Shooting Stars defeat Surge to claim 1st CEBL championship
CBC
As the final buzzer sounded and the Scarborough Shooting Stars claimed the Canadian Elite Basketball League championship final, their MVP said his mind went blank with shock.
Isiaha Mike helped Scarborough secure the title, tallying 22 points and nine rebounds as the Shooting Stars avenged last year's final loss to beat the Calgary Surge 82-70 on Sunday night at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C.
"I have no idea [what went through my mind], I was just happy. It was kind of surreal and I'm trying to experience every second of this while it lasts," Mike said after the game.
Scarborough went 29-for-68 from the field in the win as Cat Barber chipped in with 23 points.
"He's an exceptional talent and he's done great things for us all year-round. He's a gamer," said Scarborough coach Chris Exilus about Barber. "But there are so many people connected with this win. That's what makes it so special."
Jordy Tshimanga led the Surge with 15 points and 15 rebounds.
The Shooting Stars, who never held the lead in the first quarter, grabbed it early in the second and never gave it up.
The Shooting Stars finished the CEBL's regular season with an 11-9 record, good enough for third in the East. They advanced to Sunday's showdown with a 74-71 win on Friday over the league's top-ranked Niagara River Lions in the Eastern Conference final.
Last season's 90-88 loss to the Brampton Honey Badgers fuelled Scarborough throughout the season, both Mike and Exilus said.
"It means everything. To lose last year was heartbreaking but I'm not even worried right now," said Mike.
The Shooting Stars' championship run was bolstered by a stingy defence that did not allow more than 74 points to an opponent in the playoffs.
"We really executed our planning [on defence.] This team really understood that's how we were going to play. Defence wins championships," said Exilus.
The ability to bounce back from last season's loss highlights the team's resiliency, Exilus added.
The Surge topped the West with a 12-8 regular-season record, but went 27-for-71 from the field in the final, with Tshimanga bagging 10 points in the first quarter but then only adding five throughout the rest of the game.
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