Could this be a turning point? The Surge get an impressive win over Saskatchewan at home

Miller-Moore's 27, Duvivier's 18 lead Surge to their first win of the season.

Malcolm Duvivier lets one fly from deep on June 5, 2024 vs. Saskatchewan / photo by Ethan Bomhof

Sometimes you just can’t miss. On Wednesday evening, The Calgary Surge finally found their stroke.

After a terrible 25-point loss in Langley on Saturday, the Surge rebounded with an emphatic 102-85 victory over the Saskatchewan Rattlers at WinSport.

It was arguably the Surge’s best offensive performance since joining the CEBL. The home team started out on a 12-0 run, hitting shot after shot. After the first 10 minutes of the game, Calgary had put 30 on the board to the Rattlers’ measly 13.

It was evident that Surge head coach Tyrell Vernon came with a fresh game plan and the team executed it.

“When we were making mistakes in the past, I felt like everyone separated themselves,” said Vernon following his first-ever CEBL win as a head coach. “We stayed together through it all and followed the game plan to a tee.”

Duvivier shines in win

The biggest individual x-factor to the Surge’s success on Wednesday was CEBL veteran Malcolm Duvivier. After struggling in the first two games, Vernon moved Duvivier out of the starting lineup on Saturday in Langley and kept the same lineup against the Rattlers. The wide-shouldered guard entered the game midway through the first quarter and almost instantly made an impact with a tough layup.

Photo by Ethan Bomhof

Despite coming off the bench, Duvivier expressed that his mindset didn’t change going into Wednesday.

“Whenever I’m in the game, I’m going to give everything I have and tonight my teammates trusted me, the shots came and I was able to knock them down,” said Duvivier.

The reality of the CEBL is that players need to swallow their pride and accept the roles given to them. It’s always next man up. When the Surge signed Duvivier, I envision him being the first or second guy to come off the bench. Based on his 18-point performance on 77% shooting, the role that he’s in now is the most effective.

“We knew we had a veteran guy with leadership who wasn’t going to back down,” said Tyrell Vernon on moving Duvivier to the bench. “We know that Stef [Smith] is still on his way back. Corey Davis Jr. also came back. We can’t necessarily play that kind of ‘small ball’ type of basketball too long.”

For anyone who was worried about the direction of this team after starting the season 0-3, let it be known that Tyrell Vernon is the right man for the job. He is very thoughtful in his decisions and has put in the work to fix the issues that were hindering Calgary from success.

A defensive better matchup

A continued concern for the Surge has been their lack of a true centre. They have not been able to effectively defend the paint. However, Calgary matched up much better against Saskatchewan. The Rattlers are driven by their backcourt of Jalen Harris and Elijah Harkless. The pair finished with 23 and 14 points, respectively. The Surge put a primary focus on containing Harris and Harkless and the results reflected it.

“Every game you can try to take away something but you might be giving up something else. We knew about the two American guards and how good they are,” said Vernon on the matchup. “Are we leaving the roller a little bit and the shooters in the other corners? We had to live with those long closeouts. Our biggest thing today was limiting Harkless and Harris in the paint and killing us at the rim.”

Matt Grace and Sean “Rugzy” Miller-Moore send the double-team Rattlers star guard Jalen Harris / photo by Ethan Bomhof

The Surge were too easy to score on in the first three games. On Wednesday, their paint and rim protection was much better thanks to their defensive rotations. This point was amplified by a couple of high-flying swats that brought Surge fans to their feet.

Forgettable return to Calgary for Maurice Calloo

Maurice Calloo made his return to Calgary for the first time after spending the 2023 season with the Surge. Calloo signed with the Rattlers for the 2024 season and earned a spot in their starting lineup. The 6-10 forward was given limited minutes with the Surge last season and never really fit into their lineup.

Maurice Calloo drives past the Surge’s Justin Lewis / photo by Ethan Bomhof

Saskatchewan has let Calloo shine this year and play his style of game. That means putting the ball in his hands and giving him the freedom to make plays on his own. Calloo registered 22 points in his Rattlers debut on May 22 against Winnipeg, 10 more than his 2023 season-high with the Surge.

On Wednesday, Calloo couldn’t replicate that performance and was given a second technical foul in the second half. He was ejected from the contest and finished with 11 points, going 5-for-13 from the field. I’m sure this was not the way Calloo envisioned his return to WinSport.

Miller-Moore continues to improve

Photo by Ethan Bomhof

The more he plays, the more Sean “Rugzy” Miller-Moore improves. He struggled in the first game but has progressively gotten better. His offence was much more fluid and we didn’t see the isolation that slows the game down that sometimes plagues the Surge. Rugzy was running the floor and finishing high at the rim consistently. There aren’t too many people who can meet him up there. When he’s playing free, he’s one of the best players in the CEBL.

Miller-Moore also continues to improve his shooting but he still thinks it can get better after putting up a season-best 27 points.

“It definitely can still get better and there’s more room for improvement,” explained Miller-Moore. “My teammates give me great confidence and keep telling me to shoot when I’m open. When I am shooting well it opens up the floor for everyone.”

Rematch with Vancouver

The loss to the Bandits last Saturday was one of the worst in the franchise’s young history. fortunately, Calgary is much better prepared for the rematch on Friday at WinSport.

The Bandits are a deep team. Most Surge fans know how Vancouver big man Nick Ward can cause problems. Tyrell Vernon’s squad will need to play more efficiently on both ends of the court.

“Every game is a different story,” says Vernon.

Hopefully, the Surge can re-write the script and build off their impressive win against Saskatchewan. The next chapter of the story is on Friday at 7 p.m.