(Ian Gustafson/ rdnewsNOW)

By Ian Gustafson

pro basketball

Calgary Surge fall short in electrifying finish in first-ever Surge 2 Red Deer showcase

Jun 20, 2025 | 11:19 AM

Whoever attended the first-ever Surge 2 Red Deer game at the Centrium on Thursday night, certainly didn’t leave thinking basketball was boring.

In fact, it may have even created some new basketball fans.

Game aside, the energy in the Centrium was front and centre.

It was almost as if Red Deerians had been waiting for professional basketball to come to their city and they showed up with 3,074 spectators that filled up the majority of the lower bowl and a few more in the second tier.

And oh boy, who could forget the on-court product between the Canadian Elite Basketball League’s (CEBL) Calgary Surge and Edmonton Stingers.

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At one point the Surge were down as much as 17 points and trailed by 14 heading into the fourth quarter. However, the Calgary-based team surged their way back into the game to make for an exciting finish that saw the Stingers win 98-95

Surge guard Sean Miller-Moore said it was a great atmosphere to play in front of.

“The way the league put on these kind of shows is just amazing,” he told local media following the game. “[They’re] trying to expand basketball in Alberta and I thought they put on a good event. We couldn’t come away with the win but it was loud in there, it felt like I was in WinSport. A lot of people came out and drove pretty far. It was a great feeling.”

Tied at 95 in a next basket wins scenario, both teams kicked and clawed to be the ones to come out on top but the Stingers were the ones to seal the deal with a dunk from Chris Smith.

The final basket came after both teams were unable to convert multiple times with the defensive side of the game on full display.

In the CEBL, the game clock gets turned off with four minutes to go in the fourth quarter. A target score is then presented which is nine points ahead of the leading team at that point.

From there on, the game is simple, the first team to hit the target score wins. In this case, the Stingers led 88-75 when a target score of 97 was presented.

When asked if he’d like to come back to play in Red Deer, Miller-Moore said of course, while also complimenting the fans.

“[The crowd] had a lot of energy,” he said. “I looked up in [target score] time and I saw every single person in the stands standing. This is what the game’s about, we came out with the loss but just the excitement behind [the target score] and being able to come back with no time on the clock. I hope they enjoyed it.”

Miller-Moore, who finished the game with 21 points shooting 50 per cent from the field, added, it was a chaotic finish but their team was resilient.

With a 7-3 record, they sit second in the western conference standings behind the Vancouver Bandits.

“It doesn’t matter the score. I try to tell them at the end don’t play the score, we’re more than capable of catching up,” he said. “We all have a common goal to win a championship.”

Surge guard Jameer Nelson Jr., who led the way with 23 points, said they’re grateful for the turnout at the Centrium.

“I’m proud of Edmonton and the Calgary Surge for putting on a show,” he said. “I think we put on a great game and it was super loud at the end so that’s all you can honestly ask for. That’s why we do it, we’re here to entertain people and I feel they were very entertained.”

Despite the bus ride, Nelson Jr. said it was fun to play somewhere new.

“I would love to come here again,” he said. “That’s what basketball is about. Everybody wants to play in front of fans and kids they can influence so it’s all just great fun.”