River Lions unbeaten in five
Nathan Cayo hit a contested jumper in target time to lift the Niagara River Lions to a thrilling 105-104 victory over the visiting Edmonton Stingers in Canadian Elite Basketball League action Sunday afternoon.
“It wasn’t the shot we wanted but he (coach/GM Victor Raso) told me if there was nothing to be aggressive because we were in bonus,” Cayo said. “I was trying to make an aggressive play and maybe get fouled but I was happy the shot went in.”
The 26 year-old Montreal native didn’t shy away from the moment and is ready when needed to take the big shot.
“Always. You dream of moments like these but we have so many great players that can make great plays at the end. But if I have an advantage, I will take it. If someone is more open, I would be glad for them to take the shot as well.”
Cayo’s winning jump would never have happened without the fourth-quarter exploits of Khalil Ahmad. With his team trailing 92-86 with 5:05 left in the game, he hit a three and one to cut the lead to 92-90. Then, following an Edmonton bucket, he hit another three to shave the lead to 94-93 with 4:27 left in the game. But the former CEBL Player of the Year wasn’t done yet. He drained another three with 3:57 left on the clock to give his team a 96-94 advantage heading into target time.
“He was incredible. In that stretch, he was insane,” Raso said.
It was just enough to give Niagara the momentum to record the win.
“I think the game was a little sloppy and both teams got into it a little too much with the refs and that is something we have to clean up personally,” Cayo said. “But to pull out a win like this against such a good team is really important for us going into playoffs.”
Niagara won its fifth straight game to improve its Eastern Conference-leading record to 12-5 while the Stingers dropped their third straight to fall to 11-7. The Stingers came into the game with the best road record in the CEBL at 6-2.
“Holy shit. It was intense right from the start,” Raso said. “Those guys (Stingers) played incredibly well, they played desperate and they shot the ball out of go their minds. It felt like we were back in Vancouver with the types of shots that were being made on the floor.”
He felt his team didn’t play great defensively and it gave Edmonton six points in target time.
“We got a stop, we threw the ball away. They hit a three and then Khalil got hurt and the refs should have stopped the game and didn’t. We tried to stop it with a foul and they went and scored an and one (three-point play). That was frustrating and that second half is going to feel like a loss. That needs to be the bounce back. The win will mask some of the bad things in the second half but we have to correct that.”
But a win is a win and Raso will take it.
“The biggest skill in basketball is for your five to beat theirs and our group, despite Edmonton shooting the ball unbelievably well, were still able to get a stop in target time and score five big points with Khalil out in target time,” he said. “We executed on our last two offensive possessions perfectly and we did some very good things. This group has the collective energy to get it done. We just have to be locked in the entire time.”
STATS PACK
River Lions 105 Stingers 104
BPSN Player of the Game: Niagara Khalil Ahmad with 29 points, nine assists and plus-29 rating.
For the Niagara River Lions: Ahmad 29; Nathan Cayo 20; Jahvon Blair 18; Louden Love 8.
For the Edmonton Stingers: Trey McGowens 22; Adika Peter-McNeilly 20; Brody Clarke 18; Jacob Evans III 14.
Game stats: Field goal percentage: Niagara 51.5, Edmonton 51.5. Free throws: Niagara 22-24, Edmonton 24-27. Rebounds: Niagara 28, Edmonton 39. Turnovers: Niagara 14, Edmonton 17.
Up next: Niagara hosts the Brampton Honey Badgers Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Visit www.riverlions.ca/tickets for more information.
