QUICKLY
The University of Regina's men's basketball team set a program record with its eighth straight conference victory on Saturday with a hard-fought 80-78 win over Brandon at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• As most expected, Saturday's game was a battle from the opening tip. Brandon led 23-20 after the first quarter and the Bobcats' six-point lead at 35-29 following a Blake Magnusson layup was the largest of the game for either team in the first half.
• The Cougars scored 8 of the final 10 points of the half as the teams went into the break knotted at 37-37.
• To the delight of a boisterous CKHS, the Cougars closed the third quarter with six straight points including Matt Barnard's three at the buzzer that put Regina up 61-53 heading into the fourth.
• The Cougars continued to stretch the lead in the fourth, going up by 14 after a Matt Barnard free throw put them up 69-55. But Brandon wasn't ready to pack it in just yet, and the Bobcats battled back and made it a one-possession game following a three-point play by Travis Hamberger with 30 seconds to go which cut the Regina lead to two.
• Brandon got a stop on the ensuing possession and had an opportunity to tie or win in the final seconds, but Khari Ojeda-Harvey missed a driving layup and the Cougars were able to secure the defensive rebound and the win.

NOTES

• The Cougars' eighth straight conference victory broke their previous record of seven which they had attained on three prior occasions (1997-98, 2005-06, 2017-18).
• Five different Cougars broke into double figures in scoring including Matt Barnard (17 points), Lodie Kenyi (14), Arinze Emeka-Anyakwo (13), Nick Barnard (12), and Jalen Edwards (11). Hayden Collier finished just short with nine points.
• Matt Barnard added a team-high 12 rebounds to finish with his second double-double in as many nights.

NEXT UP
The Cougars will now take a breather for the month of December for final exams and holiday season. Next up on the schedule is another big weekend against a top Canada West team as they'll travel to Winnipeg to clash with Manitoba (8-2) on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6.