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Honey Badgers rally to hand Sea Bears first defeat

Cody John hit a pair of clutch free throws to lift the Brampton Honey Badgers to a 75-71 triumph over the Winnipeg Sea Bears in Canadian Elite Basketball League action before 814 fans at the CAA Centre in Brampton, Ont., Thursday night.

The expansion Sea Bears, who are now 1-1 on the season, led 66-62 at target score time with 3:09 remaining in the fourth quarter but the Badgers rallied for their first victory in three games to start the season.

Teddy Allen had 18 points to lead Winnipeg, which continues its road trip in Scarborough against the Shooting Stars Friday.

The Sea Bears posted a 90-85 triumph over the Vancouver Bandits in their home opener Saturday night.

Elam Ending 101: explaining unique finish to CEBL games

Nick Elam was a high school math teacher in 2007 when he got an idea that is helping to spark a mini-revolution in basketball.

The so-called Elam Ending, a rule now in regular use by the Canadian Elite Basketball League, is a customized ending to a game that forces players and coaches to avoid the spectacle of constant fouling that often turns into a tedious late-game routine.

The Elam Ending, or Target Score system as the CEBL now refers to it, was used to spectacular effect when the Winnipeg Sea Bears beat the Vancouver Bandits 90-85 in their franchise debut last Saturday.

Winnipeg held a 13-point lead (80-67) with 3:48 left in the game. But under the CEBL’s unique Elam Ending rule, the clock is turned off following the first play stoppage in the final four minutes and the game ends when either team reaches the target score — equal to the leading team’s point total plus nine. The target score was set at 89.

MJHL shield rule gets facelift

Full-face protection will be the rule in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League in 2023-24 in a move almost certain to cause some controversy.

The requirement covers only players 18 years old and younger, with 19- and 20-year-olds allowed to continue with the half-shield visors, and will be expanded to include players 19 and under in 2024-25. All players will be covered by the third year of the phased-in plan, which has been mandated by Hockey Canada.

“There’s gonna be some pushback and that’s just natural, but I think the biggest thing is without question it’ll provide a safer environment, especially as it relates to facial injuries and dental injuries,” said MJHL commissioner Kevin Saurette.

“I think the biggest thing is will it bring about potential other concerns about reckless play with having players all wearing full facial protection? Will players be more reckless with their sticks, with how they hit, with hitting high and potentially leading to head injuries and concussions? That remains to be seen.”

Brit a big hit in Winnipeg’s hoops debut

Jelani Watson-Gayle’s first season as a professional basketball player ended in regret.

Before joining the Winnipeg Sea Bears of the Canadian Elite Basketball League for the summer, the 6-1 point guard from London, England was with the Bristol Flyers of the British Basketball League (BBL).

Watson-Gayle, 24, had an impressive rookie campaign as he was named to the All-BBL British First Team. But in the deciding game of a semi-final series with the Leicester Riders, he played 27 minutes and didn’t score a single point.

He had averaged 12 points per game on the year.

Sea Bears ready to roar

The Winnipeg Sea Bears are newcomers to the local sports landscape, but the fledgling Canadian Elite Basketball League franchise is guaranteed to make history even before the first three-pointer is scored.

As of Friday afternoon, the franchise had sold more than 6,700 tickets for its home debut against the Vancouver Bandits at Canada Life Centre Saturday night (7 p.m. tip-off), which will establish a league single-game attendance record eclipsing the previous mark of 4,404 set by the Bandits on June 18, 2022.

The promise of a large crowd doesn’t faze Sea Bears point guard Glen Yang.

“At this point, I enjoy those kinds of atmospheres,” said Yang, who played the winter season with Hong Kong-based Bay Area Dragons of the Phillipine Basketball Association. “I played in front of 54,000 in the Philippines in our Game 7 of the finals, which was insane.”

Sea Bears add high-scoring hoopster Teddy Buckets to roster

They call him Teddy Buckets, and for good reason.

All it takes is a quick glance at Teddy Allen’s stats and you can see why the high-scoring guard from Phoenix, Ariz., has earned the nickname. Allen, who signed with the Winnipeg Sea Bears on Thursday, averaged a whopping 27.9 points per game with the Wichita Sky Kings of the The Basketball League (TBL) earlier this year.

This will be the 24-year-old’s second season in the Canadian Elite Basketball League as he contributed 11.6 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals per contest in 2022 with the Scarborough Shooting Stars.

The 6-6 shooting guard is the seventh signing announced by the expansion team.

Sea Bears’ choice is clear

The Canadian Elite Basketball League’s U Sports Draft is planned for April 19 but the Winnipeg Sea Bears have removed some of the suspense.

Lancers repeat as provincial champs

The Dakota Lancers were not accustomed to adversity.

Top hoopster getting better all the time

Ramogi Nyagudi is 6-10 and still growing.

Wesmen fall to Gee-Gees at national men’s hoops tourney

The Winnipeg Wesmen returned to the U Sports national men’s basketball championship for the first time in 29 years Friday afternoon and it did not go well for the Canada West runners-up.

Wesmen in tough against Gee-Gees

The Winnipeg Wesmen played and lost to the Ottawa Gee-Gees in the final of the Wesmen Classic university men’s basektball tournament Dec. 30.

Wesmen facing toughest test of season

The University of Winnipeg men’s basketball team has silenced the doubters while playing at a level previously thought unattainable in 2022-23.

Winnipeg’s own Posthumus first official Sea Bear

It’s been more than 14 years since Chad Posthumus played a sanctioned game in his hometown.

Kazadi breaks out in second year with Bisons

The Manitoba Bisons have their young stars.

Everything at stake as Bisons take on Wesmen

There are times when even good teams fall apart at crucial moments. There are other times when good players raise the level of their teams, seemingly unaffected by the pressure.

Bobcats and Dinos advance

The Winnipeg Wesmen have already beaten the Brandon Bobcats four times in 2022-23.