The Ottawa BlackJacks travel to face the Montréal Alliance on May 31 at 7:30 pm ET in search of their first victory in the fourth season of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) season.

The BlackJacks (0-1) lost 90-87 at home to the Fraser Valley Bandits on May 25. The Alliance (1-1) are coming off their first-ever victory in their home opener against the Scarborough Shooting Stars 80-70 on May 29 in front of a sellout Verdun Auditorium. 

Both teams have players coming off big offensive performances. Montréal forward Dominic Green had 36 points in 33 minutes on 81 per cent shooting from two and 55 per cent shooting from three. Green scored several key baskets, including consecutive threes as the Alliance mounted a second-half comeback against the Shooting Stars. 

Ottawa forward Deng Adel had a statement debut with 37 points, five assists and nine rebounds. The former Cleveland Cavalier shot well from inside (87 per cent on two-pointers) and outside (87 per cent from three-point land). The BlackJacks led 46-41 at halftime but fell short in the second half.

The BlackJacks lead the league in three-point shooting (57 per cent) and field goal percentage (47 per cent). Shooting will be key given the Alliance’s strong defensive performance. The Alliance held Scarborough to 44 per cent shooting from the field and 28 per cent from three. Montréal currently leads the league in steals per game (9.5), scoring 25 points off 17 turnovers against Scarborough. Meanwhile, Ottawa had 20 turnovers against Fraser Valley. 

The BlackJacks received contributions from guard Walt Lemon Jr. (12 points, eight assists) and guards Nervens Demosthene (nine points), Cody John (nine points, five rebounds) as well as centre Chad Posthumus (nine points, 10 rebounds). 

One factor to watch for is bench scoring. The BlackJacks had 15 bench points against the Bandits while the Alliance had 14 against the Shootings Stars and 38 against the Honey Badgers. 

Montréal has a balanced attack. Hernst Laroche (10 points, six assists) is a key facilitator while guards Kemy Osse and Alain Louis can score from outside and get to the basket. Guard Isiah Osborne scored 16 points in the season opener. 

The game pits an efficient shooting Ottawa squad against a Montréal team coming off a strong defensive performance against Scarborough. Ottawa is playing the first of three games in a row against the new teams. The Alliance will look to get their first-ever winning streak as two of their next three games are at home. 

All games will be streamed live internationally on the CEBL’s OTT platform, CEBL+ and on CEBL Mobile the official app of the CEBL for iOS and Android devices. Games are also available to stream live in Canada via cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, and the free CBC Gem streaming service.

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 71 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow us (@cebleague) on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.