In a battle between the Western Conference’s top two teams, Vancouver Bandits fell to Calgary Surge on Sunday.
Both squads were coming off losses to Western Conference rivals heading into Sunday’s clash at WinSport Event Centre, but a massive 33-13 second quarter propelled the Surge to a comfortable win.
Six Surge players scored in double figures, with Greg Brown III’s 24 points leading the way. The NBA-experienced forward scored the Target Score Winner at the line and added eight rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks.
Calgary dished 29 assists while winning the battles on the fastbreak and in the paint. The Surge were a menace on defence as well, forcing 29 turnovers – including 14 steals – and blocking six shots.
Vancouver head coach Kyle Julius said it was noticeable the squad was shorthanded, including the absence of Mitch Creek due to injury late in Friday’s loss to Winnipeg. He said the team didn’t stick with what was working after a strong first quarter.
“The game plan worked great in the first quarter and then it ended. Then it stopped,” Julius said.
Duane Notice and Curtis Hollis each scored 15 to pace the Bandits’ offence in Creek’s absence, while recent acquisition Zach Copeland netted 12 off the bench in his second game of the season.
Copeland played with Vancouver last year and is confident they’ll figure things out.
“We had some rough patches last year too and we made it to the final. So [we have to] keep a level head and just keep going,” he said.
Calgary’s 100-83 victory vaults the team atop the CEBL standings at 8-3, winning both meetings with their rivals from Vancouver so far this season.
The second loss to Calgary marks the first time Vancouver has lost consecutive games this year and snaps a four-game winning streak on the road.
Next, Bandits host the Saskatchewan Rattlers on Saturday, June 28 at Langley Events Centre at 7 p.m.
