hit a pair of free throws to make the score 70-60 with under eight minutes to go. But it was all Calgary from there, as the Dinos scored 21 of the next 26 points to end any hope of a Regina comeback.

Diawara was a monster for Calgary (1-0), scoring 30 points and adding 13 rebounds for a massive double-double while contributing four assists and two steals for good measure. Brett Layton also had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrew Milner (13), Lucas Mannes (12), and David Kapinga (11) each got into double figures for the Dinos.

Playing his first Canada West game in almost 21 months, second-year forward Carter Millar (pictured) had 13 points and led all players with a career-high 17 rebounds for the Cougars (0-1). Hillis added 17 points and nine rebounds, while Matt Barnard scored 12 points and Brayden Kuski added 10.

The two teams will meet again on Saturday night in Calgary. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 PM.