Game Preview - May 21, 2025: BlackJacks Take On Honey Badgers
The Ottawa BlackJacks play the Brampton Honey Badgers in their second game of the 2025 CEBL season tonight, May 21, at 7:30 p.m.
Both teams come into this game with a record of 0-1, with each taking their loss back on May 16 - the Honey Badgers fell 88-66 against the Montreal Alliance and the BlackJacks dropped their matchup against the Niagara River Lions, 85-87.
That loss against the River Lions was a tough pill to swallow for the BlackJacks. After entering target time with a 12-point lead, Ottawa went cold in the clutch, and Niagara came back with a 21-7 run to hit the target score of 87.
Despite the rough ending, BlackJacks Head Coach David DeAveiro left TD Place that night with a positive outlook on the game, “You play this game, you learn from your mistakes. Every game’s a lesson, and I know we’re going to get better as a team.”
Ottawa will absolutely look to be better in tonight’s matchup to redeem some momentum early in the season. Last year, the team started with a less-than-ideal record of 1-5 through their first six games–a pattern they’d prefer not to repeat.
Forward Tyrrel Tate spoke for himself and his teammates about the sense of urgency around not getting off to an 0-2 start this year: “We want to bounce back, definitely, and make a strong appearance tomorrow.”
Tate led Ottawa in threes against the River Lions with four adding to his franchise record of three-point field goals where he now sits with 84. His shooting ability is key for the BlackJacks offense, which revolves primarily around playing with pace and shooting from distance.
Tate’s arrival to the team from CSM Bucuresti of the Kosovo FBK was announced just one day prior to the BlackJacks’ matchup against the River Lions. Because of his previous years with the team, though, he believes he knows the offensive system well enough to jump back in without a hitch.
“We have a lot of the same principles,” said Tate, “although a little bit more focused on defense this year.”
Defense has indeed been one of the DeAveiro’s focuses this season, and will continue to be a point of emphasis in the game tonight. Against the River Lions, the BlackJacks were able to hold the former champions to just 87 points–seven under their average of 94 last season.
That average ranked Niagara second in the CEBL in points per-game that yea. For the BlackJacks, slowing down a dominant offensive team like that in just the first game of the season shows strong defensive promise.
The Honey Badgers will be another great test for the BlackJacks defensive system. Last season, Brampton rarely turned the ball over with just14.7 per game, the fourth-lowest total in the league.
It will be a difficult task for Ottawa to break through Brampton’s strong ball security, but if they’re able to cause some turnovers, it will be all the proof fans need that the team has improved their defense.
Most turnovers are caused at the point of attack and for the BlackJacks, the ones in that position are guards Shakur Daniel and Rudi Williams. These two new additions to the team this season are both very capable defenders: Daniel won a Defensive Player of the Year award in his junior college conference in the 2019-20 season and Williams led his Egis Kormend (Hungarian NBIA) team in steals this year with 1.9 per game.
Daniel and Williams will likely share the matchup at point guard with Honey Badgers captain, Koby McEwen. The 27-year-old led Brampton in scoring during their game against the Alliance with 15 points, to go along with six rebounds and four assists.
Coach DeAveiro is well aware that McEwen is no player to mess with: “I’ve coached [McEwen] since he was 16-17 years old, and knew that there was a star in the making there. He’s proven that in his professional career.”
McEwen finished ninth in the CEBL last season in points per game, with 17.9. He’s also a talented passer, ranking seventh in the league in assists per game for the 2023 season with 5.4. His ability to distribute will only help the Honey Badgers’ low turnover rate.
“He can score at a high rate, but he can also pass at a high rate,” says DeAveiro, “He’s very cerebral."
Only time will tell if DeAveiro’s knowledge of McEwen’s game will help the BlackJacks slow him down. The Honey Badgers rely heavily on his offensive production, so containing McEwen will be the key to the game for Ottawa.
This game will be a great litmus test for the BlackJacks defensive efforts, especially against one of the top scoring players in the CEBL. If DeAveiro can rally Tate, Williams, Daniel, and the rest of the team together on defense for four quarters, Ottawa will come out of the game tonight with a 1-1 record.
The game tips-off at 7:30 p.m. at The Arena at TD Place with tickets available at theblackjacks.ca/tickets.
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