Edmonton Stingers fall to Real Estelí in Basketball Champions League Americas play in Nicaragua

The Edmonton Stingers suffered their third straight loss in FIBA Basketball Champions League Americas play on Sunday, falling 89-73 to Real Estelí on the team's home turf in Nicaragua.

Edmonton was outscored 58-27 in the second half as Real Estelí came storming back to claim its second straight win in front of cheering home fans in the capital city of Managua.

Guard Alex Campbell led Edmonton with 21 points, while power forward Murphy Burnatowski and centre Chad Posthumus finished with 17 and 14 points, respectively. Posthumus completed a double-double with 10 rebounds.

The season features 12 top teams representing seven countries, with the Stingers being the lone Canadian squad. Teams are divided into four groups for the 36-game group stage, and the top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals on April 6. 

Now sitting at 1-3, the Canadian Elite Basketball League champions face a must-win scenario heading into their final two group stage games in Calgary at Winsport Arena. 

Edmonton is last in its group, while Cangrejeros (3-1) sits in first ahead of Real Estelí (2-2), who beat Cangrejeros 82-78 on Friday.

The Stingers will play Cangrejeros on March 14 at 9:30 p.m. ET before facing Real Estelí two days later at the same time. Both games will be streamed live on CBC Gem, the CBC Sports app and CBC Sports' website. 

The BCLA champion will earn a spot at the 2023 FIBA Intercontinental Cup.

WATCH | CBC Sports' North Courts breaks down Basketball Champions League Americas:

The Stingers took control early on Sunday, entering the third quarter with a 46-31 lead after Campbell nailed a three-pointer to close out the half. Edmonton was up 54-34 with seven minutes left in the third, but Real Estelí went on a