By By Contributing Bandits Writer: Grant Vassos • 08 Aug, 2020 •

On the final day of the CEBL Summer Series round robin, the Bandits earned a crucial victory against the Guelph Nighthawks to earn their fourth CEBL Summer Series win and secured a bye to the semifinals. With the prospect of advancing to the team’s first-ever CEBL championship game, let's take a look at what has gone right – and wrong – for the Bandits thus far. Right – Teamwork makes the dream work Early on in Summer Series action, the Bandits relied on a combination of physical play inside the paint, and quality shooting from guards Junior Cadougan, Kyle Johnson, Marek Klassen and the league’s runner-up in three-pointers made (19) in Jahenns Manigat. The Bandits’ offensive philosophy is to play up tempo with quick ball movement, utilizing the pick-and-roll and making sure every player is involved in each possession. Unselfish basketball has also been a staple of the Bandits as they currently lead the league with 18.8 assists per game. In the game against Guelph, the Bandits rebounded from a scrappy opening half to pull off an outstanding 46-point second-half; highlighted by Klassen's decision-making, Manigat's six-of-seven shooting from beyond the arc and all-around play by forward Olu Ashaolu. Fraser Valley has recorded three halves where they finished with 50-plus points, respectively, this Summer Series. However, it was the 113-point performance against the Edmonton Stingers that showed what this team is truly capable of when everyone works together. Right – Grit and Tenacity While the roster assembled by Julius may not wow an audience in size or household basketball names, there may not be a more well-conditioned, battle-tested team that plays with more swagger or toughness in the Summer Series than Fraser Valley. Where the Bandits excel is by getting in your face, making you uncomfortable when the ball is in your hands, and winning on the hustle plays by sacrificing their bodies and diving for loose balls. "We just picked up the intensity, and we pride ourselves on defence. Whatever happened on offence, that's it, but defence wins games. We pride ourselves on getting stops, so we did, and that helped our tempo on offence," Cadougan said, following the game against Guelph. Fraser Valley also possesses a roster of versatile, defensive players in Ashaolu, Malcolm Duvivier, and Marcus Capers – who ranks fifth in the CEBL in rebounds per game (6.8) and fourth in blocks per game (1.2). It's the steals, however, that have been a defining difference-maker for this team. Never was this more evident than in their game against Guelph, where the Bandits recorded 15 steals in comparison to the Nighthawks’ two. The Bandits also rank in the upper echelon of the CEBL in points off turnovers, which was critical in Fraser Valley’s victory against Edmonton when they outscored the Stingers 31-17 in that category. Wrong – Slow First Quarter Starts When the Bandits are riding a hot hand, slow starts are a liability they can live with. But when the shots aren't dropping, and they miss easy dunk and layup attempts, they can often find themselves fighting to stay within reach of the lead. In the last four games before facing Guelph, the Bandits were outscored in the first quarter by an accumulated point total of 89 to 74. Two of those games ended in losses and the only game in which they scored more points in the opening frame was against the River Lions, who converted on just 28 per cent of their field goals. "I liked the shots that we were getting, they definitely didn't go in the way I wanted them to today, but the truth is I liked what we were getting," Julius said after the Niagara game. "Our offensive identity, we've only been together for four or five games now, it's hard to really have a true identity, but we do want to space the floor and play quickly." Despite what recent numbers may indicate, slow starts haven't always resulted in poor results for the Bandits. Against the Rattlers, Fraser Valley trailed by a margin of 10 points to end the first quarter before mounting an incredible second-half comeback where they outscored the Rattlers 49-28 to steal the victory. Wildcard – Shooting Slumps As important as team rebounding and establishing a robust inside presence may be for this team, especially against a physical team like Hamilton, shooting will continue to be the backbone that holds this scoring unit together. Fraser Valley has proven to be one of the better-equipped shooting teams in the league. Entering Saturday’s semifinal game, the Bandits are shooting 43.7 per cent from the field and a second-best 35.2 per cent from the perimeter. In the paint, Ashaolu, Capers, and forward Tavarion Nix are all capable of holding down the fort after recording a combined 27 points, two steals, two blocks, and a +23 plus-minus rating against the River Lions. When wide-open shots come, shooters must capitalize on the broken coverage of their opponents. But this isn’t always the case for Fraser Valley. Against Ottawa, the Bandits made 42 per cent of their two-point attempts compared to the Blackjacks’ 51 per cent, and followed up their next games against Hamilton and Niagara by going 33 per cent and 28 per cent on three-point attempts, respectively. When the shots become stagnant, and their rhythm is interrupted, that's when the Bandits benefit from their intangibles. Fraser Valley finds a way to overcome their in-game struggles and push through. "This is why you assemble a team with veterans," Julius said. "You can't coach everything, and you can't hold people's hands through adversity and things like that. This is why you have leadership and experienced players. Leadership does that, and we have a lot of leadership in that locker room." Fraser Valley will attempt to stave off elimination at 10:30 a.m. PT this morning as the Bandits take on the Hamilton Honey Badgers on CBC.