League-Leading Vancouver Bandits Host Winnipeg Sea Bears
A pair of western conference rivals are set to clash on national television tonight.
The Vancouver Bandits (5-1) are hosting the Winnipeg Sea Bears (3-3) at 7:30 p.m. PT / 10:30 p.m. ET at the Langley Events Centre on TSN. The game will also be available for streaming on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+, and the CEBL Mobile app available on iOS and Android devices, and televised on NLSE in the United States.
The game will mark Justin Wright-Foreman’s debut for the Winnipeg Sea Bears. The Brooklyn, N.Y native, who signed with the Sea Bears on Monday, led the league with 29.2 points per game as a Saskatchewan Rattler last season. He is set to team up in the backcourt with reigning CEBL MVP Teddy Allen.
Both players averaged more than 25 points per game last season en route to headlining the ALL CEBL First Team roster.
“Last year was my first year in the CEBL. I didn’t know what to expect and had the greatest experience of my life,” Wright-Foreman said in a statement earlier this week.
The duo are going to matchup against a Bandits squad that have proved to be the class of the western conference this year.
One year after falling just short of the CEBL Championship Game, Vancouver has gotten off to a blistering start in hopes of returning to Championship Weekend — riding a three-game win streak heading into tonight’s contest. Vancouver is also 3-0 at home to start the year.
The Bandits knocked off the Calgary Surge 70-65 in their last outing, holding 2023 CEBL All-Canadian Sean Miller-Moore to nine points on 3-14 shooting. Returnee Nick Ward has led the way for the Bandits this season, averaging a hair over 18 points per game and shooting more than 60 per cent from the field.
Guard Curtis Hollis also bolstered Vancouver’s perimeter in his season debut last Friday, scoring 21 points and grabbing six boards in a five-point win over the Surge. The 6-foot-6 guard from Arlington, Texas also knocked down three of his four triples.
He’ll be joined in the backcourt by Zach Copeland, Koby McEwen and ex-Sea Bear Glen Yang.
The addition of Wright-Foreman comes at a crucial time for Winnipeg, as the team has lost two consecutive games after winning three of their first four to start the season.
Allen is leading the CEBL in points per game (27) through his first six contests. But backcourt mate Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson has also picked up a lot of the slack offensively. Ogungbemi-Jackson, who is averaging 18 points and 6 assists per game in his first season with the Sea Bears, has scored a total of 42 points combined in his last two games.
Alex Campbell, the all-time leading scorer in Bandits history, will also play his first game against his former team tonight.
Since entering the CEBL last season, the Sea Bears are 4-0 against the Bandits. This is the first matchup between these two teams this season. They will square off again next week, June 19, in Winnipeg.
Following this game, Vancouver will host Saskatchewan on Saturday night. Winnipeg will travel home for a date with the Edmonton Stingers on Sunday.
Key matchup:
Two of Vancouver’s guards, Tazé Moore and Copeland, are averaging the most minutes in the CEBL this season, with 34.8 and 33.9 minutes played respectively through their first six games. It will be worth monitoring their minutes and deployment against the combination of Wright-Foreman and Allen in the backcourt.
As a team, prior to the Wright-Foreman addition, the Sea Bears are averaging the second most points per game (92) in the league.
But Winnipeg has had trouble keeping the ball out of their own hoop, giving up a CEBL-high 96.8 points per game. Vancouver’s team defence, meanwhile, is surrendering only 80.8 points per game — second best in the league.
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About the CEBL
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.