Pictured: Antonio “AJ” Davis. Photo Credit: CEBL.
On paper it doesn’t look like much of a match-up, but Niagara River Lions Head Coach Victor Raso begs to differ.
It’s semi-final Friday at CEBL (Canadian Elite Basketball League) Championship Weekend in Montreal as the (14-6, 1-0 in the playoffs) River Lions face the host (6-14, failed to qualify for the post-season) Montreal Alliance.
Niagara Head Coach and General Manager Victor Raso was asked during media day when he knew his team could contend for a championship this season.
“The first time I thought we could be here (championship weekend) was the last time we were here (in Montreal),” said Raso.
“We played Edmonton on a Sunday night and we played a really good game of basketball, and then we came here after spending four nights in a hotel, and we were as good a team that night as I’ve ever coached. That’s when I realized this team does some things at a fundamental level that could get us back to the final four and hopefully win it.”
Montreal will be playing in front of a sold out home crowd, and despite their last place regular season record, Raso points to their plus-43 points on the season to know what they’re capable of.
Three of Raso’s players were honoured at the CEBL Awards Banquet Wednesday night.
Aaryn Rai was named the league’s Sixth Man of The Year, while Kalil Ahmed was named a first team all-star, while Javon Blair was named a first-team all-Canadian and second team all-star.
Rai, who recently joined the Niagara Sports Report on Newstalk 610 CKTB has been surprised by Niagara’s team-cohesion from early on.
“I was surprised how well we’ve played as a team,” Rai said. “I think we have a lot of talented guys, but I’ve been really impressed by how we play together. We have a really deep team.”
Rai’s right.
On any given night, any player on the River Lions roster could lead the team in scoring.
In fact, Niagara had six players average double-digits in scoring in 2024.
Ahmad averaged 19 points per game, Elijah Lufile grabbed 7.2 rebounds, while Omari Moore who played for the NBA Toronto Raptors Summer League team registered 5.8 assists per game.
Jordan Bowden led the Alliance in the regular season averaging 17.4 points per game, while Chris Smith (CEBL second all-star) was the team’s top rebounder with 8.8 per contest. while Alain Louis was Montreal’s top playmaker dishing out 5.6 assists per game.
The River Lions and Alliance tip at 8 pm Friday night live on TSN across the country.
The other semi-final sees the (11-9) Calgary Surge taking on the (14-6) Vancouver Bandits. Tip is set for 5:30
pm.
The two winners will play for the CEBL Championship Sunday night at 6pm live on TSN.
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
