Stingers Face Sea Bears in Final Home Game of the Season
Edmonton looking to end regular season with a win on Fan Appreciation Day
The Edmonton Stingers will close out their regular season against the Winnipeg Sea Bears (11-12) at the Edmonton EXPO Centre with tip-off at 4:00 p.m. MT.
The Stingers are looking for their third consecutive win tonight after defeating the Saskatchewan Rattlers in Saskatoon on Wednesday and the Niagara River Lions at the EXPO Centre on Friday.
It will be a match Edmonton will want to walk away from with momentum on their side as the playoffs approach. And that was the message that Nick Hornsby shared post-game on Friday after the win.
Hornsby, along with the Stingers' depth scoring, will continue to do what they have done all season: provide consistent production if Edmonton wants to accomplish that. And after Hornsby's team-leading 21 points on Friday and a 20-point performance on Wednesday, he will be one to watch for again tonight.
As always, though, you can't forget about Sean East II. He is third in the league with 21.2 points per game over his past five matches and dropped 30 points against Saskatchewan at the EXPO Centre on August 3. Expect East II to come out hot once again, and the Stingers' depth scoring to show up in bunches if Edmonton comes out with a victory.
On the other side of the court, Winnipeg will also be looking for their third consecutive win after defeating the Niagara River Lions on Wednesday and the Brampton Honey Badgers on Friday.
The player to watch for the Sea Bears tonight is Will Richardson. The guard is Winnipeg's best three-pointer shooter, knocking down 2.2 threes a game in his past five outings and recording 15 points per game.
Winnipeg did not play their top-two leading scorers — Simi Shittu and Jalen Harris — in their game against Brampton and could hold them out again tonight, potentially to save them for the playoffs. But Richardson will likely be the one leading the charge if that is the case tonight.
And when looking at their offensive stats on the road this season, the Sea Bears rank in the bottom three for points per game, field goal percentage, rebounding per game and assists per game. Compare that to Edmonton's fourth-best points per game and third-best field goal percentage over the last five games, and the advantage is in the Stingers' favour. If Edmonton can keep Richardson in check, it should help the Stingers contain the Winnipeg offence and give them plenty of opportunities to find consistent scoring.
When these two teams last met, it was in Winnipeg on July 25, where Edmonton won 95-92. It was a night to remember for Scottie Lindsey, who dropped six three-pointers en route to a 26-point and nine-rebound performance and Sean East and Keon-Ambrose Hylton, who both recorded 19 points.
Another stellar performance from those three could be in store tonight to close out the regular season for Fan Appreciation Day.
Keys to the game
Continue to rely on Edmonton's depth scoring to push past teams.
Limit easy buckets and runs from Winnipeg.
Use the matchup as an opportunity to prep for the playoffs.