KELOWNA, B.C. - UBCO Heat men's basketball guard Jalen Shirley was one of eight athletes to be named a player of the week by the Canada West conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Shirley, a native of Brampton, Ont., earns the recognition for the first time in his Heat career while becoming the fifth different Heat athlete to be named a Canada West player of the week this season. He joins women's cross country runner Lauren McNeil (twice), women's golfer Julia Alexander-Carew, men's golfer Ryan Vest and men's volleyball outside hitter Seba Manuel as UBCO athletes to be recognized in the 2025-26 season.

Men's Basketball - Jalen Shirley (UBCO Heat)
Jan. 9 at TRU: 16 PTS, 6-12 FG (50%), 6 REB, 3 AST, 3 STL in 95-72 loss
Jan. 10 at TRU: 43 PTS, 15-18 FG (83.3%), 5-7 3FG (71.4%), 1 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL in 86-82 loss

Jalen Shirley had a weekend to remember for the Heat as they battled their Interior BC rivals, the Thompson Rivers WolfPack, in Kamloops.

After opening the weekend with a balanced performance at both ends of the court, Shirley went off on Saturday night for the best scoring performance in UBCO history. The fifth-year guard was unstoppable, scoring 43 points while shooting 83.3 percent from the field and 71.4 percent from three-point range. Included in those numbers were 21 fourth-quarter points as the Heat nearly rallied for the upset victory over the WolfPack.

His 43 points broke the previous school record of 33 points set back in 2012 and is the second-highest scoring game in the conference and country this season.

After averaging 29.5 points per game this weekend, Shirley is now second in Canada West in scoring, averaging 20 points per game.