Photo Credit: Fraser Valley Bandits (CEBL)

ABBOTSFORD, B.C., July 1, 2021 – Fraser Valley Bandits are for real… and all CEBL teams are taking note.  The Fraser Valley Bandits (3-0) topped the Saskatchewan Rattlers (0-3), 86-66 on Thursday afternoon at the Abbotsford Centre. and now top the standings in the CEBL are the only undefeated team.

For the third straight game, Fraser Valley had a different player took the charge in helping The bandits to victory. In their season opener, it was Alex Campbell and in the second game, it was local boy Marek Klassen.  In this 3rd winning game, Kenny Manigault showed his play by tallying 24 points and seven rebounds.

Fraser Valley started the game aggressively and played strong all the way to victory.. The Bandits scored 26 of their 44 first-half points from inside the paint and driving the ball to the basket early on helped to pull Rattlers defenders in and open up three-point looks for their shooters. With talented perimeter players on their roster including the likes of Klassen, Campbell, and Duvivier, this is a dangerous offense for opponents to match up against.

The Bandits will continue their homestand and go for their 4th win in a row, when they welcome the Ottawa BlackJacks (1-2) to the Abbotsford Centre on July 3 at 4:00 p.m. local time.

All CEBL games will be available for live streaming on the CEBL’s new OTT streaming service, CEBL+, cbcsports.ca, the free CBC Gem streaming service, the CBC Sports App for iOS and android devices, and on Twitch.

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 75 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season typically runs from May through August. More information about the Bandits is available at thebandits.ca.