The Ottawa BlackJacks are looking to snap their four-game losing run at home when they take on the Edmonton Stingers on June 23 at 7:30 pm ET. The Stingers just recently broke their three-game losing streak with a 64-60 win against the Montréal Alliance on June 20.

Despite their recent 90-86 loss, Ottawa played Niagara down to the wire, making a late comeback in Elam time that fell short. They were out-rebounded but had more assists (22-15) and bench points than Niagara (25-22). It was a game of runs in the second half.

Their matchup against Edmonton will be a battle of two formidable frontcourts. Ottawa’s offence often relies on forwards Maxime Boursiquot, Jackson Rowe, Thomas Scrubb and centre Chad Posthumus.

Posthumus is second in average rebounds (9.8). Edmonton’s Jordan Baker is first with 11.2. The BlackJacks (37.4) and Stingers (37.1) are third and fourth in average rebounds. The team that fares better in rebounding and interior scoring and defence could play an important factor in this game.

The Stingers grinded out a low-scoring, defensive victory against the Alliance. While Edmonton scored down low against Montréal, they struggled shooting the basketball (36 per cent from the field). Their shooting is an area for growth as Edmonton is ninth in field goal percentage (41.9) and three-point percentage (31.6) this season.

The Stingers’ strength is their forwards with Brody Clarke (averaging 13.6 points, 4.1 rebounds), Aher Uguak (10.3 points), Baker (11.0 points, 11.2 rebounds) and Mathieu Kamba (11.5 points, 3.5 rebounds) leading them. Edmonton also received support from guard Demarco Dickerson, who notched 13 points and two assists coming off the bench in his season debut against Montréal.

Ottawa’s key to getting their first home victory of the season could lie with their three-point shooting. They are fifth in the CEBL at 35.4 per cent and are led by Adel, who is averaging a league-best 65.6 per cent. Adel knocked down five-of-eight threes against Niagara and will be a threat to score against Edmonton.

BlackJacks guard Walt Lemon Jr. is a scorer and facilitator on offence, averaging 17.4 points and a team-best 4.4 assists (along with Adel). Scrubb had 11 points and five assists off the bench in his season debut as the team gets more experience playing under first-year head coach James Derouin.

Both sides are excellent in moving and sharing the basketball. Edmonton is first in the league averaging 20.2 assists while Ottawa is tied with the Hamilton Honey Badgers in second with 19.0 assists.

The Stingers are fifth in the standings (5-4) with a chance to pull into a tie with the Guelph Nighthawks with a win. The BlackJacks (1-7) have a chance to move within one win of the Alliance at eighth if they win.

All games will be streamed live internationally on the CEBL’s OTT platform, CEBL+ and on CEBL Mobile the official app of the CEBL for iOS and Android devices. Games are also available to stream live in Canada via cbcsports.ca , the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, and the free CBC Gem streaming service.

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 71 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow us (@cebleague) on Instagram , Twitter , TikTok , LinkedIn , Facebook & YouTube .