The Brampton Honey Badgers (4-8) are hoping that the third time is the charm against the Scarborough Shooting Stars (6-5) this afternoon at 4 p.m. ET at CAA Centre.

The game will be available to stream on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN+, the CEBL mobile app available for iOS and Android devices. It will also be broadcast live on Game+ in Canada and on Next Level Sports & Entertainment in the United States.

Although the CEBL season has just crossed the halfway mark, Scarborough and Brampton have already met twice this year. Both games went to the Shooting Stars, who knocked off the Honey Badgers by eight points in Brampton on June 9 before earning a 13-point home victory roughly two weeks later.

Tevian Jones, who scored a combined 32 points in both victories over the Honey Badgers, has been one of Scarborough’s most efficient scorers this season. The former New Orleans Pelican is averaging a team-high 16.9 points per game in his first season as a Shooting Star. 

Alongside Jones, the reigning CEBL Canadian Player of the Year, Kadre Gray, sits third in the league in assists (6.5) and is putting up just over 11 points per game. 

The Shooting Stars also reinforced their backcourt since their last meeting with Brampton, welcoming back Cat Barber earlier this month. He’s averaged close to 20 points in his first three games with Scarborough this year — including a 26 point, three steal game his last time out on Thursday, a 102-80 loss at the hands of the Ottawa BlackJacks. 

On the opposite site, Brampton comes into today’s contest fresh off a comeback victory over the Montréal Alliance on Friday night, marking their second win in the past three games — both victories against the Alliance. And with a pair of fresh faces on the roster. Prior to the victory on Friday, the Honey Badgers added a pair of veteran guards: Michael Okafor and Elijah Mitrou-Long. 

Mitrou-Long, a former Niagara River Lion, came just shy of notching a double-double off the bench — 11 points and eight rebounds — in his first outing as a Honey Badger. Okafor was inserted into the starting lineup and provided six points and a team-high plus-12 rating while he was on the floor. 

But it was someone who’s been around all year that clinched Brampton’s fourth victory of the year. Shamiel Stevenson, averaging a hair over 17 points per game on 50 per cent shooting from the field, knocked down a stepback three pointer to complete the Honey Badgers’ rally back from a 12-point halftime deficit. 

“I just fed off the energy of my teammates, and the rest is history,” Stevenson said after the game. 

Scarborough, who lead the CEBL in assists per game (22.5) and rank second in points (92.3), hold the edge over Brampton in many offensive categories. By comparison, the Honey Badgers slot last in the league in assists (16.3) and points (81.5) per game. 

But both teams sit near the bottom of the league in rebounding, and despite having proficient guards on both rosters, the ability to control the glass may determine the outcome of this game. Scarborough hauls in roughly 35 boards per game as a team — barely surpassing the league-low 33.5 rebounds that Brampton averages. However, Scarborough held a decisive advantage on the glass in their previous meeting with the Honey Badgers, which managed to be the difference.

The Shooting Stars outrebounded the Honey Badgers 42-32, converting those boards into 22 second chance points. Brampton, meanwhile, scored only seven second chance points in the loss. And their top rebounder on the night was Prince Oduro, who had an impressive 16 point, eight rebound performance off the bench. 

After tonight’s game, Scarborough will travel to Saskatchewan on Friday for the last of a three-game roadtrip. Brampton is slated to have a couple days off before hosting the Calgary Surge on Wednesday. 

These two teams will meet for the fourth and final time in Scarborough on July 20. 

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About the Brampton Honey Badgers

One of the original franchises of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), the 2022 CEBL Champion Brampton Honey Badgers proudly call the CAA Centre home. The Brampton front office and basketball operations department bring NBA, NBA G League, national team, NCAA and major international pro league experience to the franchise. With a vision of promoting Brampton grassroots basketball and local businesses through community and corporate engagement, the Honey Badgers will leverage the explosion of basketball as a vehicle for innovation and change. For more information visit www.honeybadgers.ca.

About the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) 

A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 75% of its rosters being Canadian and a record 10 players with NBA experience in 2024. Players also bring experience from the NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, NCAA programs, as well as U SPORTS and CCAA. Fourteen players have signed NBA contracts following a CEBL season, and numerous CEBL players attend NBA G League training camps every year. The CEBL season runs from May through August with games broadcast live on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN, TSN+, RDS, Game+, Next Level Sports & Entertainment and Courtside1891. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.