Teddy Allen’s Historic Night Helps Sea Bears Survive Shooting Stars in 98-93 Thriller

By Zulfi Sheikh for CEBL.ca

Teddy Allen was an offensive powerhouse against his former squad as his 42 points helped the Winnipeg Sea Bears (2-1) win 98-93 despite a furious 29-point comeback from the Scarborough Shooting Stars (1-2) on Friday night.

The guard’s first season in the CEBL was spent with the Shooting Stars last year, where he played in seven games. It was clear that Allen was looking to show Scarborough what they were missing, and he did just that.

Allen’s 42 points tied Brandon Sampson (June 5, 2022) for the most points ever scored in a CEBL game. He was extremely vocal on his record-tying night, yelling at the crowd regularly and ending things off with a wave goodbye after drilling the game-winning floater.

“This is competition,” said Allen post-game. “I get riled up, but that’s because I’m a competitor. I respect those guys.”

“I was a role player on this team [Scarborough] last year. On this team [Winnipeg], coach wanted to give me the keys and see what it looked like.”

What it looked like was a record stat line of 42 points, 11 rebounds and five assists on 14-20 shooting from the field and 11-13 from the free throw line.

E.J. Anosike did his part in the win as he notched 22 points and seven rebounds. His scoring burst was sparked by his strong 5-5 start from the field. He didn’t miss a shot until after the four minute mark in the second quarter.

The pairing of Allen and Anosike shouldered the load for Winnipeg, with no other Sea Bear scoring in double figures.

On the other end, it was once again the duo of Jalen Harris and Cat Barber that did most of the scoring for Scarborough. Harris finished the night with 25 points and five rebounds, while Barber had 24 points, six rebounds and eight assists.

“I don’t think, I know that we’re the best back court in the league,” said Harris when asked what the duo is capable of. “Between me, him [Barber] and now getting Kassius [Robertson] back, it’s pretty obvious.”

“Once we build our chemistry to where we need it to be, I think it’s limitless for us.”

Harris immediately made his presence felt in his return to the team. After missing their last game to work out for the NBA’s Utah Jazz, the guard got going early in his return. He scored the first points of the game by cutting back door and rising up to jam an alley-oop pass from Cat Barber. Harris scored nine of the team’s first 11 points in the quarter.

Not to be outdone, Allen scored nine points of his own in the frame en route to his historic night. The guard looked efficient early on, shooting 4-5 while grabbing four boards. His play helped keep things close as the teams ended the first tied up 19-19.

Scarborough came out cold in the second, not scoring until the 6:09 mark of the quarter and trailing by as much as 17. The Shooting Stars eventually found their rhythm cutting the lead down to eight, but the Sea Bears offense proved difficult to slow down.

Specifically, Allen proved difficult to slow down. The guard caught fire in the second quarter, scoring 16 of Winnipeg’s 34 points without a single miss. He finished the half with a game-high 25 points and seven rebounds on 90 per cent shooting from the field.

The Sea Bears held a commanding 53-35 as they went into the break.

The third and fourth quarter were more of the same as Winnipeg extended their lead to as high as 29. Scarborough showed some fight with a 14-7 run that cut the deficit to 15 mid-way through the fourth, but weren’t able to get any closer than that.

Winnipeg took an 89-74 lead into Target Score Time where things got interesting quickly.

A next to improbable 19-4 run by Scarborough, punctuated by a Kalif Young slam, had things tied up at 93. The crowd erupted as Winnipeg was forced to call a time-out. The comeback seemed all but certain for the Shooting Stars, but the Sea Bears kept their poise.

An A.J. Hess three gave Winnipeg the lead back and Scarborough, despite fighting all the way back, ran out of gas.

A Young turnover at half-court landed in the hands of Allen and he drove through the lane and tossed up an off-balance floater to end things, 98-93.

“We feel really fortunate tonight,” said Sea Bears head coach Michael Taylor. “Teddy was the difference-maker out there and it was a good team win.”

“The identity and structure are there. Teddy being the go-to guy, E.J. being important for us, and everyone doing their part. This is a game I know the guys are going to take a lot of confidence from.”

The Winnipeg Sea Bears will stay on the road, heading west where they’ll take on the Vancouver Bandits at 1 p.m. CT on Tuesday. The Shooting Stars will be back in action at home on Sunday to take on the Saskatchewan Rattlers.

All games are available on TSN+ and CEBL+ Powered by BetVictor.

About the CEBL

A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 71 percent of its 2022 rosters being Canadian. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. Nine players have moved from the CEBL into the NBA following a CEBL season, and 28 CEBL players attended NBA G League training camps during October. The CEBL season runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow @CEBLeague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.

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