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If you can find a way around the closed Queensway on Saturday, TD Place will be alive with the sounds of basketballs.
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And music.
As the Canadian Elite League Basketball’s championship week festivities continue — Friday featured the semifinal showdowns between the Ottawa BlackJacks and Hamilton Honey Badgers as well as the Niagara River Lions versus the Scarborough Shooting Stars — the focus Saturday will be on community engagement.
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CEBL commissioner Mike Morreale has said all week that the event in Ottawa is about much more than simply crowning a league champion.
It’s also about using basketball as a vehicle to connect to as large an audience as possible through a variety of events.
While the games are going on inside at TD Place Arena — the final takes place Sunday at 4 p.m. — the surrounding area outside will also be a hive of activity Saturday.
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“We have a youth three-on-three tournament that’s going on all day here at Lansdowne,” BlackJacks president Michael Cvitkovic said. “There will be a series of community arts exhibits and opportunities to get involved in basketball. We’ve got concerts, starting at 4 p.m. Some local acts, some French acts. And there will also be a whole bunch of activations out there, so fans can come out (to win prizes). We’re trying to create a real festival atmosphere outside.”
During BlackJacks games this season, fans have been given the opportunity to win free flights on Flair Airlines if they can hit a long, long range shot. That chance will be extended to the community at large on Saturday.
The good news is that the sun should be out.
“They may have closed the highway, but at least we’ve got good weather,” said Cvitkovic, referring to the closure of a section of Highway 417 through Ottawa due to construction. “But we’ve done a lot to communicate to our ticket holders about that.”
