Hot-shooting night earns Scarborough fourth-straight win with 105-91 victory over Ottawa
The Scarborough Shooting Stars extended their league-best win streak to four games on Thursday night as they took down the Ottawa BlackJacks by a score of 105-91.
Entering the night, Scarborough led the league in three-point makes per game (13.6) and were second in percentage (39.3), and they improved on both of those numbers. The Shooting Stars hit a season-high 20 threes (+13) on a 44 per cent clip as they walked away with their second home win of the season.
Eight different players made a three pointer for Scarborough, while six other Shooting Stars hit at least two.
Tevian Jones led the way for the defending champs, scoring a game-high 23 points while going 5-for-7 from downtown. He was joined by Kadre Gray, who finished with 21 points and seven assists against his former team, and Donovan Williams who dropped 17 points in his CEBL debut.
And if playing against the BlackJacks for the first time after three seasons with them wasn’t special enough, Gray commemorated the occasion by making a bit of history. With his sixth dime, the Toronto native became the first player in CEBL history to record 300 assists all-time.
“I wasn’t really thinking about it but I woke up this morning and said ‘Ottawa on the schedule, let’s lock in,’” Gray said after the game on playing his former team and reaching the milestone. “It was still another game, but there was a nostalgic feeling playing my former home … nothing but love.”
On the other side, Tyrell Tate led Ottawa in scoring for a second consecutive game as he dropped 21 points off the bench. Meanwhile, Lloyd Pandi chipped in with an efficient 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go with eight rebounds.
“Our issues are on the defensive end,” BlackJacks head coach James Derouin said after his team gave up more than 100 points for a second consecutive game. “We came in with the worst defence in the league coming into the game and the leaky boat sank even further … giving up 20 threes to the number one offence.”
It didn’t take long to see why the Shooting Stars, by the numbers, are the league’s most proficient offence.
Against Ottawa in the first half, Scarborough got downhill (15 fastbreak points), moved the ball (14 assists) and found open shooters (nine threes). It’s that kind of balanced attack that makes scoring a league-leading 93.8 points per game possible.
By the end of two quarters the defending champs had rattled off two separate double-digit scoring runs, the second of which was an 11-0 run that put them up 10 points. And although they couldn’t maintain the double-digit edge, the Shooting Stars still went into the break leading 49-41.
Jones led all scorers at halftime with 15 points going a near-perfect 6-of-7 from the field while knocking down three triples.
“The easiest way to look at it is the fact we had 31 assists tonight,” Scarborough head coach Devan Blair said post-game when asked how his team has been the top scoring offence in the league. “We have a group of selfless guys … they don’t care who gets the shots as long as it’s the correct play.”
Scarborough wasted little time to regain their double-digit lead coming out of the break. It took the Shooting Stars less than two minutes into the third to go on yet another run, this time 7-0 as they extended their lead to as high as 17 points.
Credit to Ottawa, however, as they finally responded with a 9-0 run of their own that cut the lead back down to single digits. The BlackJacks did what they could defensively to get within striking distance, forcing six turnovers for seven points in the frame, but couldn’t overcome the Shooting Stars overwhelming advantage from beyond the arc.
Scarborough hit five threes in the third as they built their lead back up to 76-63 going into the final frame.
And although the BlackJacks made a valiant push by cutting the lead down to single digits once more, their defence couldn’t stop leaking throughout the fourth and Target Score Time.
The Shooting Stars hit six more triples in the fourth quarter, the final one fittingly ending the contest as Jones drilled a look from the right corner.
“Nothing’s forced,” Gray said after the game when asked what’s clicked during their four-game win streak. “Everything is coming naturally, everyone is gelling, and that stuff shows on the court … we’re having fun.”
Up Next
Things don’t get much easier for the BlackJacks as they go from one top East team to another, hosting the Niagara River Lions on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Shooting Stars return to action on Sunday, visiting the Montréal Alliance for their first matchup of the season.
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A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 75% of its rosters being Canadian and a record 10 players with NBA experience in 2024. Players also bring experience from the NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, NCAA programs, as well as U SPORTS and CCAA. Fourteen players have signed NBA contracts following a CEBL season, and numerous CEBL players attend NBA G League training camps every year. The CEBL season runs from May through August with games broadcast live on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN, TSN+, RDS, Game+, Next Level Sports & Entertainment and Courtside1891. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.
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