The Scarborough Shooting Stars fell in their home opener as the Winnipeg Sea Bears and former Shooting Star Teddy Allen took them down 98-93.
In what can officially be classified as the first revenge game in Shooting Stars’ history, Allen stormed out of the gates and tied Brandon Sampsons CEBL single-game scoring record with 42 points with 11 rebounds.
“It just feels good to win,” said Allen.
The former Shooting Stars guard let out frequent bursts of emotion throughout the game and went toe to toe with the Shooting Stars down the stretch as they fought back into the game in Elam time after trailing by 20 points for long stretches of the game. Allen sealed the game with a floater and waved goodbye to the Scarborough crowd before heading to the Shooting Stars bench and shaking hands.
Allen left the court by standing at half court, just right of the Shooting Star logo, and yelling to the crowd while stomping his foot.
“Those are my guys,” said Allen. “I get riled up and stuff, but that’s just cause I’m a competitor; I respect those guys; they can play.”
The Sea Bears also had solid contributions from EJ Anosike who had 22 points and seven rebounds and Simon Hildebrandt who had nine points off the bench.
Jalen Harris of the Scarborough Shooting Stars led the team with 25 points
The loss is Scarborough’s second of the season as they look to fully integrate all the new pieces of the roster. Jalen Harris led all scorers for Scarborough with 25 points and five rebounds, David Muenkat had 12 points and five rebounds, and Thomas Kennedy had his first stand-out performance with the Shooting Stars putting up 14 points and 13 rebounds as he battled with Chad Posthumus early in the game.
While Kennedy struggled at times throughout the first two games of the season, head coach Chris Exlius stressed the need to be patient when it comes to the U SPORTS Player of the Year.
“We’ve got to look at this in a long-term picture,” said Exlius. “Before I start examining how guys are doing, I want to look at the film…but I thought Thomas showed extreme heart and played hard. That’s all you can ask for.”
The other new addition, Cat Barber, was again solid with 24 points and eight rebounds. Although the Shooting Stars have dropped two in a row, Barber said he fit into the team well and just needed more time.
“I’m trying to come in and help the team as much as I can, and I feel like I’m doing a good job of that,” said Barber. “We’ve lost two games, but it’s not the end; it’s still the beginning, so I feel like if we get back in the lab and come back, we’ll be straight.”
The Shooting Stars have one final game at home on Sunday June 4 when the 1-0 Saskatchewan Rattlers make a stop at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre at 7 p.m. est.
Scarborough Shooting Stars vs. Winnipeg Sea Bears boxscore click HERE.
Photos courtesy Shaun McLeod for #teamonpoint
