Bandits pull away for win over Honey Badgers to inch closer to first in West

Mitch Creek’s 33 points helped the Vancouver Bandits (13-5) to a 108-83 road victory over the Brampton Honey Badgers (6-13) on Thursday night.

With the win, Vancouver guaranteed itself a top-two finish in the West and will either host the Western Conference Semifinal or earn a bye to 2024 Championship Weekend. With the loss, Brampton is eliminated from the playoff picture in the East.

The Bandits controlled the pace for most of the game. Despite Brampton cutting the lead to four after the third quarter, Vancouver would respond right back with a few punches of their own to balloon the lead back to double digits, with Creek leading the charge.

Alongside with his 33 points, Creek would also finish the game with five rebounds and four assists. His teammate Taze Moore was right behind him with 20 points, eight assists, and five rebounds.

“I took what was open, didn’t try to force anything too much,” Creek said about his game tonight. “I try to evaluate my games on, do I take four shots, do I take shots out of rhythm, or out of team concepts?

“As a team, I thought we did a fantastic job,” he added. “Getting out of that defensive rut in the second, bouncing back in the third, and then finishing off in the fourth. Especially in Target Time, we’ve struggled in Target Time the last couple of games and given up big leads. So, it was really promising to see that from the entire squad.”

The Bandits controlled the first half, blowing out the Honey Badgers in the first quarter, and continuing that momentum to the half, leading 53-45.

The Honey Badgers battled back in the third, finding their offence and cutting the lead down to four heading into the fourth. However, the Bandits would respond with an offensive and defensive explosion, outscoring the Honey Badgers 33-12 in the fourth to take the 103-83 victory.

Vancouver Bandits head coach Kyle Julius shared after the game how the team was able to take over the fourth.

“Defence,” Julius said. “We were giving up a lot of offensive rebounds throughout the course of the game, and I think we started to get those defensive rebounds and I think that made a difference. I think Zach Copeland really changed the game with his defence and it sparked us.”

Vancouver will now turn its focus to securing first place in the West and a bye to Championship Weekend.

“I think it was really big,” Julius said on the importance of the win tonight. “Just because road wins are hard, we’re right at the end of the season, and everyone’s fighting for a place in the standings. So, I think these games are really meaningful.”

What’s next for both teams?

Brampton looks to finish off their season on a positive note when they face the Ottawa BlackJacks this Monday. As for the Bandits, they look to keep up their winning ways when they take on Scarborough Shooting Stars this Friday.