Saskatchewan Rattlers Defend Home Court With a 92-89 Win Over The River Lions

SASKATOON, SK – The season opener for both the River Lions and Rattlers went down to the wire, but it was the Rattlers who came away with a 92-89 victory over the River Lions as they took their home opener on Wednesday night.  An excited crowd filled the SaskTel Centre to cheer on their Rattlers and the momentum from their defence in the second half held them ahead of the River Lions and gave them the push they needed to find their rhythm offensively and take the win.

The first quarter saw immediate impact from Niagara guard Khalil Ahmad.  The 6’4 shooting scored 15 in the quarter off of 66 percent shooting. 

The two teams attacked in different ways in the first quarter, the River Lions attacking the paint with 16 points in the paint while the Rattlers used inside-out play to get their shooters open along the perimeter, shooting 33% from beyond the arc, led by Malik Benlevi who shot and made two.  Niagara entered the quarter break with a 29-20 lead over Saskatchewan thanks to their efficiency in the paint.

Scott Lindsey started the scoring of the game with a three-pointer, and he did the same thing to start the second quarter along with a transition layup immediately after to give him seven points early for the Rattlers and force a River Lions timeout. 

The Rattlers used that momentum to feed their defence in the second quarter, and they got themselves opportunities on the go, opportunities that Sebastian Åris took advantage of scoring two of three possessions to cut the River Lions lead to just one point, 37-36 with 2:47 remaining in the second quarter. 

The River Lions responded and finished the second half with momentum of their own, fueled by Munis Tutu who had a pair of assists entering the half.  Niagara entered the half with a 44-40 lead after a buzzer beater three pointer by Khalil Ahmad entering the second half with 19 points.

Sebastian Åris scored 6 points in the third quarter for the Rattlers and was the source of much of the back and forth that took place over the ten minutes of play.  Once Saskatchewan cut the lead going into halftime, they went shot for shot with the River Lions and ended the quarter with a 60-58 lead.  The River Lions kept getting the ball inside, up to 28 points in the paint going into the fourth quarter and got to the foul line often in the third quarter forcing the Rattlers to adjust how they defend.

Devonte Bandoo, Jordy Tshimanga and Khalil Ahmad.  Those were the three players with the biggest impact in the biggest moments of the game.  As the fourth quarter went on, the Rattlers and River Lions traded baskets inside as the River Lions and Rattlers both finished with over thirty points in the paint.  Going into Elam time, the River Lions held a 83-78 lead over the Rattlers but a series of fouls put the Rattlers right back in it tied at 85.  From then on Saskatchewan used their strength to get inside the paint and get to the line, all ending in two Jordy Tshimanga free throws to give the Rattlers a 92-89 victory in their home opener.

Khalil Ahmad of the Niagara River Lions had himself a big debut, scoring 36 points on 57 percent shooting to go with eight rebounds and four assists.  His efficient night was matched by Ej Onu who scored twelve points along with grabbing seven rebounds.  For the Rattlers it was Scott Lindsey who’s three-point shot fueled Saskatchewan, giving him 20 points on 50 percent shooting and 80 percent from the three-point line.  Jordy Tshimanga followed with 15 points and 12 rebounds, the games only double-double stat line, including the game winning free throws.

Following the game, Saskatchewan head coach Dean Demopoulos said he tried to focus on “creating collective positive energy, taking care of the ball and limiting the team to one bad opportunity if that when they possess the ball” as the season has started, and that showed in the Rattlers only turning the ball over 13 times in the game.

Victor Raso, head coach of the Niagara River Lions talked about the team’s growth as they start the season, “(we have to) build our fundamentals in training camp and begin the journey, it's a new group of guys, this is the first time the bullets were flying, I really thought we didn't play anywhere near to our potential tonight so from here on out it's a journey, it’s a long one too, 20 games is a long way to go so learn from tonight, bounce back quickly, not hang your head about this, it's a game that we pissed away so it stings but we got a tough task going into Edmonton so we have to build, we have to peak at the right time.”

CEBL action continues tomorrow (May 26) as the Scarborough Shooting Stars make their debut against the Guelph Nighthawks at the Sleeman Centre at 7 PM ET. All games are available on CEBL+, CEBL Mobile, the official app of the CEBL, CBCSports.ca and the CBC Gem app for iOS and Android devices.