Deng Adel scored a game-high 29 points, including seven in Target Score Time alone, to lead the Ottawa BlackJacks (6-9) to an 84-76 victory over the Montreal Alliance (4-12), Sunday afternoon from Verdun Auditorium.

Adel got his 29 on an efficient 11-of-16 from the field, including a 3-for-4 mark from deep.

“It felt good, especially when you see that first shot going in and, obviously your confidence goes up,” said Adel after the game. “And [kudos] to my teammates trusting in me. I know I just got here so for my teammates and my coaches to allow me to do what I do it makes me feel comfortable out there.”

Added BlackJacks head coach James Derouin: “He was awesome. Deng’s my guy. This is the third year that we’re together and we’ve been waiting for him all summer to finish in France and national team stuff and I’m glad we waited for him.”

The win now leaps Ottawa over the Brampton Honey Badgers for third place in the Eastern Conference with a game in hand. With Montreal given an automatic berth to CEBL Championship Weekend as the host of this year’s finale, the BlackJacks have been in a dogfight all season long trying to catch the Honey Badgers and claim that final post-season spot.

“It’s been kind of stressful, but we’re trying to get as many wins as we can,” said Deng. “We’ve got two in a row and now we’ve just got to build from that.”

As part of their winning formula Sunday, the BlackJacks were bombing from outside, shooting 13-of-32 from three-point range, including a three from Adel in Target Score Time and the game-winning triple from Tevin Brown.

“We made some changes to the roster over the last week and a half and added some more shooting,” said Derouin. “Patrick Whelan now comes off the bench for us and he’s a really good shooter. Shamar [Givance] as well at the point guard position made some threes, so those adjustments have helped with our pacing and our shooting and, obviously, Tevin Brown is big time from three.”

By comparison, the Alliance shot just 4-for-24 from distance and, as has been an issue all season long, simply turned the ball over too much, committing 22 turnovers that led to 26 Ottawa points.

“It’s not even about what the other team is doing. We’re gifting the ball,” said Alliance head coach Derrick Alston Sr. “I don’t know if it’s nerves and, of course, we’re trying to acclimate some new guys that are trying to get used to what we do, but, at the end of the day, this is what we do. We play basketball. Just to turn the ball over with no pressure … I just think confidence is low.”

It also didn’t help that Ahmed Hill, one of Montreal’s most consistent performers had an off night, managing just two points and going 0-for-11 from the floor.

However, despite Hill’s out-of-character performance and the turnover issues, the Alliance still had their opportunities to win. The BlackJacks looked poised to blow the game wide open during multiple points, but every time that happened, the Alliance would respond with a run of their own to close the distance, culminating with a 9-3 run in the fourth quarter to bring the game into Target Score Time, with the BlackJacks clinging to a 73-70 lead.

The Alliance were able to keep things close throughout the game despite all the turnovers they committed and three-point shooting disparity between them and the BlackJacks because of the excellent work they did on the offensive glass and the job they did getting to the free-throw line.

Montreal big men Chris Smith and Elijah Ifejeh were both excellent Sunday, with Smith finishing with 24 points and 14 rebounds and Ifejeh with 22 points and nine boards – six coming on the offensive end – and the pair combining to go 10-for-11 from the charity stripe.

Ottawa had no answer for Montreal’s two talented bigs, and it looks like something that can be built on as Championship Weekend creeps ever closer.

There’s still some time for the Alliance to figure out who they are how they can make some noise in the championship tournament, and the unique combination of versatile skill and bruising force inside that Smith and Ifejeh provide could just be that key.

“We dominated the paint, which was really impressive,” said Alston. “Elijah and Chris really did a number on those guys. We dominated the boards and we did things that we’ve talked about. You see parts of the game that we’ve worked on and it shows.”

Ultimately, however, there just proved to be too much Adel and three-point acumen from the BlackJacks for the Alliance to handle on Sunday.

Up Next

The BlackJacks will next open a three-game homestand July 18 against the Scarborough Shooting Stars, the next team in their sights as they continue to climb the Eastern Conference standings. Montreal’s next opponent is also the Shooting Stars, in Scarborough, on July 16.