Bandits host Shooting Stars in Season’s First West Coast Matinee

Zulfi Sheikh • May 26, 2024

The Vancouver Bandits (1-0) welcome the Shooting Stars (0-1) to the Langley Events Centre on Sunday – the site of Scarborough’s first title last season – with action set for 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. local.


Fans can stream the action live on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+, Courtside 1891 (outside of North America) and on the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices. The game will also be available on Game+ in Canada and NLSE in the United States.


It’ll be the first of two matchups between Vancouver and Scarborough this season, their next contest not taking place until the end of June. Between now and then, there’ll be plenty to figure out for both squads, but what we do know is they are coming off very different season-opening outcomes.


Vancouver enters Sunday on the heels of an impressive 20-point victory over the Montréal Alliance that saw their offseason additions propel them to the lop-sided win. Koby McEwen, who spent the last two seasons as a Brampton Honey Badger, led the way with 22 points, six rebounds and four assists. Meanwhile, import acquisitions Zach Copeland and Tazé Moore chipped in with 19 and 17 points, respectively, in their CEBL debuts.


Meanwhile, Scarborough makes their way into the matinee off the emotional letdown of a 109-106 loss to the Winnipeg Sea Bears in a game they let slip away. Not only did the Shooting Stars convert better from the field, three-point distance and the free throw line on Friday, they had two opportunities to secure the win from the charity stripe. 


Jackson Rowe, who put up 17 points and 10 rebounds in his debut for the Shooting Stars, got fouled needing to sink just one free throw for the victory and went on to miss both. Winnipeg went on to grab Rowe’s second miss and drill a game-winning triple.


Despite getting solid performances from multiple debutants like Tevian Jones who finished a team-high 18 points and nine rebounds, Kadre Gray who added 17 points off the bench or Shamar Givance who chipped in with a near-double-double of 10 points and nine assists, the Shooting Stars ultimately started their title-defence season with a heartbreaking loss.



By the Numbers

Turnovers: It wasn’t just Scarborough’s late game execution that cost them it was their multiple unforced errors that kept the game closer than it needed to be. The defending champs turned the ball over 14 times, eight more than the Sea Bears and gave up 17 costly points off those freebies. 


Three-point shooting: Both teams made it clear through their opening games that they like to shoot from beyond-the-arc as two of the three teams to attempt make 10-or-more threes through one game played and attempt over 30. As far as efficiency goes, Scarborough holds the edge with 15 makes (the most by a team a single game this season) on a league leading 38.5 per cent clip.


Key matchup

Both squads have the talent and depth on the perimeter to keep up with each other, which is why the real X-factor matchup will be a battle in the paint between Nick Ward and Hason Ward (no relation). 


Nick is a known commodity in the CEBL, a 2021 All-CEBL first team member and one of the most productive offensive bigs the league has to offer. In Vancouver’s win against Montréal, the American may not have been a focal point as they acclimated the new guys, but he still finished with an impressive 17 points on 55 per cent shooting, six rebounds and a block.


Meanwhile, Hason was equally impactful in his debut. His 12 points may not match up to Nick’s offensive production, but the 23-year-old still went 6-for-7 from the field while imposing his will on defence. Not only did Hason rack up seven blocks, tying the second-most in a single game all-time, he limited former first round NBA draft pick Byron Mullens to seven points on 1-for-8 shooting.


A battle between offensive hub Nick and defensive anchor Hason is one fans will surely want to keep their eyes on.


2023 season series

:The cross-conference opponents matched up just once last season, with the Bandits playing spoiler to the eventual champions, beating the Shooting Stars 82-79. Ward was instrumental in the victory, leading all players with 24 points and 11 rebounds.


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