Shand set to host hometown Bisons
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/01/2025 (252 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Abbey Shand is ready to show her hometown team what two months can do.
The Winnipeg product and her Brandon University Bobcats expect an exciting return to Canada West women’s basketball action when they welcome the Manitoba Bisons to the Healthy Living Centre today at 6 p.m.
Shand was a wide-eyed rookie when she first played the Bisons, missing all eight field goals she took in a 79-64 loss on Nov. 3.
Winnipeg’s Abbey Shand has settled in as a starter during her rookie season with the Brandon University Bobcats women’s basketball team. BU hosts her hometown Manitoba Bisons tonight. (Thomas Friesen/The Brandon Sun)
Since then, she’s started every game for the Brandon University Bobcats and hit double-digits three times, including a career-high 14 in one of two wins against the MacEwan Griffins to close the first semester.
“We’re feeling great, we’re ready to get back on the court. We had those two wins in the regular season so we just want to use that momentum to get a couple more wins under our belt,” Shand said.
“I feel like personally, I’ve grown a lot. I’m learning every time I step on the court from my teammates and from being in this. I feel like I’m getting better and getting better at handling everything.
“The team, obviously, every time we play together we get a little bit better. We’ve definitely grown a lot since the beginning.”
One of the big keys for Brandon (2-8) this year was simply playing close games and learning how to play the last few minutes. The Bobcats got a taste when they led in the final minute of a three-point loss to the Winnipeg Wesmen in their season opener, then had a tough stretch before a pair of nail-biting victories over the Griffins.
Brandon took part in the Wesmen Classic over the holiday break, losing to Regina and Manitoba (3-5) before defeating Thompson Rivers 54-48 in the seventh-place game.
“It was just good to get back on the court because we hadn’t played together in a couple of weeks,” Shand said.
“It was good to just get a couple of games before the regular season. We know what we have to do to win and we learned in those games what it takes.”
The Bisons have a big advantage in the frontcourt, with six-foot-three Anna Miko leading the team at 12.5 points per game. Their next two top scorers, veteran forwards Emerson Martin (11.8 ppg) and Autumn Agar (8.6 ppg) also score the bulk of their points in the paint.
“We know we’ve got to pack the paint,” Shand said. “We also know their ball handlers are good at getting the ball up. We have to make sure that on defence we’re solid and we’re helping each other out.”
McDONALD, BU MEN ON THE MEND
The break came at a good time for the Bobcat men, especially Australian import Jack McDonald.
The six-foot-seven forward pushed through an ankle injury most of the first semester and finally had a month to heal up. He also returned home to see family for the first time in two-and-a-half years.
He expected to take a bit of a break from basketball but still found himself working out, training on the beach and shooting every day. Now he’s refreshed for his final semester of U Sports ball.
Fifth-year forward Jack McDonald and the BU men’s basketball team need a strong second half to make the playoffs. (Thomas Friesen/The Brandon Sun)
“We’re feeling really good. We’re all back in now and it’s good to see everyone back in shape. You can tell the people that put in work and the ones who haven’t,” McDonald said.
“Seeing videos of Manitoba, they’ve been putting in work as well so they’re going to be a tough (opponent) but it’s a good opening game to showcase what we’ve got.”
Brandon played well in flashes, including a blowout win over Alberta towards the end of the semester but finished on a low when it handed MacEwan its first win in more than five years.
“We’ve just got to play together smarter. We’ve got to take care of the ball. We’ve had a lot of turnovers, especially MacEwan we were up in the third quarter and we just played carelessly in the fourth,” McDonald said.
“If we can learn to play together, take care of the rock, we’re an unstoppable team when we’re all playing our game.”
The Bobcats (3-7) are still in tough this weekend as the Bisons (7-1) are still Canada West title contenders.
Led by senior guards Mason Kraus and Daren Watts, who are averaging 17.3 and 15.5 ppg, respectively, they’re tough on both ends of the floor but especially on defence, where they allow just 67.5 ppg, good for second in the league.
Tonight’s tilt starts at 8 o’clock.
On Saturday, the women play at 5 p.m., with the men following at 7 o’clock.
» tfriesen@brandonsun.com
» Instagram: @thomasfriesen5