Khalil Ahmad had 17 points and Nathan Cayo had 16 as the defending champion Niagara River Lions upset the Scarborough Shooting Stars 86-84 on Thursday, eliminating the CEBL's top-ranked team in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Shooting Stars, which finished first in the league with a 20-4 record, were missing stars Frank Mitchell and Javan Johnson due to suspension for their roles in an on-court brawl with Brampton on Monday in the final game of the regular season.
In the other Eastern semifinal, (all single-game elimination), the Brampton Honey Badgers defeated the Ottawa BlackJacks 95-91, while in the Western Conference, the Vancouver Bandits beat the Edmonton Stingers 92-83, and the Winnipeg Sea Bears topped the Saskatoon Mamba 99-88.
All four advance to their respective conference finals on Saturday, again single-game elimination, with the chance to move on to the league final, a three-game series that begins Aug. 12.
All games are available on CBC Gem, CBCSports.ca and YouTube.
River Lions eliminate record-setting Shooting Stars from playoffs with dramatic game-winning shot
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