Christian Vital scored 17 points as the Hamilton Honey Badgers held on to beat the Scarborough Shooting Stars 90-88 in the Canadian Elite Basketball League’s championship game Sunday.
Hamilton earned its first title in franchise history after losing in the 2019 and ’20 finals. But it didn’t come easily as the Honey Badgers nearly blew a 22-point lead in the final minutes at TD Place.
There were 12 lead changes in the first half before Hamilton took charge. But Scarborough nearly came back to regain the lead, erasing an 86-64 deficit before falling short by two points.
Guard Koby McEwen added 16 points for Hamilton while forward Caleb Agada had 12 points and seven rebounds.
Scarborough’s Kassius Robertson had a game-high 23 points and six rebounds. Former Toronto Raptor Jalen Harris scored 12 points.