The Simon Fraser University men's basketball Clan are determined not to leave Canadian college play without finally making some sort of a statement.

Since joining the Canada West a decade ago SFU teams have won championships in football and women's basketball. But the men hoopsters haven't enjoyed the same amount of success. In their 10 seasons in the Canada West the SFU men have yet to qualify for the nationals and have made the Canada West Final Four on just one occasion.

So, with the Clan moving on to the NCAA next season, this is the last chance for the SFU men to show Canadian college basketball what they're capable of. And they did a pretty good job of that Thursday by handing their crosstown rivals, the UBC Thunderbirds, a heart-stopping 82-79 defeat in the SFU Gym.

How big was the victory? Well, the T-Birds went into the game undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the country.

The win helped the Clan close the gap on the T-Birds in the battle for first place in the Pacific Division. SFU is now 12-2 while UBC has slipped to 13-1.