Surge fight for seeding in regular season finale against Shooting Stars
The Calgary Surge cap off the 2024 regular season on the road as they visit the Scarborough Shooting Stars on Sunday night.
Live coverage from Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre begins at 7 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. MT and fans can catch all the action on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+ and on the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices.
Both squads have already clinched playoff berths in their respective conferences but whenever it’s a championship final rematch, there’s still plenty to play for. Whichever team comes out on top goes into the postseason feeling a bit better knowing it can hang with the competition on the other side.
Stakes will be even higher for the Surge however, as they are still in a seeding battle with the Edmonton Stingers. Calgary is third in the Western Conference currently, and just one game back of its province rival. If the Surge lose to the Shooting Stars on Sunday, then hopes of moving up into that spot and avoiding the Play-In officially vanish. If they win, the onus falls on the Stingers to win their final game against the Winnipeg Sea Bears.
Thankfully for Surge fans, the team enters the night as one of the hottest teams in the league, winning five of their last six contests. Most recently, Calgary picked up an 87-83 win over Winnipeg in what might end up being a preview of the West Play-In depending on how the end of the season shakes out.
It was a gritty win for the Surge considering they were outshot by the Sea Bears from the field, the three-point line and charity stripe. How Calgary still pulled out the victory was by dominating the glass and possession battle. The Surge finished the game with 55 rebounds (plus-19), 25 of which came on the offensive end (plus-17). Calgary’s effort securing boards led to 17 second chance points (plus-13) on 13 more field goal attempts than Winnipeg.
Jordy Tshimanga led the Surge on that front as he finished the game with 13 rebounds. The big man is one of the CEBL’s premier rebounders, his 6.3 per game average has him in the top 20.
Meanwhile, the defending champs are coming in on more of a down note as the Shooting Stars had a four-game win streak snapped in a 104-90 loss to the Vancouver Bandits. Scarborough’s struggles in the contest were also related to the glass battle. They took on the league’s top rebounding team and it showed, as the Shooting Stars finished minus-10 on the glass (48-38) and were minus-eight (14-6) on o-boards, which resulted in 19 second chance points for the Bandits on nine extra field goal attempts.
Beyond that, depth played a factor in the outcome as well. Scarborough’s usually stout bench was outproduced on the night as Vancouver’s second unit finished plus-17 (43-36). The Bandits had two double-digit performers while the Shooting Stars had zero. Scarborough’s best player off the bench was Danilo Djurcic who finished with eight points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field and three rebounds in 12 minutes of play.
2024 season series
Even coming off a loss, Scarborough has to feel at least some confidence entering the matchup against Calgary given it’s won their last two contests going back to 2023’s CEBL Final.
In the lone matchup of this season between the cross-conference opponents, the Shooting Stars picked up a 104-97 win. A back-and-forth contest that saw plenty of lead changes, ultimately decided by Scarborough’s offensive efficiency and bench depth.
The Shooting Stars outshot the Surge from the field, distance and free throw line – notably shooting 72 per cent inside the arc for 52 paint points. Those high quality looks at the rim largely came as a result of Scarborough’s ball movement offence, as it finished with 28 assists (plus-13).
All those dimes also meant the Shooting Stars spread the wealth when it came to scoring the ball. Eight players finished in double-figures, three of which came off the bench. Scarborough’s second unit finished plus-13 (40-27) as a result.
Despite the loss, Calgary kept things close by and often led in the game because of its dominance on the glass. The Surge finished with 42 boards (plus-14), 17 offensive rebounds (plus-13) and 18 second chance points (plus-10) as a result. Notably, Mathieu Kamba finished with a double-double (14 points, 12 rebounds) in the matchup.
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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.