NIAGARA RIVER LIONS HOST SCARBOROUGH SHOOTING STARS IN EASTERN CONFERENCE CLASH

Written by Josh Kozelj

Jockeying for playoff positioning in the eastern conference is going to heat up as the Niagara River Lions (8-6) (-125) host the Scarborough Shooting Stars (7-5) (-110) at the Meridian Centre at 3:00 pm ET. 

The game will also be available for streaming on TSN+, CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, and on the CEBL Mobile app available on iOS and Android devices.

Both teams come into today’s game one game behind the eastern conference leading-Ottawa BlackJacks. But Scarborough edges out Niagara for second place in the conference based off win percentage. 

After dropping a pair of games at the end of June, Niagara has responded with three straight victories—including back-to-back wins over the Brampton Honey Badgers this week. 

“All three games have been team wins,” Eddie Ekiyor said after Niagara’s latest win on Friday night. “I bring as much energy as I can, but in terms of the success we’ve had, that’s definitely coming from all of us following the fundamentals we’ve been ingraining all season.” 

Ekiyor scored a team-high 18 points, as the River Lions overcame a 26 point outburst from Christian Vital on Friday night. 

As a team, Niagara is leading the CEBL in points per game (91.8), and second in the league in field goal percentage (47.2 per cent) and three pointers made per game (10.3). Khalil Ahmad is leading the charge for the team on offence, recording nearly 18 points per game, while EJ Onu is leading the league in blocks per game with over two per contest. 

Scarborough, meanwhile, comes into today as winners of two consecutive games but have not played since June 29, when they edged the Edmonton Stingers 91-89 in the second half of a back-to-back Alberta road trip. The Shooting Stars defeated Calgary on June 28. 

On offence, Cat Barber—who is third in league scoring at 23.6 points per game—is expected to go head to head with a Niagara backcourt that features the reigning CEBL MVP Ahmad and Jahvon Henry-Blair who is averaging 15.4 points through 14 games this season. 

Scarborough also boasts two players in the top 10 in steals (Barber and Thomas Kennedy) and blocks (Kennedy and David Walker). The Shooting Stars are averaging the most steals per game at a hair over 10.

These two teams last met on June 8. And led by a combined 48 points by Henry Blair, Ahmad, and Ekiyor, the River Lions held Barber to 38 per cent shooting and 13 points and knocked off Scarborough 99-81. 

With a win, both Scarborough and Niagara could climb closer to the BlackJacks, who are playing in Vancouver tonight. 

After tonight, Niagara will have one week off before squaring off against the Shooting Stars in Scarborough on July 16. Scarborough will return home for the first of a two-game home stand with a date against the Ottawa BlackJacks on July 14. 

Full broadcast schedule of CEBL Games of the Week on TSN can be found here. All games will also be streamed live internationally on the CEBL’s OTT platform, CEBL+, and on the CEBL Mobile app for iOS and Android devices. 

A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 71 percent of its 2022 rosters being Canadian. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. Nine players have moved from the CEBL into the NBA following a CEBL season, and 28 CEBL players attended NBA G League training camps during October. The CEBL season runs from May through August. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.