Saskatchewan Rattlers get their revenge against Edmonton Stingers

The Saskatchewan Rattlers struck back at the Edmonton Stingers on Thursday at the SaskTel Centre.

After a 93-84 loss to the Stingers rattled the Rattlers last Friday, they hit back with a 69-62 win at home.

This marks the end of a two-game losing streak for Saskatchewan, but it wasn’t a game without difficulties. During the third quarter, star guard Negus Webster-Chan went down with a sprained ankle.

Head coach Greg Jockims said it wasn’t a surprise that the rest of the team picked up the slack.

“These guys are pros,” said Jockims, who noted he knew they had the right frame of mind to win. “It was good to see the ‘next man up’ mentality.”

The coach confirmed that Webster-Chan will be missing Saturday’s game against the Guelph Nighthawks. However, Jockims hopes he can make it back in time for next week, when Saskatchewan takes on the Fraser Valley Bandits.

Forward Tavrion Dawson was a major part of the Rattlers’ victory with 17 points, eight rebounds and two assists. He said he’s excited to be winning again.

“I feel great. I can’t really sleep at night after we lose,” he said. “Now I feel happy we finally got the W. It’s time to get back on the winning streak.”

In the beginning of the first quarter, the Rattlers didn’t seem to be at their best. They were down 15-3 just six minutes into the game.

Less than a minute later, a three-pointer from Alex Campbell gave the Rattlers some much-needed momentum. They managed to rally and end the first quarter within striking distance of the Stingers. The score was 17-14 for Edmonton.

What followed was a tight game where it never seemed like one team had a concrete lead for long. The score was tied four separate times in the second quarter and five times in the third quarter.

One of those ties was broken late in the third quarter by a slam dunk from Jelane Pryce. The energy from that moment seemed to revitalize the team.

Then the Rattlers grabbed the lead in the fourth and never gave it back. The night ended with a solid seven-point victory.

For now, Saskatchewan is enjoying its victory, but Jockims said his team can’t relax too much.

“It’s a six-team league, and all the teams are pretty solid,” he said. “So every game is likely going to be a fourth-quarter game, (a) close battle.”

Travis Daniels led the Stingers from the bench with an impressive double-double. He notched 20 points and picked up 10 rebounds — five at each end of the court.

Dawson and Webster-Chan tied for the Saskatchewan scoring lead with 17 points each.

The Stingers (3-3) are off to Fraser Valley tomorrow to take a shot at the struggling Bandits (0-5). The Rattlers (4-3) head to Guelph to take on the Nighthawks (2-4) on Saturday.