BANDITS BOUNCE STINGERS IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE

LANGLEY, B.C., July 30, 2022 – They won and now they wait. That is the situation the Fraser Valley Bandits find themselves in following an 86-80 victory over the Edmonton Stingers on Saturday night at Langley Events Centre to close out the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) regular season.

The Bandits finish with a 12-8 record while Edmonton wrapped up their regular season with a 10-10 mark and while both teams have qualified for the postseason, their respective opponents and playoff dates remain up in the air while the league awaits to see Sunday’s results.

What is known is that Fraser Valley will play their next game in front of the home crowd at Langley Events Centre, but what is unknown is whether that game will be on Thursday, Aug. 4 – if the Bandits finish fourth – or on Sunday, Aug. 7, if the team moves up to second or third place, which would allow them to avoid the play-in game and advance directly to the quarter-final game.



Tickets for the Bandits’ playoff game are on sale now at this link. 

Saturday’s game began with Fraser Valley jumping out to a 22-13 lead before a slow second quarter allowed Edmonton to take a 44-40 advantage into the locker room. The Stingers stretched the lead to 11 in the third quarter before the Bandits cut the deficit down to five points at the end of the third quarter, 63-58.

Down 73-72, the Bandits scored the next five points before the Elam Ending was triggered – the target score was set at 86 – and they won it on a Brandon Gilbeck free throw.

Marek Klassen led all players with 19 points, 10 of which came in the first quarter while Malcolm Duvivier scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter. That included a trio of huge three pointers to lead the comeback.

“I think we just stopped complaining and focused on the game. They came and put it to us so we stepped up our toughness and came together and were able to pull it through at the end,” Duvivier said. 

Fraser Valley coach Mike Taylor credited Duvivier’s contribution off the bench as a spark for the shorthanded Bandits who were playing their third game in six days in three different cities and only had eight players for Saturday’s contest.

“We were a little flat, physically and it wasn’t an easy game for us, but we made the adjustments well in the game and that’s a credit to the players. They really battled and really worked hard,” Taylor said. “In the first half, we were complaining too much to the referees. We adjusted in the second half very well, kept our emotional discipline and focused more on the game and making plays.”

“We love the toughness of our team; we love the resilience of our team.”

As has been key for much of the team’s success, the three-point shot again played a factor in the victory as the Bandits went 11-for-30 from downtown. They finished the CEBL season with 221 successful three-pointers, five more than Saskatchewan’s 216. The Hamilton Honey Badgers could overtake the Bandits if they were to make 22 in their regular season finale. Fraser Valley is also tops in the league with a 37.6 per cent success rate from beyond the arc.

“It is a part of the way we built the team and it has been good for us all season,” Taylor said. “We want to establish the post, establish paint touches to pressure the rim and create those rotations and that opens up the three-point shots. It goes hand-in-hand. Today we did not do a good job finishing plays at the rim – and I am thankful that we hit some key threes down the stretch – but it is about being able to execute and get the types of shots you want.”

“We have so many offensive weapons, it is just about playing together and stepping up when your time comes,” Duvivier said.

Five Bandits reached double figures with Klassen’s team-best 19 points – and seven assists – making him the ninth different Fraser Valley player to lead in a game this season. Klassen also tied Alex Campbell with a team-high nine rebounds. Duvivier had 18 off the bench while Maxie Esho and Gilbeck both scored 11 and Shane Gibson had 10. Gilbeck also had six of the Bandits’ 10 blocked shots.

Adika Peter-McNeilly was tops among the Stingers with 15 points while Derrick Woods scored 14 before he was disqualified in the fourth quarter.

The Stingers will open the postseason in Thursday’s play-in round as they travel to face the Saskatchewan Rattlers (11-9). 

Game notes:

Fraser Valley was 2-0 against Edmonton this season, the only opponent who did not beat them.

The Bandits had a 56-52 rebounding edge and 22-20 on the offensive glass.

Playoff incoming:

Although Fraser Valley awaits the results of tomorrow’s final CEBL games, playoff tickets for the Bandits’ highly anticipated playoff game, which will either be a play-in (Thursday, Aug. 4) or quarterfinal (Sunday, Aug. 7) are on sale now at THIS link. 

Fans are kindly asked to call (604) 866-0529 or email tickets@thebandits.ca for any questions or ticket related inquiries.

CEBL games are available 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), as well as TELUS Optik TV Channel 1901 Lower Mainland and via live streams on 604 Now’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

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