Highlanders take on River Lions at Centre 200
Cape Breton team hopes to capitalize with home court advantage Sunday
Rookie Duke Mondy is confident his Highlanders are capable of knocking of the visiting Niagara River Lions on Sunday.
The 26-year-old guard from Grand Rapids, Mich., has been having a breakout season for the Cape Breton team in the National Basketball League of Canada and is one of the Highlanders’ top scorers.
But he doesn’t think about his personal statistics so much as his team winning games.
“Personally, I think the season has been going OK,” said Mondy. “I like to win — I really don’t care about the individual stats.
“I just play my game and I care more about winning.”
The Cape Breton Highlanders started the season with a 0–5 record and are still dealing with injuries. Kevin Loiselle, who has played on three league championship teams, is sidelined due to injury, as is forward Shane Osayande and guard Jamal Reynolds.
Mondy said the Highlanders are ready for their eighth game of the season.
“We’re ready, we’re prepared. We’ve watched film on them and we’ve seen their tendencies and what they like to do and their weaknesses,” he said, adding that the Highlanders are hungry for another win.
“We got a chip on our shoulders because we know we lost about two or three games we should have won, but we’re locked in right now.”
The Cape Breton team is fresh off of a 97-89 win over the Saint John Riptide last Saturday. Niagara was on the road on Friday night and picked up a 97-95 win against the same Saint John team.
Highlanders head coach Rob Spon said although players being hurt has affected the flow of the team’s game, everyone is set for Sunday.
“The injuries are a concern, because of not practising with five-on-five, but we’ve been doing other things and getting up more shots,” said Spon, adding that fatigue on Niagara’s part may play a factor in Sunday’s game.
“We’re going to be ready and we have the greatest crowd. I love our fans, they get behind us and playing home games make us feel good.”
Tip-off for Sunday’s action between the Highlanders and the River Lions at Centre 200 will be at 2 p.m.