1st-Place Bandits Square off with Surge in Western Conference Final

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Vancouver Bandits

1st-Place Bandits Square off with Surge in Western Conference Final

August 9, 2024 - Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL)
Vancouver Bandits News Release


The Western Conference was a battle all season.

Soon, someone will emerge as the last team standing.

The Vancouver Bandits (14-6) meet the Calgary Surge in the West final on Friday at 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT / 3:30 p.m. MT at Montreal's Verdun Auditorium. Broadcast coverage of the game is available on TSN and Next Level Sports & Entertainment, while you can live stream the contest on CEBL+, TSN+ and Courtside 1891.

The winner will play for the CEBL championship trophy on Sunday against either the Niagara River Lions or host Montreal Alliance.

Despite the tough nature of the conference, Vancouver held down the top spot for most of the season thanks to an 8-2 start.

And while the second half wasn't as smooth for the Bandits, they still finished the campaign with wins in six of their last 10.

On Wednesday, the Bandits dominated the league's awards gala as point guard Tazé Moore was named MVP, Kyle Julius took top coaching honours and Koby McEwen was crowned the top Canadian.

"I couldn't have done it without my teammates, for me to play well, for me to play free," McEwen said moments after winning the award. "I don't wanna say I'm not happy, but definitely not satisfied. There's a lot of things we gotta do this weekend, just trying to stay even keel about things. But I'm definitely grateful for the league recognizing me and stuff like that."

While Moore and McEwen buoyed the Bandits for most of the season, the team also received some late reinforcements in Canadian brothers Duane Notice and Marcus Carr as well as Australian big man Mitch Creek.

Over six contests, Creek averaged 25.8 points per game to go with eight rebounds and 2.7 assists.

Meanwhile, the season wasn't as smooth-sailing for Calgary, which lost two of its first seven games to dig an early hole.

But the Surge seemed to discover their identity as a fast, physical and never-say-die squad in a 97-94 win over the Bandits last month, the second of a four-game winning streak that launched them firmly into playoff contention.

Despite missing some key players in NBA Summer League, a next-man-up mentality led by Mathieu Kamba, Corey Davis Jr., and mid-season addition Kyler Edwards helped propel the Surge forward.

Davis Jr., led the team with 22.5 points and seven assists per game while Sean Miller-Moore hauled in 10 rebounds per game.

The Bandits won the season series 2-1 over the Surge.

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