Alliance Seek First Win Against River Lions
The Niagara River Lions (4-3) go on the road to take on the Montréal Alliance (3-4) on June 15 at 7:30 pm ET. The River Lions won their previous meeting 87-62 in St. Catharines on June 3.
Montréal has lost two of their last three games since that loss to Niagara. The River Lions have won two of their last three games but are coming off a 92-89 loss to the Saskatchewan Rattlers.
One of the Alliance’s strengths is their strong play at home. They are 3-0 in Montréal with victories against the Scarborough Shooting Stars, Ottawa BlackJacks and Guelph Nighthawks.
Meanwhile, the River Lions have played well on the road with a 2-1 record, including wins against the Nighthawks and defending champion Edmonton Stingers. Niagara is coming off a four-game homestand where they went 2-2.
In their first meeting, Niagara had a strong first and third quarters to pull away from Montréal. The River Lions led 26-11 after one quarter. Despite the Alliance fighting back in the second, the River Lions outscored them 46-26 in the second half. Look for Montréal to try to get out to a better start this time.
One notable difference from that game was the three-point shooting. Niagara shot 45 per cent while Montréal shot 17 per cent. River Lions players Jaylen Babb-Harrison, EJ Onu and Phil Scrubb both hit multiple threes each. Overall, the Alliance shot 32 per cent from the field compared the River Lions at 52 per cent. Shooting will be an area to improve upon.
The Alliance did win the rebounding battle 41-38 but will be without centre Gaios Skordilis, who was released from the club. A lot of Montréal’s offence runs through their guards. Hernst Laroche leads the team with an average of 4.14 assists while Alain Louis can find teammates and score inside and out. Kemy Osse will be relied on for his outside shooting as he is fifth in the CEBL in three-point shooting at 41.9 per cent.
One of Niagara’s biggest strengths is their offensive efficiency. They are tops in the CEBL in points per game (87.6), field goal percentage (46.6 per cent) and tied for second in rebounds per game (38). Depth was a key factor in their first game against Montréal. All five starters scored double-figures while Scrubb, Tidjan Keita and Oluseyi Ashaolu contributed off the bench.
An area to get better at is finishing games in Elam time. The River Lions led heading into the Elam Ending against Edmonton and Saskatchewan but ended up losing both games. They almost lost to the Newfoundland Growlers as well after leading in the fourth quarter.
If Montréal wins, they will pull into a tie with Niagara with a 4-4 record. The River Lions are currently third in the standings while the Alliance are eighth.
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.