Notebook: Unsung Lufile; Potential First-Time Champions; Posthumus Legacy
When the whistle blew for Target Score Time in Niagara’s contentious semifinal victory against Scarborough, Elijah Lufile went to the free-throw line for two crucial attempts.
Lufile had made just 58.3 per cent of his attempts from the stripe during the season — and everyone in the building knew these pressure shots could essentially be coin flips.
Before the first, the big man walked to the base of the net, put his head against the blue padding and lingered there for a few moments.
He proceeded to make both — and then two more a few minutes later to put the River Lions within three points of victory.
“I was locking in. I was also extremely tired. I think right before that I had asked Vic [Raso] for a sub and I was just trying to really gather my thoughts and clear my head at the same time, because that’s what you want. You’re not thinking. You’re just form shooting, repetition and muscle memory,” Lufile said.
He added that this Championship Weekend means even more to him with brother Meshack on his side.
On a personal level, he could become the first player ever with three titles. He played for the Shooting Stars in 2023 where he won his first championship after collecting seven offensive rebounds in a semifinal win over the River Lions.
He then signed with Niagara that off-season and won yet again.
“Knowing that this could be a historical thing for me potentially winning three in a row, I was just locked in. That’s really what it was. I was just locked in. And I’m really doing this for my brother as well. He’s on my team, he’s never won a ring before, get him to win a ring and also the other guys who are just coming in as well,” Lufile said.
Lufile, the Milton, Ont., native, also hauled in a River Lions playoff record 15 rebounds in the win over the Shooting Stars.
From the sidelines, Raso said he didn’t waver even as one of the worst free-throw shooters on his team — at least statistically — stepped in for some of the biggest of the game.
“There was something about him that gave me confidence last night, just the way he was standing over the ball. That was humongous. Outside of Khalil’s shot, his [free throws] were massive. Massive.”
Ahmad, who now has more playoff Target Score Winners than anyone in league history, had just one word to describe Lufile’s heroics.
“Clutch.”
Miller-Moore, Hill take aim at first title
Between them, Calgary’s Sean Miller-Moore and Niagara’s Ahmed Hill have suited up in 194 CEBL games.
Miller-Moore has scored more points than any Canadian; Hill’s scored more points than anyone, period.
Yet neither has ever won a title.
That will change Sunday, when Miller-Moore’s Surge clash with Hill’s River Lions at Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre.
“It’d be amazing,” Hill said. “Like they say, I already got accolades, but I don’t have a ring, so that’s something I want really bad. I’ve never won a championship before. So to do it with these guys, it would be amazing.”
To be clear, when the 30-year-old Hill says he’s never won a championship before, he doesn’t just mean the CEBL. Hill said he’s never won a season-long championship in his career, dating back to at least high school.
In the CEBL, he’s bounced around three teams in search of that elusive ring — now, with the defending champions, he’s one win away.
Standing in his way, however, is Miller-Moore, who’s been in the Surge organization for five years since it was located in Guelph.
He wasn’t willing to look ahead after the team’s semifinal win over Calgary, though.
“It’s a great feeling, but it doesn’t mean anything unless you win. So we’re excited for the opportunity to get there. Obviously it’s my second time there, so extremely excited.”
Teammate Evan Gilyard II said part of his motivation was getting Miller-Moore that long-awaited win.
“It’d be great to win this championship for us, the city and Rugzy. … We gotta get him one.”
Posthumus legacy lives on
It’s hard to miss.
Hanging from the roof on the south end of Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre, there is a lone Sea Bears banner.
‘Posthumus, 33.’
The teal-coloured sign memorializes Chad Posthumus, the Winnipeg native and longtime CEBLer who died tragically in November at age 33 after suffering a brain aneurysm.
On the court across from the banner, another logo is imprinted: ’33 Forever.’
As Championship Weekend takes place in Winnipeg, it’s clear that Posthumus won’t soon be forgotten.
Sea Bears head coach and general manager Mike Taylor, who spent Posthumus’ final two seasons with him in his hometown, said the connection between player, city and league was undeniable.
“My last phone call with Chad, I remember sitting at my son's baseball practice in Florida, and it was a conversation about how great Championship Weekend is going to be, how special it's going to be here in Winnipeg,” Taylor recalled in a press conference on Wednesday.
“So it's a difficult thing to think about. We loved him, and he was such a big part of our organization and city. And I really believe he's with us now in spirit.”
Posthumus still sits 13th all-time in games played in CEBL history, having suited up for 81 contests. He appeared in the inaugural 2019 season, where he won the championship as a member of the Saskatchewan Rattlers, and he also spent two seasons with the Ottawa BlackJacks in 2021 and 2022.
In many ways, the CEBL was created for players like Posthumus, a basketball lifer who was finally given the opportunity to play professionally at home.
It’s fitting, then, that he’s watching over as a champion will be crowned in his hometown on Sunday.
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