Stingers look to remain undefeated in clash with Alliance
The Edmonton Stingers (2-0) head on the road to take on the Montreal Alliance (0-2) Thursday in hopes of extending their season-opening win streak to three games.
The game begins at 8:00 p.m. ET at Montreal’s Verdun Auditorium, with live coverage available on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+, and on the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices. It will also be televised nationally in French on RDS, and streamed live in French on RDS.ca and the RDS mobile app.
The Stingers are coming off an impressive 92-84 win against the Ottawa BlackJacks, where Edmonton’s bench was able to outscore the BlackJack’s substitutes 42-13.
Leading the charge for the Stingers was guard Adika Peter-McNeilly and forward Brody Clarke. Peter-McNeilly came off the bench and scored 17 points on 71 per cent shooting, hitting three shots from beyond the arc, all in just 16 minutes of play. Clarke was able to get it going scoring 16 points on 50 per cent shooting and grabbing five rebounds to go along with it. Edmonton was also able to attack Ottawa’s basket for most of the game, scoring 40 points in the paint on the night.
The Stingers will likely look for a repeat performance of what helped them in this game and carry it over against the Alliance.
Coming off a loss against Saskatchewan, the Alliance are hungry to get in the win column and Edmonton can’t take them lightly.
In their matchup against the Rattlers, Jordan Bowden and Ahmed Hill combined for 48 points. The Alliance's defence also showed out as they scored 29 points off turnovers.
Montreal will hope to limit how much the Stingers score inside the paint, and they’ll need some help from their depth players off the bench. Against the Rattlers, they scored 21 bench points and they're likely going to need more to compete with Edmonton’s reserves.
After being outscored 14-5 in fastbreak points against Saskatchewan, Montreal will have to create more turnovers and get on the break against Edmonton to find some positive results.
A key player to look out for
Fans should have their eyes peeled for Alliance forward Ahmed Hill. Hill is only four points away from scoring 1,000 CEBL regular season points and would become the first player ever to do so. Hill, Scarborough’s Cat Barber and Winnipeg’s Alex Campbell have all already hit 1,000 total CEBL points, but that includes regular season and playoffs.
Hill averages 19.7 points per game all-time for the Montreal Alliance and was named the team’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2023. His ability to move without the ball, score the three ball, and attack the paint is on another level. He has been uncharacteristically quiet so far this year and it’s only a matter of time before he breaks out this season.
2023 Season Series
The teams split the 2023 season series, with the Stingers coming out on top first with a 92-68 victory on June 17. Montreal would get their revenge with a 93-88 win on June 25.
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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 CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN, TSN+, RDS, Game+, Next Level Sports & Entertainment and Courtside1891. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.