Game Day Writeup: May 9th

The atmosphere was an exciting one at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Fans were curious to see if the on-court product matched the pre-season excitement.

They were not disappointed.

As Alex Campbell watched his half-court heave hit iron and go out, the Niagara River Lions picked up the first win in CEBL history, defeating the Saskatchewan Rattlers 99-97 Thursday night.

“It felt great,” said Guillaume Boucard about playing in the first game. “I loved the atmosphere, and the crowd showed a lot of support for their home team which made the game so much more exciting.”

The River Lions were led by Boucard with 19 points. The next highest scorer, Trae Bell-Haynes pitched in with 18 points and four rebounds himself.

“For the first game it felt really good,” Bell-Haynes said. “Being able to come from behind like we did shows a lot about our team so early in the season. Tonight will be a great building block.”

The game started off quickly for the Rattlers, who scored on a four-point play from guard Negus Webster-Chan.

The River Lions turned to Boucard for great post play and an ability to get downhill towards the basket.

“I thought (Guillaume) was great, he was great in the post in the first half and great in transition,” coach Victor Raso said of Boucard’s performance. “I can always count on him to be super competitive and he was tonight.”

The Rattlers never trailed at any point during the first half. Tavrion Dawson saw quality looks early, and the River Lions were on their heels. The Rattlers led 20-19 after the first quarter.

With majority of the game involving at least one traditional big man on the court, Raso got creative in the fourth quarter. The River Lions trotted out a five-man unit of Trae Bell-Haynes, Alex Johnson, Guillaume Boucard, Ryan Anderson and Dorian Pinson. “Small-ball” was how the River Lions finished the
game.

“Sam (Muldrow) got into foul trouble and I really like those five guys,” Raso said about the small-ball lineup to close the game out. “We’re smaller with Guillaume and Dorian but they’re tough and so are our guards. I thought Alex Johnson changed the game for us tonight on the defensive end.”

With four minutes left and the River Lions up 3, Pinson jumped the passing lane and finished the break off with a thunderous reverse dunk. Pinson then muscled his way in for a lay-up, the Rattlers turned it over again leading to a fast-break Ryan Anderson three.

It was that 96-86 lead with 2:30 that proved too big for the Rattlers to overcome, even though they closed the game outscoring the River Lions 10-3.

“Being the first win in league history is cool but I’m more excited for this group and how good we can be moving forward,” Raso said about the first game being in the books.

The second quarter saw both teams heat up. The River Lions hit threes on four straight possessions (Alex Johnson, Sam Muldrow twice, Ryan Anderson) and the Rattlers matched that intensity by going three out of four from behind the arc themselves.

Muldrow continued to flex his impact throughout the game. He connected with two more threes in the third quarter and blocked two consecutive shots in the third as well.

The inaugural weekend is not done for the River Lions, as they travel immediately to Edmonton for a

Friday night game vs the Stingers.