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ST. CATHARINES, Ont. — Briante Weber’s driving layup late in the fourth quarter lifted the Hamilton Honey Badgers over the Niagara River Lions 85-83 on Tuesday in the Canadian Elite Basketball League playoffs.
Hamilton advances to the semifinal where it will face the Fraser Valley Bandits on Saturday.
Weber had scored only two points in the second half completed the layup through contact to deliver the win.
“At the end of the day we just needed to stay aggressive,” said Weber, who finished with 16 points and six assists. “With me being aggressive, I know my teammates will follow that and will get a glimpse of what staying in attack mode is, regardless of what’s happening on offence.”
Hamilton’s Jean-Victor Mukama and Niagara’s Trae Bell-Haynes each scored 23 points to lead their teams. Bell-Haynes handed out five assists, while Mukama countered with eight rebounds and four three-pointers.
In the day’s other game, the Ottawa Blackjacks topped the Guelph Nighthawks 83-75.
Olivier Hanlan led Ottawa with 19 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
Tre’darius Mccallum had 17 points for Guelph.
The Blackjacks will play the Edmonton Stingers on Saturday in the CEBL’s other semifinal.
The CEBL Summer Series is a 26-game, round-robin competition being held at the Meridian Centre and will decide the second-year league’s 2020 champion. Games are being played with no fans in attendance.
The Edmonton Stingers (5-1) won five straight to secure the top seed and a bye to the semifinals. The Saskatchewan Rattlers were the lone club in the seven-team league not to advance.
The final will be held Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2020.
The Canadian Press
