The Drive For 5 Is Complete: London Lightning Become The 2022 NBLC Champion
Published on June 2, 2022 under National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada) News Release
The London Lightning finished off its drive for a fifth NBL Canada championship with a 97-96 win over the KW Titans Wednesday night at The Aud. The victory capped a 3-0 series sweet for London, who becomes the league's first crowned champion in nearly three years.
Terry Thomas led the Lightning with 25 points, followed by Amir Williams with 18 and Chris Jones with 16. The Titans were topped by Tyrrel Tate and Jesse Jones with 28 and 27 points, respectively.
Thomas was named NBL Canada Finals MVP, adding to his regular season hardware collection that included Canadian Player of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year.
The Lighting entered the playoffs with the league's best regular season record and continued to steamroll through the first round by concluding a 3-0 sweep of the Windsor Express. In the Finals, the Lightning took Games 1 and 2 in the Forest City, including a 115-110 OT thriller on Sunday, then finishing off KW on the road Wednesday.
London ended the season with a perfect home record (12-0, 4-0) in both the regular and postseason.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league has not crowned a champion since the Moncton Magic swept the St. John's Edge in the 2019 NBL Canada Finals in May 2019. This year marks the ninth champion in league history.
NBL Canada Champions:
2011-12 London Lightning
2012-13 London Lightning
2013-14 Windsor Express
2014-15 Windsor Express
2015-16 Halifax Hurricanes
2016-17 London Lightning
2017-18 London Lightning
2018-19 Moncton Magic
2019-20 Not awarded due to COVID-19 pandemic
2020-21 Not awarded due to COVID-19 pandemic
2022 London Lightning
National Basketball League of Canada Stories from June 2, 2022
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