Vancouver Bandits sign former Cascades star
Published 11:23 am Wednesday, April 8, 2026
Graduating University of the Fraser Valley Cascades basketball star Dario Lopez has signed with the Vancouver Bandits.
The Canadian Elite Basketball League team announced the inking of the 6-7 forward on Wednesday (April 8) as part of the league’s signing day.
The Spanish product was named a Canada West first team all-star in 2025-26 and averaged 15.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and two assists per game in 15 games for UFV. He also shot an impressive 51.2 per cent from the field last season.
Lopez has been a consistent offensive threat during his time with the Cascades and averaged over 15 points per game the last four seasons. His career high scoring average occurred in 2024-25 when he put up 19 points per game and he also averaged 8.2 rebounds in 2022-23. Over the five seasons he averaged 14.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and shot 48.4 per cent.
His career high for points in a game happened against the Lethbridge Pronghorns when he put up 41 points on Jan. 13, 2024. Lopez was recruited for UFV after playing for Madrid’s Movistar Estudiantes U18 and he played in tournaments and camps in his native Spain and the United States as a youth.
Lopez and the Cascades qualified for the playoffs in all five seasons he wore the green and white, but the deepest the team advanced was the quarter-final round.
The Bandits also announced the signing of North Vancouver’s Ashton Bain on Wednesday.
The 6-9 forward finished his second season with the Queen’s University Gaels and averaged 10.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists per game in 26 games. The Gaels advanced to the U Sports Final 8 this season. Bain played his high school basketball with the Handsworth Royals.
“We are proud to announce these two local student-athlete signings, as building BC talent is a core mandate for our team,” stated Bandits head coach and general manager Kyle Julius. “While these are key pieces, we are far from done. We will continue to actively scout collegiate athletes to further strengthen our roster this summer.”
The Bandits made headlines in March by announcing the signing of former NBA player Mychal Mulder. The Ontario product previously 84 games for the Golden State Warriors, Orlando Magic and Miami Heat.
The CEBL signing day has replace the CEBL draft and the league has stated that this new approach creates a more direct and flexible pathway for Canadian student-athletes to transition from campus to the professional stage.
The Bandits open the 2026 CEBL season on Thursday, May 14 on the road in Saskatoon before coming home to host the Edmonton Stingers on Friday, May 22 inside the Langley Events Centre.