The Scarborough Shooting Stars rode a hot shooting game to a 99-83 road win over the Saskatchewan Rattlers.
The Shooting Stars have won four of their last five games while the Rattlers have lost three of their last four. Saskatchewan pulled off a comeback in Elam time against the Niagara River Lions the previous game but couldn’t do so this time. Scarborough moves to 4-3 while Saskatchewan falls to 3-4.
Scarborough’s Jalen Harris picked up from his strong performance last game with by scoring off two drives to open the scoring. He added a jumper before Saskatchewan’s Scottie Lindsey responded with a three. The Rattlers took their first lead of the game as Jordy Tshimanga put in his own rebound.
Scarborough continued to shoot well throughout the first quarter from three and two-point range as they led 21-14. They shot 52 per cent after 10 minutes compared to Saskatchewan’s 27 per cent. Meanwhile, the league-leading three-point shooting Rattlers struggled from three as they shot one-for-seven from deep.
The Shooting Stars kept on scoring in the second quarter as several players got on the board. Šarūnas Vasiliauskas, Xavier Rathan-Mayes and Isiaha Mike all scored from the free throw line as Scarborough led 40-22. They also did well on the glass, leading the rebounding battle.
Harris and Kameron Chatman knocked down consecutive triples as they went into halftime up 52-34.
The home team started the third quarter on a 9-2 run with threes by Devonte Bandoo, Tony Carr and Lindsey. However, Scarborough answered by scoring inside to keep the lead around 15-20 points. They moved the ball well, including when Vasiliauskas dished off a no-look pass to Kalif Young for an open dunk. The Shooting Stars went into the fourth quarter ahead 73-57.
Lindsey continued scoring in a variety of ways to try and cut into the lead, including a floater and a three to make it 77-66. However, Scarborough went on a run, going into the Elam Ending up 90-71.
The Rattlers cut the lead down to 15 points but couldn’t stop Harris from scoring. Rathan-Mayes hit a jumper to clinch the victory.
Harris (26 points, three steals) and Chatman (20 points, three rebounds) headed the team’s scoring. They received plenty of help from their fellow starters as well as 15 points and seven rebounds from Rathan-Mayes off the bench. Scarborough out-shot Saskatchewan 54 to 43 per cent from the field and tied them with 36 per cent shooting from three.
Chatman called it a great performance. “We’re deep,” he said about the offence. “We’ve got a lot of guys that can score the ball and moving the ball is an emphasis for us and we did that.”
Chatman said the team has grown tremendously since the start of the season. “It definitely took some time but I think we’re finding our groove together as a team,” he added.
Lindsey (31 points, six rebounds) and Carr (21 points, seven rebounds) were the leading scorers for Saskatchewan. However, they were outscored 27-8 in bench points.
“I didn’t see the type of overall style of play that I thought was a winning style of play,” Saskatchewan head coach Dean Demopoulos said of the Rattlers’ performance. He credited the Shooting Stars’ play as part of the reason why. “I thought they were a really well-rounded ball club,” he noted. “They were better than us by a lot tonight.”
The Rattlers continue their five game homestand against the Edmonton Stingers on June 17. Meanwhile, the Shooting Stars finish their Western Canada road trip against the Fraser Valley Bandits on June 18.
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