It wasn’t the home opener the Ottawa BlackJacks had in mind on Thursday night when the visiting Niagara River Lions came to town. Playing in front of an empty arena due to COVID restrictions the BlackJacks started off hot, leading 22-18 after the first quarter, but quickly cooled from that point. Whether it was rust, players not having their game legs back beneath them yet, or just smart adjustments on the River Lions’ part, the home side found themselves chasing the game from the 2nd quarter onwards.
The long layoff didn’t appear to affect the Niagara side last night, as they downed the host BlackJacks 103-78 in the CEBL’s season opener. Leading the way for Niagara was Ajax, ON native Jaylen Babb-Harrison who poured in 30pts in 23 minutes of playing time. JBH was lights out from beyond the arc going 8 for 11, good for a 72% 3pt shooting percentage.
Pacing the BlackJacks offensively was former USports Men’s Basketball Player of the Year winner Kadre Gray who had a team high 25pts in the loss. Most impressive about Kadre’s performance however was his ability to draw contact and get to the free throw line consistently. Gray would shoot 11 for 14 from the charity stripe, to go along with his 4 rebounds and 4 assists on the evening.
Former Michigan St. standout Nick Ward had a game high 10 rebounds and 3 blocks to make his presence on the boards felt. Meanwhile, former BlackJack (and current Carleton Raven) Lloyd Pandi put up a 9pts/5reb/3ast statline in 25minutes of play to help down his old team.
The game had a bit of extra drama to it heading into the match as it marked the return of former GM Dave Smart in his first game with the River Lions as Executive Coach and Regional Scout since leaving the BlackJacks after 1 season. While players may claim it was just another game, behind closed doors it’s fair to speculate that each franchise wanted to earn the W for their new coaches just a little bit more than your average game.
Both teams were without the services of a few key players (most notably Phil Scrubb for Niagara), but the game was a good barometer of where each club stands heading into the 2021 season. The River Lions are considered threats to cut down the nets at season’s end. The BlackJacks, who are sporting a new front office, coaching staff, and completely overhauled roster are likely to face some bumps along the way to developing team chemistry. However if last season is any indication of their ability to improve as the season goes on, one shouldn’t be surprised to see them square in the mix of things come playoff time.
The CEBL is next in action this Saturday with a double header featuring the Edmonton Stingers taking on the Hamilton Honey Badgers, followed by the Fraser Valley Bandits hosting the Saskatchewan Rattlers at 7pm ET. The games can be streamed on CBCSports.ca.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner