Bandits Crush Sea Bears 112-91

Photo Credit Vancouver Bandits

The Vancouver Bandits defeated the Winnipeg Sea Bears 112-91 on Thursday night, led by Taze Moore’s historic performance. 

Moore achieved a triple-double with 35 points, 15 rebounds, and 16 assists, setting a franchise record and securing the first triple-double in Bandits’ history.

Vancouver remains undefeated at home (4-0) and secured their first-ever victory against Winnipeg, increasing their lead in the Western Conference. They are now just two wins away from matching last season’s total wins.

Key performances included Koby McEwen scoring 24 points and Nick Ward adding 20 points and 8 rebounds. 

For Winnipeg, Justin Wright-Foreman scored 29 points in his first game back in the CEBL.

Head Coach Kyle Julius of the Bandits praised his team’s chemistry and Moore’s individual performance. “I don’t normally single guys out in the locker room for an offensive performance, but that was special. He had a triple-double at halftime, basically. 

He picked his moments, kept moving the ball; nobody was standing and watching him shoot. It was just off of fuel. A lot of it was within the offense. 

He has great fuel. So yeah, a very special individual performance,” Julius remarked.

Julius also highlighted the impressive contributions of other players. “That level of effort is just incredible and it sparks us. 

The guys love him for it. He’s selfless, plays so hard, and makes things happen. A U Sports player making that impact at the pro level is really impressive. 

Doing it with his energy and defense is really special,” he said, referring to Sam Maillet’s energy.

Discussing the team’s chemistry and Moore’s adaptability, Julius added, “Yeah, great chemistry. That whole locker room has great chemistry. 

Honestly, if you come to a practice, you’ll see it. But I think it’s a testament to his feel for the game because he wasn’t even at practice the last three days; he was at NBA workouts and stuff, right? 

We actually added some new stuff that we just showed him this morning, and he picked it up quite quickly. Yeah, so he’s got a very high IQ. The chemistry is from his personality that you see but also his IQ as well.”

When asked about the team’s shooting performance, Julius noted, “Yeah, I mean, I wouldn’t say it’s a shock because I know we recruited great shooters, for sure. But that was a very good night at the three-point line. And with that being said, I think it came from our defense and energy. If you look at the start of the third quarter, we were so relaxed and couldn’t make any shots. Once we changed our defense up a bit, the shots started falling. So it was a testament to us playing with great energy.”

On the other side, Sea Bears’ Head Coach Mike Taylor acknowledged the challenges his team faced defensively. “It wasn’t our best defensive effort. Our guys need to improve in executing our defense, playing with physicality and pressure. Consistency on defense is key,” Taylor said.

Taylor also reflected on integrating new players and the need for teamwork. “For their first game together, I thought it was good. I looked down at the box score and saw 11 assists as a team. So, we need to move the ball better. Teddy and Justin will score, but it’s about how we play together. Teamwork is key for us,” he added.

Taylor further discussed the game takeaways, saying, “Well, again, that’s been the theme the last two games. We’ve been giving up a lot of points in the paint and in transition. Offensively, our team believes in themselves, but defensively, we need all five players playing together.”

He continued “Credit to the Bandits, they hit shots and made plays. ‘Taze (Moore) was outstanding today. It wasn’t our best defensive effort. Our guys need to improve in executing our defense, playing with physicality and pressure. Consistency on defense is key.”

Reflecting on Wright-Foreman’s addition, Taylor said, “Well, it’s obviously great. You can create offense, you can create advantages. I think in the first half, we did not maximize that right away. Again, it’s the first game, so we have a lot to learn playing together.”

He continued “Vancouver was switching a lot of screens and presented several matchups that we could take advantage of and capitalize on. We just kept playing through it. We have to have that awareness, that teamwork to give each other spacing, and to let each other go to work in those advantage situations. So these are the things that we’ll look at and try to grow through. But when you have talent, you’re always in the game. It’s just about us really defending on the other end.”

Taylor commented on their defensive strategy moving forward, “Lesson? Well, again, we go back to the video, back to the practice court, and we try to work on our defence. 

The Bandits played at a very good pace; they had us chasing with their ball movement, and we were just not on time with our coverage, especially in the first half. It’s about being on time in pick-and-roll situations, being on time with our defensive assignments, but we were just a step slow. 

Combine that with some bonehead turnovers where we gave the ball away right to them, and it fueled their run. 

I love the way we fought back in the third quarter, but we’ve been playing from behind the last two games. We’ve had seven games, with five on the road, so we’re looking forward to getting back home to Winnipeg and getting our house in order.”

Looking at the future, Taylor said, “Well, obviously, you have two great go-to scorers. We want a lot of our offense to go through Teddy and Justin. 

Taylor Continued but again, it’s about our team playing together. It’s not just a two-man show out there. We’ve got to play team basketball. We’ve got to defend, move the ball, create advantages, and capitalize on those situations.”

The Bandits are looking forward to continuing their strong season with the leadership and talent displayed on Thursday night. “We’re blessed because his leadership is phenomenal. He leads by example and vocally, which is rare. 

His personality shines through. His leadership has been outstanding, and the guys in our locker room are lucky,” Julius said about Taze Moore’s leadership.

Vancouver aims to avenge their lone loss of the season in their upcoming game against the Saskatchewan Rattlers on Saturday, June 15, 2024, at 7:30 p.m. PT at the Langley Events Centre.