Surge battle back to edge Stingers in season-opening thriller

The Battle of Alberta picked up right where it left off on Sunday.

In the opening game of the 2025 CEBL season, the Calgary Surge beat the Edmonton Stingers 86-84 at the Edmonton EXPO Centre.

For the Stingers, their season starts in the same bitter way that the last two seasons ended after they fell to the Surge in the Western Conference semifinals each time.

Meanwhile, the Surge — boasting a largely new lineup, including Jameer Nelson Jr., who scored the game winner — still seem to have the upper hand on their provincial rival.

“I thought the crowd was great. I thought that was a lot of adversity for us. And it’s a rivalry, so I feel like we’re gonna be tested, but that was definitely a tough test to start the season,” Nelson Jr. said after the game.

The Stingers took a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter, but the Surge responded with an 11-1 run to tie things up.

Edmonton and Calgary remained knotted at 77 apiece when the clock was stopped for Target Score Time.

The Stingers again raced to an advantage, scoring the next five points. But the Surge battled back once more with a 7-0 run before the Stingers tied the game at 84, setting the stage for next-bucket-wins territory.

That’s when Nelson Jr. put a speedy end to things, racing coast-to-coast for a layup to seal the win in his first-ever CEBL game.

“I didn’t know I was gonna get that open. I got full speed, so there was no reason to stop,” Nelson Jr., who was named game MVP, told sideline reporter Sarah Ryan.

Nelson Jr. led the Surge with 22 points on seven-for-12 shooting, adding five rebounds and four assists.

The 23-year-old, who is the son of longtime Orlando Magic guard Jameer Nelson, completed his NCAA career with Texas Christian University in 2024 before playing 30 games with the G League’s Austin Spurs, where he scored 11.4 points per contest.

He had three simple words on his first taste of the Battle of Alberta.

“I love it,” he told Ryan.

On the other side, Stingers coach Jordan Baker said his team fell just short in a hard-fought contest.

“Up and down. Game of runs, we just ended up on the wrong end of one at the end,” he said.

Meanwhile, Calgary Surge head coach Kaleb Canales got an early lesson in what makes the CEBL so unique in his first game.

Canales entered his first season as the only bench boss in league history with NBA experience after leading the Portland Trail Blazers for 23 games in 2012.

He credited his team’s toughness for the comeback.

“Season openers, there’s gonna be jitters, there’s gonna be mistakes. But basketball’s an imperfect game. It just shows the level of toughness we’ve shown throughout camp,” Canales said.

Greg Brown III impressed in his first CEBL action with 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks, while Sean Miller-Moore and Gabe Osabuohien also contributed 14 points each for Calgary.

For Edmonton, Sean East II led the way with a game-high 22 points, plus eight rebounds and eight assists.

East II, 24, graduated from the University of Missouri in 2024 and went on to spend his first professional season split between the G League’s South Bay Lakers and Romania’s BC Athletic Constanta.

The springy guard managed to get into just four total games, all in Europe. Still, he showed no rust in averaging 25.5 points per contest.

That offensive flare continued with Edmonton.

“He’s dynamic with the ball in his hands, he’s capable from inside and out, he creates for others. I gave him a challenge before the game to rebound the basketball and he had eight of them,” Baker said.

East II said he enjoyed his first taste of CEBL basketball.

“It was good energy. It’s a different type of game. It’s entertainment, but it’s a serious game, so you gotta stay locked in on getting the win,” East II said.

Stingers guard Aaron Rhooms, a Toronto native who just completed his junior season with Toronto Metropolitan University, added nine points and five rebounds in the loss.

Forward Keon Ambrose-Hylton posted a 15-point, 12-rebound double-double.

A fast-paced first quarter ended with the teams tied at 23, but the Surge took a 45-44 advantage into halftime after ending the second quarter on a 9-0 run.

Edmonton responded with a big third quarter to take a 66-58 lead into the final 10 minutes.

The game marked No. 1 of what is set to be the biggest CEBL season ever as the schedule expands to 24 games per team.

Calgary and Edmonton will meet twice more, including on June 19 during the first CEBL game ever in Red Deer, Alta.

Up next

Both teams return to the court Friday as Calgary’s season-opening road trip continues with a stop in Niagara to face the River Lions, while Edmonton travels to Winnipeg to meet the Sea Bears.

The next CEBL game is Thursday night when the Saskatchewan Rattlers host the Vancouver Bandits. For the full 2025 CEBL schedule and up-to-date results, please visit cebl.ca/games.