Photo Credit: Riverlions/Facebook
For the first time in franchise history the Niagara River Lions have been crowned champions.
The River Lions edged the Vancouver Bandits in nail-biting, nerve-wracking, fashion 97-95 Sunday night in Montreal to capture the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) Championship.
Montreal native, and the only player from La Belle Province playing in the championship final, Nathan Cayo led the Lions with 25 points while the newly anointed ‘Lion King’ Khalil Ahmed chipped in with 23 points including hitting the game-winning basket.
Ahmed scored 13 straight points to end the game in the Eastern Conference Semi-final played at Meridian Centre in downtown St. Catharines, and advance the team to Championship Weekend.
The California native then nailed the game-winning three-pointer in Friday’s Eastern Conference Final as Niagara edged the host Alliance 78-75, before sealing the deal Sunday night.
““I can’t even put it into words” Ahmed told cebl.ca “This is my third summer here (Niagara) trying to get a ship (championship) and we finally got it done.”
“That’s the biggest bucket of my life for sure. I can’t even put it into words,” Ahmad added when he asked about draining the championship winning bucket.
Michelle Biskup who’s been with the organization since it arrived in Niagara back in 2015 was emotional when contacted by The Niagara Independent in Montreal.
“It’s an incredible feeling to finally win a Championships after nine seasons with the River Lions,” said Biskup, Vice-President of the team.
“It’s honestly a bit hard to put into words. We, as an organization, have worked so hard both on and off the court and it feels good to finally have this validation..
We couldn’t have done it without all of the countless staff, coaches, interns, volunteers, players, partners and fans over the years, and we look forward to celebrating with them and the entire Niagara Region over the next nine months.”
Welland native Chris Rao is the lone Niagara native on the coaching staff and explains how significant this championship is to him and the entire region.
“Working with an amazing organization like the River Lions is a blessing,” Rao said.
“As someone from Niagara, and one of the only ones on the basketball side that grew up here, the organization is one to be tremendously proud of.
The front office staff, support staff, coaching, team and players all do an amazing job reaching out and embracing the region as a whole and representing the region well on the national stage.
This organization is an easy one to be proud of for Niagara residents, and that’s due to the amazing efforts of the River Lions from top to bottom.”
Sunday’s championship was a double celebration for Rao who will be announcing another coaching gig this week.
He’s proudly led the Niagara College Women’s Basketball program since 2019.
Two former Brock Badgers were also part of the River Lions roster in TJ Lall and Jordan Tchuente.
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.
