Defending champions Saskatchewan Rattlers 1st eliminated at CEBL Summer Series

The Saskatchewan Rattlers won’t be taking part in the post-season at the 2020 Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) Summer Series.

With a score of 87-68, the Ottawa BlackJacks eliminated the Rattlers in the final game of the round-robin portion of the tournament on Wednesday at Meridian Centre.

The expansion BlackJacks clinched a playoff berth in their inaugural season with a 3-3 record.

Saskatchewan was 1-5 in the round-robin and the lone team not to make the playoffs.

Quarterfinal action starts with the Hamilton Honey Badgers and the Niagara River Lions on Thursday, followed by Ottawa against the Guelph Nighthawks.

The CEBL introduced the Summer Series as the first live professional sports action in the country since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March. All seven of the league’s teams gathered in St. Catharines, Ont., for a 26-game competition that’s scheduled to end Sunday with the final.

The Rattlers won the inaugural CEBL championship on their home court at Saskatoon’s SaskTel Centre last August.

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