f you believe the numbers, Lindell Wigginton must be pretty excited to see the Ottawa BlackJacks in this afternoon’s quarter-final playoff game at Hamilton’s FirstOntario Centre. He has played his best against the BlackJacks, who will be looking for a way to end that success when the game tips off at 4 p.m. in front of a nationally televised CBC audience.

After recording a 6-1 ledger through the first half of the 2021 campaign, the Honey Badgers won only three of their final seven contests, and finished the season with a 9-5 mark, good enough for third place in the standings. Ottawa (4-10, sixth place) was the only franchise in the CEBL not to win a road game this season. With a berth in next week’s Championship Weekend semifinals on the line today, finding a way to defend Hamilton’s star guard will likely determine the BlackJacks fate.

The Honey Badgers league-MVP candidate posted his two highest-scoring contests of the CEBL regular season against today’s opponent. On Canada Day in Ottawa, Wigginton registered a season-high 33 points to go along with a game-best five assists, while shooting a blistering seven-for-11 from beyond the arc in the team’s  99 -92  victory. Three weeks later, he welcomed the BlackJacks to FirstOntario Centre with a 32-point, nine-rebound performance as part of an  87-75 Hamilton win. In the season series against Ottawa, the pride of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, shot .606 (20-33) from the field, .579 (11-19) from downtown, and .824 (14-17) from the free throw line – all well above his regular season averages.

Welcome Back Kadre

The scouting report on BlackJacks forward Kadre Gray should be pretty easy for the Honey Badgers. Hamilton drafted the six-foot-one guard in the first round (sixth overall) of the 2020 CEBL U SPORTS Draft. 

The Laurentian University grad has enjoyed a fantastic pro rookie season for Ottawa. Gray is the second leading scorer (14.0 ppg) on the team, ranks third in rebounding (5.6 rpg) and leads the BlackJacks in assists (4.4 apg).

He missed the July 21 matchup in Hamilton due to an injury but had a well-rounded game on Canada Day when he contributed 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals for the BlackJacks during their seven-point loss to the Honey Badgers.

With a depleted Ottawa lineup on Saturday, Gray will carry much of the offensive load. The key to success for Gray will be his ability to dictate pace and to be an active rebounder. In Ottawa’s four wins this season, Gray is averaging 7.5 rebounds – as a guard. 

What’s on the Line?

A win for the Honey Badgers, and they face the second-seeded Niagara River Lions in next Friday’s CEBL Championship Weekend semifinal. Niagara captured three of four meetings from Hamilton during the regular season. Ottawa, 0-3 against Hamilton in two seasons, would tangle with top-seed and host Edmonton next Friday. 

Court Connections

In addition to the intrigue on the court, Hamilton and Ottawa have a series of personnel connections that go well beyond the game.

• ·                Coaching Family: Honey Badgers Head Coach Ryan Schmidt and his counterpart Charles Dubé-Brais in Ottawa were former teammates on the Raptors 905 sidelines, serving as assistant coaches to Jama Mahlalela, who is now part of the Golden State Warriors organization.
• ·                Back Where it Started: BlackJacks guard Kadre Grey, playing in his first pro season, was the Honey Badgers first-round pick in the 2020 CEBL U SPORTS Draft but opted to sit out the 2020 CEBL Summer Series.
• ·                Jedi Master Meets Jedi: When John Lashway, now president of the Honey Badgers, was senior vice-president of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment and the Toronto Raptors, Ottawa BlackJacks team president, Michael Cvitkovic, was a member of his staff. Cvitkovic also worked for Lashway in the inaugural 2019 CEBL season for Hamilton before leading the expansion BlackJacks organization.

BY THE NUMBERS

The second quarter-final game takes place Sunday (4 p.m. ET, CBC TV) when the fifth-seeded Guelph Nighthawks (5-9) travel to Abbotsford Centre for a date against the fourth-seeded Fraser Valley Bandits (7-7).

Championship Weekend Schedule

Semifinals : Friday, August 20, 2021

No. 2 Niagara River Lions vs. Higher Seeded Quarter-Final Winner (7 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. MT)

No. 1 Edmonton Stingers vs. Lower Seeded Quarter-Final Winner (9 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. MT)

Championship Game: Sunday, August 22, 2021

Semifinal Winner 1 vs. Semifinal Winner 2 (4 p.m. ET, 2 p.m. MT)

All CEBL games will be available for live streaming on the CEBL’s new OTT streaming service, CEBL+ , cbcsports.ca, the free CBC Gem streaming service, the CBC Sports App for iOS and android devices, and on Twitch.

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 75 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 typically runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.