Bandits look to avenge lone loss in rematch with Rattlers

The Vancouver Bandits (6-1) welcome the Saskatchewan Rattlers (5-2) to Langley Events Centre on Saturday night for the second of three regular season matchups this season.

Live coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. PT / 8:30 p.m. CST / 10:30 p.m. ET and fans can catch all the action on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+ and on the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices.

Vancouver may lead the Western Conference with a near-perfect record, but they’ll still have plenty to gain this weekend, as their lone blemish to this point was a 98-86 loss against Saskatchewan two weeks ago.

There was a caveat regarding the outcome however, as Vancouver was without it’s do-it-all guard Tazé Moore. The team’s leading scorer was a late scratch due to illness and his absence was greatly felt.

Without Moore’s 20.2 points per game (fourth-most in the CEBL) and steadying presence, the Bandits’ offence appeared to be in disarray. They turned the ball over 18 times, shot 34 per cent from the field and 27 per cent from downtown, looking nothing like the team that typically scores 92 points per game (tied for second most in the league).

And if that doesn’t make the 25-year-old’s impact clear enough, how about the fact that Vancouver is still undefeated with him in the lineup? In their latest victory, a 112-91 win over the Winnipeg Sea Bears, Moore put up a monster triple-double of 35 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.

He’s one of just two CEBL players this season to record a triple double.

Moore’s play spearheaded a season-best offensive performance for the Bandits, as they dominated the Sea Bears in practically all point-producing statistical categories. They shot better from the field (+10%), grabbed more rebounds (+7) and dished more assists (+11).

The glaring absence of Moore doesn’t fully discredit Saskatchewan’s victory over Vancouver, however. It might’ve been a single-digit win in the end, but the Rattlers never trailed in the contest as they outproduced the West’s No. 1 squad from the field (+8), the paint (+10) and three-point line (+3).

Saskatchewan was led by a star guard of its own, with Jalen Harris putting up 27 to go with six rebounds and nine assists. He was backed up by a three-headed monster of Elijah Harkless, Maurice Calloo and Grant Basile who each chipped in 19 points.

Since that victory – and a 3-0 start – the Rattlers went on a two-game losing streak before sweeping a home-and-home set against the Brampton Honey Badgers. Their latest victory, like the Bandits, was a season-best offensive performance.

It was a 104-93 win for Saskatchewan as they shot 52 per cent from the field, made 14 threes on a 43 per cent clip and dominated the glass for 41 rebounds (+14). And again, similar to Vancouver, it was thanks to their leading scorer having a special game.

Harris put up a historic 45 points against the Honey Badgers on Wednesday, setting a new CEBL single-game scoring record. The import scored 21 of those points in the third quarter alone as he finished the game shooting 62 per cent from the field and 66 per cent from beyond the arc.

The record-setting performance leapfrogged him to the top of the CEBL’s scoring leaderboard, now averaging 27.7 points per game.

Key matchup

Harris vs. Moore will be the battle to keep an eye on. It’s going to be a heavyweight bout between the league’s No. 1 and No. 4 scorers, both of whom are coming off CEBL career-best performances.

The pair also lead the league in minutes played per game, so fans can expect to see plenty of action between the matchup on Saturday night.

We might have missed out on two of the league’s best duking it out in the first contest but round two has the potential to more than make up for that. A win for the Bandits extends their lead over the conference and casts doubt on the Rattlers original victory, while a Saskatchewan win brings them into a tie for first in the West and validates their previous performance.