Late Surge Helps River Lions Pull Away From Alliance 76-64
Montreal, QC - The Niagara River Lions withstood a Montréal Alliance comeback and made a late run to win 76-64 on the road. The River Lions move 5-3 while the Alliance 3-4. It was Niagara’s second straight win over Montréal having beaten them at home earlier this season.
Like their previous meeting, the River Lions started hot. EJ Onu opened the scoring off a pick and roll before making a block on the next play. Jaylen Babb-Harrison scored a three-pointer and Daniel Walden-Mullings scored a finger roll to put Niagara up 7-0.
Montréal bounced back with back-to-back baskets inside by Nathan Cayo. He continued to score while Niagara responded with three-point shooting as Munis Tutu made two of them to make it 21-11. The River Lions shot five for 11 from deep in the first quarter as they led 24-11.
Alliance guard Hernst Laroche started the second quarter with five straight points while Isiah Osborne finished his own rebound to cut the lead to seven points. Niagara guard Phil Scrubb showed his experience in running the offence by getting to the rim and finding teammates for points.
The visitors responded to Montréal’s scores as they went into halftime ahead 35-28. They extended the lead early in the third quarter as Khalil Ahmad scored twice off steals.
The home side also scored off turnovers as Kemy Osse and Nathan Cayo scored layups. Babb-Harrison was a go-to scorer for the River Lions as he hit a floater off the dribble in addition to his threes. Niagara also continued to force turnovers and capitalize on them. Tutu stole the ball and finished a three-point play.
Osborne heated up from three with back-to-back threes to tie the game at 50 late in the third quarter.
Dominic Green and Onu traded baskets to begin the final quarter. Onu made his presence on both ends of the floor while his teammates made their presence by scoring in transition. Ahmad dunked it on the fast break to put them up 64-55. Niagara led 67-60 heading into the Elam Ending.
Like they’ve done before, Niagara answered Montréal’s comeback attempt with a basket by Walden-Mullings and a dunk by Onu. Antonio Davis Jr. drained a three before Ahmad hit two free throws to win it. Niagara outscored Montréal 24-14 in the fourth quarter.
Both teams had balanced scoring as each had four starters finish with double figures in points. Ahmad (14 points) and Babb-Harrison (13) led the River Lions while Osborne and Laroche each had a team-high 13 points.
One notable difference was in the assists as Niagara had 21 to Montréal’s nine. The River Lions also had more steals and rebounds and shot better from the field (51 to 40 per cent).
“Today I feel like we played really well,” Babb-Harrison said. “We made a big step in bringing the energy in the Elam Ending time. That was a big emphasis for us.” He added that the team emphasized “lock it in” during the Elam Ending.
The River Lions had lost a couple of recent games after leading going into Elam time. “It gives us confidence,” Babb-Harrison said of the performance.
“We had to come together. That was the biggest thing for us,” Niagara head coach Victor Raso said. “The guys came together. They trusted each other and they’re really starting to become a team and I was really happy with how aggressive we were in Elam.”
Cayo said the Alliance need to play intensely the whole game. “I felt like at moments we showed flashes of greatness but we have to keep it on for 40 minutes and for Elam if we want to be a great team in this league,” he added. He also mentioned the need to continue working on defence and team chemistry.
The Alliance host the defending champion Edmonton Stingers on June 20. The River Lions host the Ottawa BlackJacks on June 18.
All games will be streamed live internationally on the CEBL’s OTT platform, CEBL+ and on CEBL Mobile the official app of the CEBL for iOS and Android devices. Games are also available to stream live in Canada via cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, and the free CBC Gem streaming service.
A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 71 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow us (@cebleague) on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.