First Seed Clinched: Cowles Stadium Welcomes Playoff Basketball

In their eighteenth playoff berth, an inspired Canterbury Rams team has their attention fixated on making a run at back-to-back Sal’s NBL championships, this time aided by an ever-so passionate Cantabrian crowd. 

Having notched a sixteen-game winning streak, the red-hot Rams find themselves top-of-the-table with a win-loss record of 17-3. A first-place finish on the regular season standings has granted the Rams home-court advantage, meaning the Rams’ semi-final – and possible grand final appearance – is guaranteed to take place at Cowles Stadium.

“It’s very important,” said Head Coach Judd Flavell of securing home-court advantage. “I think having the home crowd is a massive factor, especially in Cowles as well.” 

“That environment in a regular season game is awesome. Leading into the playoffs – playing semis and hopefully finals there – we get to experience that for the first time.”

“The atmosphere in Cowles is electric,” added Rams Forward Max Darling. “We appreciate all that the fans do for us during the game and it feels like having a 6th man out there with us”

The team’s collective identity has been a catalyst towards this season’s success. 

Four months ago, following an overtime nailbiter at the Westside Blitz preseason, a youthful Rams squad narrowly escaped the Southland Sharks 84-81. Despite the victory, the young squad didn’t leave unscathed, getting pummelled 53-38 on the backboards. 

Assistant coach Quinn Clinton proceeded to light a fire under the slew of first-year pros, reminding them that to have what it takes to win a championship, they’ve got to be far hungrier than what was seen out there.

Since then, unrelenting persistence on the interior has become a staple point of the Rams’ on-court identity, culminating in a season to remember. The only box that remains unticked is a consecutive Sal’s NBL championship. 

“At the start of the season you have a vision of what the team’s identity is”, said Flavell. “Now we’re at the stage of the season where everyone is playing to that identity and we’re seeing the results come, and from a coach’s standpoint, that’s cool to watch.”

“I think what we’ve seen from [the team] over the last month has been the connectivity that they’re playing with,” Flavell said. “A lot of that is due to our system and they’re executing it well.”

Tickets for the Rams’ semi-finals are available now, but are expected to sell quickly! 

Grab yours today and we’ll see you at Cowles Stadium on Sunday, July 21st at 3:00pm.

p.s. the dress code for the semi-finals is red, red, and more red.