Gameday Preview: June 1st

One hour and fifteen minutes later down the road, and the River Lions meet the Guelph Nighthawks.

Tonight marks the first match-up between the two Ontario teams, with the River Lions leading the young CEBL season at 4-1. The Nighthawks sit at fifth place with a 2-2 record.

The River Lions are fresh off a 108-87-win last night over the Fraser Valley Bandits. The River Lions improved to 2-0 at home while the Bandits losing streak now extends to three games.

The River Lions were led by Nemanja Mitrovic, who finished with 20 points, four rebounds and shot five of eight from three on the night.

“I just do what I can to help the team be successful,” Mitrovic said after the win. “Obviously making shots and scoring is a big part of that but the guys on the team do a great job of playing together and sharing the ball so it makes my job easier.”

Mitrovic is averaging 12 points and three rebounds per game on the season.

The River Lions showed off their depth and versatility against Fraser Valley, with Dorian Pinson being the only starter to play over 26 minutes (27:50).

This has been a theme in the young season for Niagara, with strong bench production especially from Yohanny Dalembert (10 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game) and Ryan Anderson (14 points, 4.3 rebounds, 0.8 assists per game).

On the flip side of things, the Guelph Nighthawks are coming off a tough 82-80 loss against the Edmonton Stingers. Myck Kabongo missed the potential game-winning three-pointer with five seconds left in regulation.

Kabongo has had an interesting journey to the CEBL, being named a McDonald’s All-American in 2011 before playing college ball at the University of Texas. After his career as a Longhorn, he had multiple stints with NBA G-League teams before signing with the Raptors 905 in 2018.

The 6’2” guard has been raising eyebrows so far this season, averaging 24 points, 3.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game in just over 33 minutes per night.

Factor in the contributions from the Jamal Reynolds, and the River Lions must be alert of the Nighthawks’ electric scoring duo. Tired legs will be something to watch in their second back-to-back of the season.

Reynolds, 6’4”, averages 23 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game in 33 minutes per night.

The River Lions will have their hands full tonight if they hope to extend their winning streak to four games.

The River Lions leading scorer is Guillaume Boucard, who averages 17 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per night. Boucard has started all five games and plays 34 minutes per night.

Boucard and head coach Victor Raso have a great relationship, dating back to their time at Carleton University.

The River Lions have played every team except for the Ontario teams, the Guelph Nighthawks and the Hamilton Honey Badgers, and tonight poses another challenge for Raso and the coaching staff to game plan for a team they haven’t seen in person yet. Tip-off is at 7 PM.

By Nicolas Bueno