For a full four quarters each team laid it all out on the line, and the result was the most exciting Elam Ending finish to a CEBL game thus far at the Summer Series. Each team took its turn with the lead, and traded jabs throughout the entirety of the game. Saskatchewan dealt the opening blow and lead 49-38 at the half thanks to an intense defensive effort that left the Bandits searching for answers early.

Rashawn Browne continued to show a caliber of play and maturation well beyond his years. Browne took over for the Rattlers in the second quarter and scored eight of his first 10 first-half points in the frame, including a picturesque fadeaway jumper over Junior Cadougan. But despite his strong contribution, Browne insisted that credit for the loss rest on his shoulders. 

“I was garbage tonight,” Browne said. “My job isn’t to go out there and score 30 points. It’s to take care take care of the basketball, not turn it over and make sure everybody’s in the right spot – so as far as I’m concerned that loss is on me.”

Browne ended the game with 14 points, five rebounds and two assists and is an early favourite for U SPORTS Player of the Year. Browne graduated from the University of Manitoba this spring, but his play resembles that of a polished veteran.

“I think it shows the growth of the U SPORTS pathway. There’s a lot of people on U SPORTS pathways that probably talentwise deserve to be here,” Browne said. 

The Bandits began to hit their stride in the third quarter thanks to their depth. With guards Marek Klassen and Malcolm Duvivier in foul trouble, Jabs Newby came into the game and provided important minutes. Despite not recording a single stat besides one missed field goal, Newby’s ability to clog the passing lanes proved vital over the course of the 10 minutes that he played as he finished with a plus-9 rating in the plus-minus category. 

“We just had to change the way that we were playing. They started off strong and our main focus was to play harder on defence,” Newby said. “It’s just a mentality as a pro basketball player – you always have to stay ready. If you’re playing 30 minutes or you’re playing 30 seconds you always got to stay ready.”

The Bandits outscored the Rattlers 49-28 in the second half, thanks largely to another monster performance from Cameron Forte, who followed up his previous 28-point, 10 rebound outing, with 30 points, 10 rebounds and six steals.

“We brought those types of players in here as a core,” Bandits head coach and general manager Kyle Julius said. “I thought we got outworked in the first half, so we talked about that. I thought they won the energy game in the first half and I thought we won it in the second and then we made some big shots. I cannot say enough about Marek and Jabs as they were an absolute sparkplug.”

Marcus Capers stepped to the line and calmly hit each of his three free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt to end the game.

Fraser Valley’s next tilt is against Ottawa on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT). Saskatchewan will look to get back in the win column Friday when they take on Guelph at 5:30 p.m. ET (3:30 p.m. MT).

All CEBL Summer Series games are available to watch on Twitch, CBCSports.ca and the CBC Gem App. A complete broadcast schedule can be found here.