Niagara River Lions Look to Extend Winning Streak in Rematch with Edmonton Stingers

The Edmonton Stingers will continue their title defence on Monday night in another rematch of last year’s championship against the Niagara River Lions. The Stingers visit the River Lions at 7:00 p.m. ET at Meridian Centre.

After losing to Saskatchewan 92-88 in their opener, the River Lions went into Edmonton and picked up a 86-74 victory over the defending champs in a rematch of last year’s final. 

Since losing their first game, the River Lions have been on fire. They’ve won three consecutive games  by double digits and sit atop the CEBL standings tied with the Fraser Valley Bandits at 3-1. In addition to their win over the Stingers, the River Lions defeated the Guelph Nighthawks 94-84 and the Montreal Alliance 87-62.

Through four games, Niagara leads the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) in both points per game with 89.3 and field goal percentage at 48.3. The offensive juggernaut is led by Khalil Ahmad. 

Ahmad sits second in the league scoring race behind Newfoundland’s Brandon Sampson with 25.8 points per game on 55 per cent from the field, 43 per cent from three and 81.3 per cent from the free throw line. Ahmad is also contributing 5 rebounds per game and a league-best 6 assists per game for the River Lions. 

Alonzo Walker has played a large role in Niagara’s strong start as well. Walker is averaging 10.3 points per game to go along with 6.5 rebounds per game. The River Lions are receiving some elite rim protection from EJ Onu with a league-best 2.8 blocks per game and an additional 9.8 points per game.

Meanwhile, the back-to-back defending champions from Edmonton enter the game on a winning streak of their own. After losing their home opener to the River Lions, the Stingers picked up a 84-71 win against Saskatchewan and a 89-74 win in St. John’s in the Newfoundland Growlers’ inaugural game. 

Without Xavier Moon, the Stingers have relied on a balanced scoring attack this season with five players averaging double figures. Brody Clarke leads the team with 12.7 points per game and 5 rebounds per game, with Jordan Baker contributing 11.3 points per game, 11 rebounds per game, 5 assists per game and 2 steals per game. 

Devon Bookert, David Pekarek and Asher Uguak are all averaging double figures, at 11.7 points, 11 points and 10 points respectively. Jahmal Jones is also having an impact off the bench, averaging 7.3 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game and 5 assists per game.

Entering Monday’s tilt, the Stingers lead the league in both assists per game with 23 and rebounds per game with 40.7. Edmonton goes into the game leading the all-time matchup 6-2, including the playoffs. 

The game will stream on CEBL+ live internationally and in Canada at cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app for iOS

and Android devices and the free CBC Gem streaming service. Games are also available on the CEBL’s official app, CEBL Mobile, available on iOS and Android devices.

Edmonton Stingers season tickets are available at https://www.thestingers.ca/season-tickets17e760ad  while Niagara River Lions season tickets are available at https://www.riverlions.ca/tickets. 

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.