Struggling Honey Badgers, Alliance set for slugfest in Montreal
Two teams desperate to turn their seasons around are set to clash in Montreal.
The Alliance (3-8) host the Brampton Honey Badgers (3-8) on Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET at Verdun Auditorium with live streaming coverage available on CEBL+, TSN+, RDS.ca and the RDS App.
Montreal is currently riding a three-game losing streak in which its total margin of defeat was just 16 points, signalling that the Alliance may be close to ending that winless drought.
For the Alliance, who as hosts of Championship Weekend receive an automatic playoff invite, the regular season can be viewed somewhat as a warmup for when the games really matter.
Still, seeding remains important and the idea would be to ride positive momentum throughout the team’s final nine games.
In Brampton, on the other hand, the urgency is only ratcheting up with each successive loss.
The Honey Badgers finally ended a seven-game losing streak by beating the Alliance at home last week, but they failed to build on the long-awaited win in its next game, a loss to Scarborough.
While the Eastern Conference has proven weaker so far, the playoff margins are thinner with the Alliance’s automatic bid.
Brampton currently sits in last place in the East but remains well within striking distance of a playoff spot just half a game behind Ottawa.
Both the Alliance and Honey Badgers, who are the only teams to average fewer than 70 field-goal attempts per game, play slow-paced styles predicated on defensive stops.
Brampton has averaged a league-low 80.7 points per game, while Montreal sits eighth at 87.1.
In their most recent game, Brampton squeaked out an 85-79 victory while holding Montreal to just 61 field-goal attempts and forcing 14 turnovers. The Honey Badgers also found their stroke from deep in that contest, making 10 of 23 attempts.
However, Montreal routed Brampton 95-77 in their first game with a similar formula, forcing 16 turnovers and nailing half of their attempts from three-point range – a stat that matters even more with so few possessions to be had between the two teams.
Friday marks the final game of the season between the East rivals, with the winner earning the playoff tiebreaker.
New Recruits
In a series of roster moves Thursday, the Honey Badgers added a pair of CEBL veteran guards in Michael Okafor and Elijah Mitrou-Long. Okafor is a veteran of 33 CEBL games with the Hamilton Honey Badgers (2022) and Winnipeg Sea Bears (2023), while Mitrou-Long has played 10 games with the Niagara River Lions (2022). Both will help add a much-needed veteran presence to the Honey Badgers backcourt.
To make room for the new additions, Brampton parted ways with Javonte Cook and Lucas Siewert earlier this week.
Player spotlight
Prince Oduro made his season debut for the Honey Badgers in their most recent game against Scarborough after missing the first half of the season with an upper-body injury.
Oduro, the 6-foot-8 Toronto native, made an instant impact with 16 points and eight rebounds despite the loss.
With 39 career CEBL games to his name, Oduro’s steadiness and experience should help Brampton find its level over the second half.
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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 73% of its 2023 rosters being Canadian. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. 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. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.