Vancouver Bandits' Mitchell Creek, centre, protects the ball from Scarborough Shooting Stars' Aaron Best during CEBL basketball action in Toronto in this Friday, July 26, 2024 handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, CEBL *MANDATORY CREDIT*

TORONTO - The Vancouver Bandits have punched their ticket to next month's Canadian Elite Basketball League's Championship Weekend in Montreal.

The Bandits (14-5), led by Marcus Carr's 22 points, knocked off the Scarborough Shooting Stars 104-90 at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre to ensure they'll finish first in the five-team Western Conference.

"It was definitely a goal of ours to come here this weekend and get that done,” said Carr, who shot an efficient 8-for-13 from the field coming off the bench. “We’re happy we executed, but the job’s not done, so now we’re just gonna go back to the drawing board at practice and get better.”

The Bandits entered Friday’s game looking like the best team in the league — boasting the highest points per game average, lowest points against per game average and the best point differential in the league — and looked every bit of that moniker, halting the hottest team in the CEBL’s win streak at four games.

Bandits coach Kyle Julius is well aware of the team that he has but has belief there’s still another gear for this team to hit as they try to win it all in Montreal.

“You have to (keep improving),” Julius said. “It starts with our leadership. The leaders set the tone every day — it starts with those guys — and this was Phase 1 for us and now we’ve got to go into Phase 2.

“These guys have nothing to do with last year, but I was thoroughly embarrassed with the way we played last year and we’ve really worked hard this year to bring a different group in with a different approach and when we started doing it that was Phase 1. Now it’s playoff basketball and everybody’s gotta be better. The coaching staff, the water guys, the trainers, the last guy’s gotta be better and it starts right now.”

Vancouver now owns the longest active win streak in the league at four straight and with the chemistry and togetherness that they play with, the Bandits could see that streak extend all the way to a title.

Mitch Creek scored 18 minutes in 36 minutes for the Bandits and added six rebounds. Zach Copeland and Taze Moore each chipped in with 15 points.

Donovan Williams led the Shooting Stars (11-8) with 25 points and six rebounds. Jalen Adaway chipped in with 17 points and Cat Barber added 13.

The Bandits led 54-48 at halftime and outscored the Shooting Stars 24-10 in the fourth quarter.

ALLIANCE 89 RATTLERS 72

The host team of next month's Championship Weekend, the Montreal Alliance, improved to 5-14 with an 89-72 victory over the visiting Saskatchewan Rattlers.

Guillaume Payen-Boucard led the Alliance with 21 points and five rebounds, while Curtis Hollis had 17 points and Ahmed Hill added 16.

Emmanuel Bandoumel led the Rattlers (6-14) with 21 points, while Teddy Allen had 13 and James Montgomery added 11.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 26, 2024.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2024