Winnipeg's Historic Basketball Triumph
Winnipeg Sea Bears Secure First CEBL Championship Title at Home, Setting League Attendance Record
Key Points
Brampton opened the championship game with a 7-0 run, and Winnipeg didn’t score its first basket until nearly seven minutes into the opening quarter; Xavier Moon finished with 29 points on 12-for-18 shooting, plus seven rebounds and six assists in 39 minutes.
Jelani Watson-Gayle came off the Sea Bears’ bench to provide a significant lift in the title game.
Wednesday’s opening game at Brampton’s CAA Centre was suspended due to condensation on the court, and the league ultimately abandoned the three-game final format in favor of a single winner-take-all championship due to scheduling constraints.
Chad Posthumus is remembered for hitting the first Target Score winner in franchise history in 2023; the 2026 championship closing by Simon Hildebrandt followed that legacy with the final Target Score basket for Winnipeg.
Sean East the Second was the top scorer for Brampton in the final, finishing with 27 points and five assists.
The Winnipeg Sea Bears are CEBL champions for the first time. The Sea Bears beat the Brampton Honey Badgers 98-84 on Saturday, clinching the 2026 Canadian Elite Basketball League title in front of a record crowd of 12,519 fans at Canada Life Centre, according to Basketball Manitoba.
Xavier Moon led the way with 29 points on 12-for-18 shooting, adding seven rebounds and six assists in 39 minutes. He was named CEBL Finals MVP. Simon Hildebrandt, who grew up in Winnipeg, scored the championship-clinching basket to seal the win, CBC reported.
Slow Start, Strong Finish for the Sea Bears
Brampton came out hot, opening with a 7-0 run. Winnipeg did not score its first basket until nearly seven minutes into the first quarter. But the Sea Bears found their footing and never looked back, pulling away to win by 14 points, Winnipeg Free Press reported.
Jelani Watson-Gayle came off the bench and gave Winnipeg a big boost. The Sea Bears did all of this without injured star forward Teddy Allen, who sat out the championship game, according to Castenet Kamloops.
Hildebrandt's Winning Shot Honors a Fallen Teammate
Simon Hildebrandt finished with 24 points and hit the final Target Score basket to close out the game. Target Score is a CEBL rule — a three-point shot late in the game that ends it immediately if it gives a team an insurmountable lead.
The moment carried deep meaning. Chad Posthumus, a former Sea Bears player who has since passed away, hit the first-ever Target Score winner in franchise history back in 2023. Hildebrandt's championship-clinching shot was seen as a tribute to that legacy, Basketball Manitoba reported.
Court Chaos Forced a Winner-Take-All Format
The championship was originally set up as a three-game series. But the opening game at Brampton's CAA Centre on Wednesday was suspended. Condensation built up on the court, making it unsafe to play, Winnipeg Free Press reported.
Scheduling conflicts made it impossible to reschedule the full series. The CEBL scrapped the three-game format and turned the championship into a single winner-take-all game. Winnipeg hosted it — and made the most of home court, according to City News Winnipeg.
Road to the Final: Both Teams Earned Their Spots
Winnipeg reached the final by beating the Saskatoon Mamba and Vancouver Bandits in the West playoffs. Brampton came through the East, knocking out the Ottawa BlackJacks and Niagara River Lions. Sean East II led Brampton in the title game with 27 points and five assists, per Basketball Manitoba.
The record crowd of 12,519 set a new all-time high for CEBL attendance. The Sea Bears won the title at home, in front of their own fans, making it a moment the city of Winnipeg won't forget, CBC reported.
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