It was an easy choice for Eddie Ekiyor to return to the Niagara River Lions for his second season of Canadian Elite Basketball League action.

“The Niagara River Lions have felt like family from Day 1. The coaching staff, the management and the fans have all welcomed me with open arms and made me truly feel like we are family,” the 26-year-old Ottawa native said. “That is something that can’t be taken for granted so when it came to re-signing, there was no doubt in my mind.”

He loves the mindset of the team.

“The culture in Niagara is to compete day in and day out. This is one of the things I love about Niagara. Everyone is going to compete to win at all times and when you have a coach who cares about winning and has as high of a compete level as coach Vic (Raso), it radiates through the whole team and it makes each day that much more fun.”

He loves suiting up for the River Lions.

“My favourite thing about playing for Niagara is that we are like a family and that the coaches the management and the players will always have your back. It makes it easy to have a competitive culture when you trust the people around you.”

With Niagara last season, the 6-foot-forward averaged 12.2 points, a team-high 5.6 rebounds and 0.9 blocks per game while shooting 41.7 per cent from beyond the arc and 81.5 per cent from the charity stripe. His play saw him named the league’s defensive player of the year and he was a finalist for the sixth man of the year award.

The two-time U SPORTS champion with the Carleton Ravens didn’t change his style of play when he arrived in Niagara.

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