Bandits jockey for playoff positioning in second half of home-and-home

The Vancouver Bandits (11-5) are searching for a sweep in the second half of a home-and-home series against the Winnipeg Sea Bears (7-8) tonight at the Langley Events Centre.

The game tips off at 7 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. CT / 10 p.m. ET, with live coverage available on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+ and on the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices.

Fresh off a three-point victory over the Sea Bears on Saturday night, led by a 31-point outburst by Vancouver big man Mitch Creek, the Bandits are trying to swipe three of four regular season games against Winnipeg this season. Vancouver previously knocked off Winnipeg at home on June 13 before losing by four points on the road six days later. 

Despite joining the team roughly halfway through the season, tonight’s matchup will mark the third time that Justin Wright-Foreman has played against the Bandits. And he’s been a major factor in every one of those contests. 

Wright-Foreman has scored 29 or more points in each of his three games against the Bandits this season, including his most recent 31 point, seven assist performance last weekend. The Brooklyn, New York native, who leads the league in points per game (27.4) and sits second in assists (6.6), shot 11-19 from the field in the 102-99 loss. 

The loss also dropped the Sea Bears to below .500 for the first time in roughly one month. 

Winnipeg rattled off four consecutive wins between June 19 and July 4 after falling a season-low two games under .500 on June 16. During that span, American-born guard Scottie Lindsey emerged as another reliable scoring option for the Sea Bears. 

The former Saskatchewan Rattler, who ranked in the top-five in league scoring in his lone season in the CEBL in 2022, is shooting better than 34 per cent from deep and averaging 14 points in roughly 25 minutes of action in his last five games. Lindsey and Emmanuel Akot, a forward that chipped in with 18 points on Saturday, will need to provide steady secondary scoring if the Sea Bears hope to snap their four-game losing streak tonight. 

Following his team’s last game, Lindsey said the Sea Bears have to maintain their focus on the defensive side of the court — Winnipeg is giving up a CEBL-high 95.7 points per game — if they want to avenge their previous loss to Vancouver. The Bandits went on a 16-6 run in the third quarter last weekend prior to taking a nine-point lead heading into Target Score Time in the fourth quarter. 

“Little details are super important at that time of the game — especially if it’s a one-point game or two-point game — we just have to be more sharp,” he said after the game. 

Vancouver, meanwhile, has been riding at or near the top of the western conference standings all season. 

Heading into tonight, Vancouver sits one game ahead of the Edmonton Stingers for first place in the western conference — and an automatic spot in Championship Weekend — with four games remaining in the regular season. A win would secure the Bandits at least a top three finish in the conference.

The squad has been led by an MVP-caliber campaign from Tazé Moore, who missed the team’s last game against the Sea Bears on Saturday but is expected to play tonight. The former Portland Trail Blazer leads the CEBL in assists (8.2) and is tied for first in rebounds per game (8.7). Moore is also averaging 17.5 points per game in his first season on the west coast. 

Tonight may also mark the debut of Marcus Carr, a former University of Texas standout who joined the roster earlier this week. Carr, a Toronto native, earned All-Big 12 honours in 2023 and previously played for Bandits head coach Kyle Julius. He is coming back from an injury suffered earlier in the year. 

“Marcus is an elite Canadian guard,” Julius said in a statement. “I have had the pleasure of watching him grow and develop from a young age. He has always been tough and had a relentless work ethic.” 

Following the game, Vancouver will have one week off before travelling to Brampton for the first of a three-game east coast swing to cap off the regular season. Winnipeg is slated to return home for a date with Saskatchewan on Saturday night.