Erie Bayhawks 125, Iowa Energy 115
So here's a shocker. The Energy were within 2 points with 35 seconds left in the game, but couldn't stop the Erie run that soon followed. So essentially, the Energy pulled what I like to call "a Mad Ant." So Erie is back at .500 (16-16). Most people say certain teams are better than their record. I see Erie as worse than their record. Which sounds mean, of course, but every time I see them play I'm usually unimpressed. But no foul, as they manage to win games and a decent amount of them. They shot 57% tonight and Maureece Rice was a big part of that, going 11 for 17 on his way to 28 points. Erik Daniels had a solid game, especially when you factor in Courtney Sims as his opposition. 24 points, 9 boards, and 7 dimes for Daniels (congrats to him for the All-Star nod!). Oliver Lafayette played just 7 minutes (couldn't tell you why, I'm so informative, right?) but managed 5 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 dimes. Nice.
Speaking of Sims (I mentioned him up there, you can even go back and check if you want - power of the internet!), he was nothing less than spectacular again, but who wouldn't expect him to be? Court had 30 points (13 for 17), 14 boards, and 3 blocks. He knows this game so well. Curtis Stinson had a solid game outside of his 4 TOs (15 points, 14 dimes) and Demetris Nichols did his damage with 23 points, however the Iowa dropped what should have been an easy win for them. But this happens.
Sioux Falls Skyforce 103, Bakersfield Jam 96
And continuing the trend, here's another upset from last night. There were 33 turnovers in this one, 5 of these from the Skyforce's Frank Williams, who also managed to shoot 4 for 14 (1 for 7 from trey) on the night. Thumbs up Frank. Luckily Chris Ellis was so wonderful off the bench with 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks. David Bailey did some things I only dreamt he could do in Fort Wayne, putting up 26 points and dishing 6 dimes (also, ten free throws - this guy gets to the line with the best of them).
The Jam shot 43% on the night and that's really what sunk 'em. Justin Reed was a bright spot for Bakersfield with 24 points, 5 rebounds, and status as the sole Jammer with ONLY ONE TURNOVER. Terrance Thomas had 18 boards (I love this kid - that's why they call him the Glass Man) and Derrick Byars was so bad it almost made me throw up the entire bag of Goldfish Crackers I ate last night (they tasted like pizza! Just as advertised!)! Byars shot 3 for 14. Let's hope they don't come up. So Bakersfield drop one they should have won. A trend that will end here; at least for today.
Colorado 14ers 138, Tulsa 66ers 128
Yes, here it was ladies and gentlemen. The battle of the silly numbered teams. You missed it again this year. But that's okay, I've got you covered. OFFENSE OFFENSE OFFENSE. That's all you need to know. Tulsa lost this one on the glass as the 14ers out-boarded them 50 to 34 (scary face!). 43 turnovers total in this one. This was a fun one to watch, but afterwards you felt like you feel after you eat 100 Triple Pepporoni Pizza Rolls. So much fun at the time, but a very bad decision in retrospect. Colorado played nice ball however, with Vernon Hamilton starting (it's nice to see Vern back; he's a very solid baller) and dishing in his own 10 of 38 assists (on 52 field goals). Josh Davis had 38 points and 9 rebounds in just 28 minutes. Yeah. No typo there. But the true star of the night was Dominique Coleman and the Tale of the Trip-Dub. Coleman had 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 13 dimes. Ridiculous. AND if he had just 4 more turnovers it would have been a Quad-Dub! Maybe next time! However, I was always far more impressed with the Double-Triple. Think about it. Now THAT'S impressive.
Tulsa had no Chris Richard and as he's the team's only talent, that's gonna hurt. Jeremy Kelly had 23 points, 5 assists, and 4 turnovers in the loss to go along with center Keith Clark's 14 points and 8 boards. A rare bright spot for Tulsa last night was Gary Ervin, netting 10 points and dishing 6 assists in his 14 minutes off the bench. I can blame this one on Paul Woolpert. Play Gary Ervin. You might win some games and not be sitting nasty at 7-22. No cute sports star is gonna ask you to dance with that record. Push up your glasses. Sit up straight. Go get some punch. Relax. Dances are supposed to be fun.