New-look Shooting Stars open championship defence on road against Sea Bears
When the defending champions Scarborough Shooting Stars open their season on Friday, little besides the team jerseys will be familiar.
Just two players who won the 2023 CEBL title are returning to the team to begin its trophy defence against the Winnipeg Sea Bears at 7:30 p.m. CT / 8:30 p.m. ET at Canada Life Centre. Broadcast coverage is available on TSN in Canada and NLSE in the U.S., while you can catch a live stream of the game on CEBL+, TSN+ and Courtside 1891 outside North America.
Kyree Walker, a 6-foot-6 American forward, and Danilo Djuricic, a forward from Brampton, Ont., will be counted upon to hold the fort down until they’re rejoined by fellow champions Cat Barber, the CEBL’s all-time leading scorer, and Toronto forward Kalif Young, upon the conclusion of their overseas pro leagues.
There’s even a change behind the bench, as head coach Chris Exilus was promoted into the front office and replaced by Devan Blair, the head coach of the Barbados national team and the G League’s Westchester Knicks.
In the meantime, a pair of ex-BlackJacks in 2023 Canadian Player of the Year Kadre Gray and fellow all-Canadian Jackson Rowe joined Scarborough in the off-season in the push to help the Shooting Stars join the Edmonton Stingers as franchises with multiple titles.
But Scarborough’s first test is a tough one on the road against Winnipeg, which should be hungry for a win after dropping its season opener 94-86 against the rival Saskatchewan Rattlers.
The Sea Bears enter with chemistry on their side as coach Mike Taylor and reigning MVP Teddy Allen are back from a successful inaugural 2023 season, which saw the team place second in the Western Conference at 12-8 before falling in the play-in round.
Against Saskatchewan, Allen picked right back up where he left off last season, going off for his third career 40-point game while keeping the Sea Bears afloat deep into Target Score Time. But both he and Taylor would have preferred a victory.
“We’re excited about the home opener. You’ve got the defending champs coming in … great home city in Winnipeg so we’re looking forward to that. But we’ll try to learn from this game,” Taylor said following the loss to Saskatchewan.
Winnipeg also saw successful CEBL debuts by NBA imports Byron Mullens and Darius Days, who combined for 22 points and 17 rebounds as the starting frontcourt.
Key matchup
In the teams’ lone meeting last season, Allen went off for 40 points in 40 minutes. Even though many of the players are different, the MVP should be feeling good seeing the name Scarborough on his opponents’ chests once again.
It’ll be important, then, for someone on the Shooting Stars to step up defensively and create some resistance against Allen. It’s still too early to see who coach Blair envisions in that role, but his answer will go a long way to determining Scarborough’s success this season.
Milestone watch
- Winnipeg’s Alex Campbell, of Brampton, is six points away from 1,000 for his career, including playoffs
- Winnipeg’s Chad Posthumus needs 16 rebounds to reach 400 for his career, regular season only
- Winnipeg’s Teddy Allen is five assists away from reaching 100 for his career, including playoffs
2023 season series
Winnipeg beat Scarborough 98-93 in the teams’ only ever matchup on June 2 last season.
- CEBL -
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
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