The Nighthawks Get Stung.

The Edmonton Stingers have returned to their hive with vengeance on their shoulders. With two rough losses on the road, the Stingers needed to push a win. Despite Xavier Moon being out in this game, the Stingers managed to win by two points. Edmonton's crowd managed to elevate the Stingers with confidence on the court as they knew that no matter what the outcome is, the fans will always be by their side. Although the Stingers won this game, there were instances where the Nighthawks played better. With the final score being 82-80, the Stingers should not sit back and enjoy this win and instead look towards improving the team's performance. The Nighthawks were very close to winning this game which is something that should not be ignored. While the Nighthawks did suffer a tragic loss, let's examine what both teams displayed on the court.

Edmonton Stingers Performance

The Stingers are currently undefeated on their home court due to the loyal fans of Edmonton. When watching the Stingers play at their home court, the players are fueled with motivation to win for the city of Edmonton. Looking at this game, they were very lucky in winning due to a number of factors. Although the fans did elevate the Stingers throughout the game, their overall production on the court was troublesome.

Looking at the scoring numbers for the Stingers, they managed to attempt 87 shots while only landing 35 which equals to 40% from the field. Most of these attempts came from the three-point line as the Stingers managed to attempt 35 three-point shots while only landing 7 of them. This statistic is what prevented the Stingers to commit a blowout against the Nighthawks. Although their percentage was decent from the two-point range being 53%, the Stingers should have defeated the Nighthawks with a higher deficit. Edmonton had an unlucky shooting performance against the Nighthawks with averaging only 20% from the three which should not be ignored.

Although the Stingers managed to shoot 14 free throws, only five of them managed to land. Jordan Baker was the only player on the Stingers that managed to land any free throws as he was 5/6. The rest of the team, however, failed to land anything from the free throw line. Witnessing the Stingers struggle at shooting the ball was very rare considering that they were playing in their home court. Without the talent of Xavier Moon in this game, shooting the basketball was overall a struggle for the Stingers.

Despite the shooting struggles that Edmonton had, Jordan Baker was the story against the Nighthawks. With the impressive stat line of 23 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks, Baker clearly showed Edmonton why he is known as the captain of this team. Baker is listed as a guard, which is scary considering that he gets most of his touches in the paint. His 2/6 performance from the three shows that Baker is not afraid of attempting any shot on the court. Jordan managed to play incredible defence as he was an annoyance for the Nighthawks when it came to shooting in the paint. Jordan Baker was not the only player that performed well in this game. Starting forward Akeem Ellis had an impressive game against the Nighthawks, however, struggled at shooting the ball.

Ellis scored a horrific 2/12 from the three. In the first quarter, Ellis was the central scorer as he was lights out from everywhere on the court. However, Ellis slowed down a bit and was struggling to land anything after that. Overall, Ellis provided momentum when hitting any shot from the court. His first quarter consistency allowed the Stingers to win this game.

Grandy Glaze was also a big part in winning this game. With scoring 12 points, six rebounds, and three steals, Grandy provided energy for the Stingers. When you have a player that can play defence at a high rate and be the most energetic guy on the court, the potential for the Stingers is endless. Although the fans did help the energy in the arena, Grandy was also a huge contributor to that whether it was him getting fouled with a reaction or dunking on the Nighthawks. No matter what circumstance the Stingers are in, they can always rely on Grandy Glaze to push his team to the next level. Similar to NBA All-Star Draymond Green, Grandy will not be known as a guy who will score 20 a game, though, instead be known as the energy for the Stingers and the best defender on his team. Edmonton is blessed to have a player in their arsenal such as Grandy Glaze as he understands his role on the court and does it well.

Overall, the Stingers had its highs and lows in this game. From terrible shooting percentages to, Jordan Baker's incredible game, the outcome of this game could have been more impressive if the Stingers managed to shoot the ball better. Edmonton has a balanced system of scorers and momentum drivers. The one take away that is evident about the Stingers is, every player knows their roles and performs at a high level. Besides the shooting, the Stingers had better communication in this game compared to the previous two games with only committing 12 turnovers. Their defence is also a factor that was heavily improved in this game compared to the previous two games that they played. This win has the potential to allow the Stingers to regain the momentum they had from the start of the season.

Despite the two previous losses, the Stingers have a chance to make a new start with this game four victory. Every game in this season is crucial for all teams which is why the Stingers need to approach every game as a playoff game moving forward.

Guelph Nighthawks Performance

Guelph managed to make a decent fight against the Stingers as they were up by five points in the middle of the third quarter. However, the Nighthawks were no match against the home court fans of the Edmonton Stingers. Guelph brought the height in this game despite losing this game. With this game being neck and neck, the main factor that can be looked at is, the Nighthawks lacked that one player to take this game to the next level.

Unlike the Nighthawks, the Stingers had a player they could rely on to elevate them which was, Jordan Baker. Players such as Olu Famutimi, Myck Kabongo, and Chadrack Lufile all had stellar games however, none of them managed to match Jordan Baker's performance. Although Lufile, was the star for the Nighthawks with 18 points and six rebounds, his performance was not enough to win this game. Lufile’s game was primarily in the paint, getting fouled, and making high percentage shots. Statistically, his 7/16 shooting is not the best shooting performance on the floor however, similar to Ellis, Lufile was the momentum push for the Nighthawks. Myck Kabongo however, did not perform well in this game as he is known as the captain of the Nighthawks.

Kabongo attempted 13 shots while landing only five of them which was 38% shooting. Although Kabongo made huge shots, his consistency was all over the place in this game. For being a point guard, Kabongo grabbing 6 rebounds is impressive, however, his shooting is one of the factors that allowed the Stingers to win this game. A notable factor that can be conducted in Kabongo’s performance was his five turnovers. For being the captain of the Nighthawks, Kabongo had a rough game shooting the ball. His performance was not the only factor that affected the Nighthawks into winning this game.

Similar to the Stingers, the Nighthawks also struggled shooting the ball. With making 29 out of the 71 attempts displays the real struggle for the Nighthawks. The only difference that was evident from the Nighthawks shooting was the number of free throws they made. Guelph managed to shoot 20 attempts from the free throw line while making 13. Unfortunately for the Nighthawks, they were unable to shoot the ball at a higher rate.

The final notable stat that prevented the Nighthawks from winning this game is their second-chance points. The Stingers managed to score 19-second chance points compared to the 7 that the Nighthawks made. This statistic is arguably the main difference that separated both teams. Edmonton was overall more aggressive at grabbing rebounds compared to the Nighthawks despite having size to their advantage.

To conclude, the Nighthawks overall played a balanced game. From playing decent defence to, the incredible performance of Lufile of the bench, the Nighthawks had a chance to win this game. The take away for the Nighthawks is, they need to be more aggressive in grabbing rebounds and to make better decisions when shooting the ball. The only highlight that the Nighthawks had in this game was, having a better percentage from the free throw line.

Final Thoughts.

Both the Stingers and the Nighthawks played poorly. The terrible shooting percentages made this game rougher than it needed to be. Both Edmonton and Guelph need to assess their shooting performance as it was underwhelming.

Jordan Baker was the main highlight of this game as he managed to lead the Stingers in a desperate win after two previous losses. Guelph should not be upset that they lost and instead should be annoyed by not only losing by two points but how they lost this game. Edmonton should enjoy this win however, should also be annoyed at themselves for how they managed to shoot the ball.

The Stingers are now 2-2 in the season which means that they should use this game as a lesson as a tool for their next game.