The Montréal Alliance is hitting its stride at the right time.

The hosts of CEBL Championship Weekend from August 9-11 eked out an 80-78 victory over the Vancouver Bandits in a potential championship preview on Sunday.

Montréal held off a late comeback from the first-place Vancouver squad in a defensive battle at Verdun Auditorium. 

Alliance head coach Derrick Alston Sr. said competitiveness was the goal entering the matchup.

“I think we dominated the game at certain points. [In the] third quarter we kind of had some slippage, but we did enough to win and usually we're on the wrong side of games like that. So I was very happy to be on the right side of it this time,” Alston Sr. said.

While both teams struggled from the field in the regular season finale, it was an out-of-character performance for the high-scoring Bandits’ offence. Vancouver shot 35 per cent from the floor, 16 per cent from three, 54 per cent from the free-throw line and missed 17 free throws in the loss.

Ahmed Hill knocked down a game-high 19 points for Montréal in the squad’s second consecutive victory. It’s the first time the Alliance won back-to-back games this season.

Christian Rohlehr contributed 14 points off the bench on 6-8 shooting, in addition to six rebounds and two blocks. Devonté Bandoo added 12 points, including the game-winning and-one.

“I was just doing my job finishing - trying to finish everything,” Rohlehr said.

On the other side, all five Bandits’ starters reached double figures in the loss. Mitch Creek and Kur Jongkuch led the way with double-doubles. Creek notched a team-high 18 points to go along with 11 boards, while Jongkuch tallied 13 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks.

Tazé Moore and Duane Notice each scored 13 points as well, including a massive poster dunk from Moore during Target Score Time.

The loss snaps a four-game winning streak for Vancouver after clinching a berth in the Western Conference Final against Scarborough on Friday night.

After the game, Bandits’ head coach Kyle Julius said he was proud of the way the team performed in a game without playoff implications at the end of a road trip.

“It didn't mean anything to us and we came back and fought like that – we were short-handed. I'm really proud of the guys and I think we showed a lot of grit and toughness,” Julius said.

Vancouver got off to a blazing start with a 10-0 run that included a pair of triples from Zach Copeland. Shortly after a timeout, Montréal fought back with a 14-2 run to take the lead.

Back-to-back inside finishes from Creek and Nick Ward regained the lead for the Bandits. However, Ward was ejected after picking up an unsportsmanlike foul and a technical.

The Montréal defence locked down at the beginning of the second quarter and held Vancouver without a field goal for the opening six minutes. The Alliance went on a 19-5 run during that stretch, powered by the inside presence of Rohlehr.

The high-powered Vancouver offence was limited to just 11 points in the frame with seven of those points coming at the charity stripe.

The defensive battle continued into the third quarter, with both teams going roughly three and a half minutes without a field goal. However, an adjustment to zone and strong post play from Jongkuch helped the Bandits inch their way back into the game.

A stepback jumper in the mid-range from Marcus Carr gave the Bandits the lead but that seemed to provide Montréal with a spark. The Alliance ended the third on a 9-2 run to take a 60-54 lead into the final frame.

Montréal maintained the lead in a free-throw-heavy fourth quarter. Moore pulled Vancouver closer with back-to-back buckets near the midway point of the frame, but a massive three from Hill provided the Alliance with a cushion heading into Target Score Time.
 
The two squads traded buckets early in Target Score Time, putting Montréal four points away from victory. After an absurd poster dunk from Moore, Bandoo hit a free throw to push the Alliance closer.

However, the Alliance went cold from long range and the Bandits went on a 9-1 run to regain the lead and put them two points away from a win. Bandoo allowed the Montréal fans a sigh of relief with an old-fashioned three-point play to end it.

What’s next?

Both teams will have an 11-day break to await their opponents in the CEBL Championship Weekend Conference Final on August 9.