Sea Bears win debut as professional basketball returns to Winnipeg
Winnipeg's new professional basketball team is off to a winning start as fans flocked downtown Saturday to welcome the sport's return to our city.
The Winnipeg Sea Bears beat the Vancouver Bandits 90 – 85 in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 7,000 fans at Canada Life Centre.
It was the first time in more than 20 years that a professional basketball team has played out of Winnipeg. The Winnipeg Cyclone played six seasons in the city from 1995 – 2001. Before that came the Winnipeg Thunder, from 1992 – 1994.
Tip-off for the Sea Bears debut was at 7 p.m. but fans began gathering downtown in the late afternoon. A pre-party took place at True North Square, with hundreds getting together for music, food trucks, games, and to share their excitement about the return of basketball.
"It's nice to have pro basketball back in the city," said one fan.
"I've been around since the Winnipeg Thunder and the Cyclone were here, so we're excited to have basketball back after losing both of those teams," said another attendee.
The Sea Bears are an expansion team in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) The team's roster features three Winnipeggers, including three-year CEBL veteran centre Chad Posthumus. The River East Collegiate product won a CEBL championship with the Edmonton Stingers in 2019 and put up six double-doubles with the Ottawa BlackJacks last season.
The Sea Bears' first game led to their first win of the season. London, UK native Jelani Watson-Gayle scored a three-pointer in Target Score Time, sealing the victory. Watson-Gayle scored 22 points in the game.
The team is now off to Ontario for its first road trip of the season. The Sea Bears are in Brampton June 1 to take on the Honey Badgers. On Friday, June 2, they'll face the Scarborough Shooting Stars
The Sea Bears next home games is on June 12, when the team hosts the Edmonton Stingers.
Tickets and game information can be found online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.