Vancouver Bandits four-game wining streak came to an end Tuesday in The Arena at TD place with a 114-105 loss to Ottawa Blackjacks.
Ottawa was ahead 32-29 at the end of the first quarter and maintained their lead to beat the Bandits, the number-one seeded team in the Western Conference.
It was a good outing for newly-acquired Bandits guard Jarkel Joiner, who was named player of the game with 25 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Joiner, whose signing was announced May 23, most recently played for the Toronto Raptors NBA G League affiliate, Raptors 905, where he averaged 11.6 points, 4.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds across 35 games, including 24 starts. Prior to his time with the Raptors, the 6’1” Joiner spent two seasons with the Atlanta Hawks G League affiliate, College Park Skyhawks.
Bandits loss came after their Saturday, May 30 victory over Hamilton, becoming the first team to defeat the Honey Badgers this season.
Langley-based Bandits remain at the top of the CEBL western conference with five wins in seven games, while Ottawa, with four wins in seven games, stands third in the eastern conference standings
Also on Tuesday, Bandits forward Tyrese Samuel was named the CEBL’s Player of the Week by the league, the second consecutive honour received by a Bandits player this season after Jaelen House was named May 25.
Samuel averaged 23.0 points and 12.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists across two games with the Bandits between May 25 to June 1, with the club going 2-0 on the road during that stretch.
Next, Bandits play Saskatoon Mamba at Prospera Place on Saturday, June 6.
Saturday, June 13, they return to Envision Financial Court at Langley Events Centre at 6 p.m. to host Ottawa.