The Honey Badgers face the Saskatchewan Rattlers in their first matchup of the season as they look to build momentum after taking down Edmonton on June 14. 

The Honey Badgers have been stuck in the mud for most of the season after going 0-6, their worst start in franchise history. However, signs of life have begun to emerge after their win against the Winnipeg Sea Bears. Despite a loss to the defending champion Niagara River Lions, they responded with a win against the Edmonton Stingers, who were coming off two big wins versus Ottawa and Niagara. 

This puts their current record at 2-7, though the Honey Badgers have a great opportunity to make ground in the season as they are in the middle of a five-game home stretch against Saskatchewan. They then play Ottawa who are currently 2-6, before a couple of rematches with the Niagara River Lions and Calgary Surge. Saskatchewan’s season has not gone as planned either, as they sit 2-7 and are coming off an 84-91 loss to the Winnipeg Sea Bears. 

If there was one quality that stuck out in Brampton’s win against the Edmonton Stingers, it would be composure. After going down 24-33 in the first quarter, they fought back in the second quarter, out-scoring the Stingers 25-14 to take a 49-47 lead at halftime. Early in the third quarter, Edmonton took a six-point lead in the game after Scottie Lindsey drove to the basket with a layup. Weatherspoon would respond with his own tough layup at the rim before David Muenkat hit a three to cut the lead down to 1. McEwen would tie the game making one of two free throw attempts. After Nick Hornsby hit a hook shot to take a two-point lead for the Stingers, McEwen would get a steal and draw a foul, hitting both free throws to tie the game again. It would go back-and-forth for most of the third quarter. 

Brampton’s Jaylan Gainey had a great defensive sequence, getting two blocks in less than 10 seconds and going down the other end and finishing with a monstrous slam. This would give the Honey Badgers the momentum they needed to take a 73-71 lead into the fourth quarter. 

Edmonton would answer back with a quick 8-0 run before Koby McEwen would hit two layups to take an 85-83 lead into target time. When target time came up, Amari Kelly and David Muenkat hit two huge threes to give the Honey Badgers a 92-87 lead and one basket away from a win. Edmonton would fight hard before David Muenkat got his second target score winner of the season. 

Multiple Honey Badgers stepped up in the win. McEwen had a great game, scoring 23 points (6-for-10) from the field and (4-for-6) from three, six assists, two steals and two blocks. Muenkat finished with 15 points, a game-high 14 rebounds, and the target score winner. Off the bench, Jaylan Gainey logged eight points, four rebounds and a game high four blocks. Overall, the Honey Badgers bullied the Stingers down low, scoring 48 points in the paint and 11 second chance points. 

After the game, Head Coach Sheldon Cassimy spoke highly about the team playing together to get a much needed win. 

“We played well together. The first five minutes we didn’t really lock in on the game plan but we were able to regroup and turn things around and play through the runs so it was a good team win,” Coach Cassimy said.

In Saskatchewan’s recent loss to Winnipeg, Jamir Chaplin and Cody John were the Rattlers’ best players scoring 22 points and 20 points, shooting .450 and .500 from the field, respectively. However, they struggled to get any bench production, only putting up 10 points and having multiple players fail to score. For Winnipeg, the former Rattler Jalen Harris was their best player, scoring 32 points on (11-for-23) shooting. Terry Roberts ran an effective Sea Bears offense scoring 15 points and dishing out 10 assists while also grabbing seven rebounds, four of them offensive rebounds. 

Saskatchewan struggled to score in their game against Winnipeg, shooting .430 from the field, .340 from three and .560 from the free throw line. This included a second quarter where they were outscored 24-19. In Brampton’s previous game against Edmonton, the second quarter was their best, putting up 25 points to 14. Maintaining offensive runs throughout the game will be critical to the Honey Badger’s success. 

In all-time head-to-head matchups, the road team has typically come out on top with Brampton having a 1-3 record at home against the Rattlers but are 4-3 in away matches against Saskatchewan. The teams met in the playoffs once in the 2019 CEBL Finals, a game the Rattlers won 83-94 for their first and only championship. 

Last season, both teams finished with a 6-14 record, failing to make the CEBL playoffs. Brampton ranked higher than Saskatchewan in steals and blocks per game while Saskatchewan averaged more rebounds, assists and points.

Brampton has made a few new midseason signings, one being Jaylan Gainey. He is currently leading the team in blocks with 1.6 per game and averaging 4.0 points and 3.8 rebounds, providing solid defense off the bench while acting as a lob threat on offense. The Honey Badgers have also added former Vancouver Bandit Marcus Carr and former Saskatchewan Rattler Bryson Williams who will make their debut this Friday.

The Rattlers have also been busy improving the team, after establishing a young core from Nate Pierre Louis and Jamir Chaplin. Chaplin has been Saskatchewan’s best player so far, averaging 19.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals. Nate Pierre Louis has also been solid, averaging 16.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 2.0 steals. Along with the new young core, Cody John has been a key contributor for the Rattlers since joining in 2024. The former Honey Badger is averaging 18.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists. Another addition to the Rattlers this season is Jordan Bowden. Signed from the Montreal Alliance, he’s been a key piece coming off their bench averaging 11.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists. Finally, there’s Grant Anticevich, the starting forward for the team after being signed from Australia. He has started every game so far, averaging 9.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game. 

Both teams have had similar seasons up to this point, struggling out the gates and well below a .500 record. Signs of life remain but it’s a must win game for both the Honey Badgers and Rattlers if they want to turn their season around and make it to the playoffs. Brampton has the momentum coming off a win and in the middle of a homestretch. Saskatchewan has beaten Brampton before to win their first championship, they will hope to play spoiler and build their own momentum. It’s going to be another interesting game which you can watch on Game+, TSN+ and CEBL+.

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About the Brampton Honey Badgers

One of the original franchises of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), the 2022 CEBL Champion Brampton Honey Badgers proudly call the CAA Centre home. The Brampton front office and basketball operations department bring NBA, NBA G League, national team, NCAA and major international pro league experience to the franchise. With a vision of promoting Brampton grassroots basketball and local businesses through community and corporate engagement, the Honey Badgers will leverage the explosion of basketball as a vehicle for innovation and change. For more information visit honeybadgers.ca.

About the Canadian Elite Basketball League (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 73% of its rosters being Canadian and more than 10 players with NBA game experience in 2025. Players also bring experience from the NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, NCAA programs, as well as U SPORTS and CCAA. More than 20 players have signed NBA contracts following a CEBL season, and numerous CEBL players attend NBA G League training camps every year. The CEBL season runs from May through August with games broadcast live on CEBL+ powered by Tonybet, TSN, TSN+, RDS, Game+ and Next Level Sports & Entertainment. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.

Media Contact:
Elias Eldridge - Account Executive & Communications Specialist

Brampton Honey Badgers

eeldridge@honeybadgers.ca