'I love our group': Surge hope to bring championship to Calgary in third CEBL season
Success off the court has defined the Calgary Surge in its first two years of existence …
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Far reaching into the community, with even more planned for 2025.
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On the floor, fortunes have been pretty darn good, as well.
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But an elusive Canadian Elite Basketball League championship is still on the wish-list for the team that's now in transition and set for its home tip-off this weekend.
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'It's just a great environment to want to win in and want to perform in,' said Surge veteran Sean 'Rugzy' Miller-Moore, ahead of Sunday's home opener against the Winnipeg Sea Bears at WinSport Events Centre (2 p.m., TSN+/CEBL+). 'So I think that's why we always have success on the basketball court, just because of how things are around here.
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'It's just an amazing program. So anyone could come in and fit in easily and want to win.'
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Good thing, because Year 3 — billed as 'Trilogy' by the team — brings many a change to the Surge, as is often the case in the CEBL.
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Not only is that evident at head coach, which sees long-time NBA assistant Kaleb Canales take over from Tyrell Vernon, marking a new man at the helm for the third time in three years, but there's been plenty of turnover on the court, as well.
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'Yeah … it feels like a reset — a reset, for sure,' said Miller-Moore, who's been a part of two CEBL Championship Weekends — but without a crown to show from that final four — with the Surge. 'Your common goal is to win a championship, and when you don't, you have to reset. But we all have that common goal.
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'And no knock on last year, but I feel like it's more of a professional environment,' added Miller-Moore. 'Having coach Kaleb with his NBA experience and having other guys with the NBA experience, I think there's just more energy. The time we use — like let's say we get two hours in the gym — is very efficient.
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Yes … there is certainly an NBA feel to the roster, with guard Khyri Thomas and forward Greg Brown III having played two seasons each with the Detroit Pistons and the Portland Trail Blazers respectively.
The 2025 edition of the Surge also includes a couple of Calgarians — Will Tong, a CEBL draft pick this spring, and rookie pro Olumide Adelodun — and a pair key returnees — Miller-Moore and big forward Gabe Osabuohien.
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