Vancouver Bandits Drop Heartbreaker in Western Conference Final

The Vancouver Bandits opened the 2026 Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) season on the road with a 124-95 victory over the re-branded Saskatoon Mamba at SaskTel Centre on Thursday. Guard Jaelen House, who was signed just two days prior to the season opener, ran the floor for the fast-paced Bandits offense posting a double-double with 33 points and 10 assists. His debut efforts earned him “Player of the Game” honours in his first CEBL games “Jaelen [House] just got in here 24 hours ago,” said Vancouver head coach Kyle Julius. “Figuring the guys out, figuring the system out, that’s big.” Vancouver wasted no time, jumping out to an early lead from House and Mychal Mulder. The team set a new franchise record, scoring 68 points in the first half. Local rookies Dominic Parolin and Shadynn Smid both debuted and got their first professional buckets. Parolin logged an efficient 11 points in over six minutes, while Smid played impressive defense. Saskatoon had difficulties slowing down Vancouver, especially struggling with the chemistry between House and Tyrese Samuel as they combined for 57 points. Their soft and porous defense provided plenty of time and space for Vancouver to feast, with six players scoring double digits. When asked about the balanced attack, Mulder credited their teamwork. ”Just continuing to play together. I think we did a good job of sharing the ball, did a good job of locking in on our defensive assignments,” he said. Saskatoon’s offense was stymied, with every player logging a negative plus/minus. Vancouver’s tight defense clogged passing lanes and strangled Saskatoon’s offense to the tune of 21 turnovers. Tevian Jones picked up four steals, leading the team. Mulder was proud of the effort, saying they defended “as a unit on that end of the floor. [We’re] continuing to grow as a unit and staying together.” Vancouver dominated in the paint, scoring 74 points under the hoop against Saskatoon’s underwhelming 42. House, Samuel, and Jones flashed their speed on the fast break, with the team scoring 21 points while flying downhill. Saskatoon head coach Isaiah Fox got a rude awakening in his first game with the team, saying “Obviously, that could’ve went better.” “Vancouver is a very physical team, and I don't think we quite matched their physicality,” he said. “There were some good moments but unfortunately they came already when we were down double-digit points.” The physicality was on display in the third quarter as Vancouver suffocated Saskatoon defensively, allowing just 17 points. Saskatoon went a whole 2:45 without scoring, while Vancouver increased their lead to 32 in that time. Their biggest lead of the game would be 36. However, Saskatoon made progress in the fourth quarter, out-scoring Vancouver 31 to 24. Trey Townsend came off the bench to lead Saskatoon, scoring 10 of his 15 points in the final frame. Dajuan Gordon chipped in 20 points for Saskatoon, knocking down 5-6 at the charity stripe. Julius was unhappy with the team letting off the gas late in the game. “I thought we really let up in the fourth quarter, but it's an entirely new group,” he said. “We only have two, three guys from last year's team, so overall it was a solid first game for sure.” “I think these first couple games are all about us getting used to the league. We have a lot of guys that have never played in this league,” Julius added. “so we're still kind of just getting used to everything.” Vancouver begins their season 1-0. Vancouver will travel to Edmonton to take on the Stingers on Saturday, May 16, at the Edmonton EXPO Centre at 6:00 p.m. in a home-and-home series. Edmonton comes to Envision Financial Court at Langley Events Centre to play Vancouver in their Home Opener on Friday, May 22, at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase at this link .