Jon L, being the Tulane alum he is, was busy creating this masterpiece yesterday.  I assume that means he didn't watch yesterday's games.  I didn't either game in its entirety either - there were two football games on and when I wasn't watching those, I went to the Y (twice) to get my swoll on. GTL, baby.  I did catch the majority of the Bakersfield-Maine game, however, so we'll get to that one first.

For starters, here are some highlights from each game.  The best part, obviously, is our old pal Swish getting some love.  I miss that fox-thing.

Maine Red Claws 106, Bakersfield Jam 104 (Box score)

• Alexis Ajinca had a second-straight astounding game with 27 points, 10 boards and a block in 25 minutes of action.  He was being defended by John Edwards (Not that John Edwards or even that John Edward), Rodney Webb and Brian Butch, so you've got to take that into consideration, but 27 and 10 is amazing either way for a player as raw as he was when he came to the D-League.  He's also been very active on the offensive boards which is about all I'd ask of him.
  
• Tony Bobbitt had a game.  Yes, the Tony Bobbitt everyone had written off except myself and Kevin Pelton.  Bobbitt hit 4-of-9 from beyond the arc after coming off of the bench in the place of an injured J.R. Giddens.  Crazy Tony's really going to need to keep doing as well as he's been doing as of late now that Billy Thomas was recently waived due to injury.
• Will Blalock had 12 points, 10 assists, eight boards and just three turnovers in 33 minutes.  I'm not big on him taking 18 shots and hitting just six of them (especially since he went 0-for-7 from beyond the arc), but everything else is exactly what he needs to be able to do to get back on track.  Actually, even if he takes 18 shots, I'd be okay with it, as long as he omits the 3-ball.
• Trey Gilder didn't look great on either end.  He finished with five points, six assists, five boards and four fouls on 2-of-6 shooting.  Normally I wouldn't mention this, but the reigning NBA executive of the year, Denver's Mark Warkentien, was in the building and I have to assume Gilder was the player he was looking at.
• Jeremy Wise had 17 points and eight assists as the Jam's starting point guard.
• Blake Ahearn also started, but had one assist and went 2-of-9 from the field.  For some reason, I'm guessing everyone that wanted Ahearn traded from Dakota is not happy that he ended up in Bakersfield.
• Wil Daniels is going to be a stud for the Jam.  If I was Will Voigt (I'm not), I'd actually start Daniels at the 4, move Brian Butch to the five and just run every team out of the gym in a Bob MacKinnon-style offense, except without the whole running plays and actual coaching going on.  At 5-19, it's time to just have fun.
• Bakersfield coach Will Voigt got ejected.  He's now tied with Iowa point guard Curtis Stinson for most technical fouls in the D-League!

DAKOTA WIZARDS 114, LOS ANGELES D-FENDERS 95 (BOX SCORE)

• I don't know if I've ever said this, but I always thought that Romel Beck would be great if he went the Marcus Williams route and learned how to become a point guard.  Yesterday he ended up trying that with some success.  With actual point guard Mo Baker playing just 20 minutes (no idea why) and Cheyne Gadson missing his second straight game with a knee injury, Beck took on a bit of a role as offense-initiator, dishing 10 assists on the game.  Oh, he also had 23 points by halftime and finished with 30, including hitting 7-of-8 from beyond the arc.
• Curtis Withers didn't start because he missed film session.  I love when there's a decent beat writer (in this case the best) that covers teams so that these facts are reported.  Connor Atchley got the start in his place (or Atchely, as the recap stated) and finished with 13 points, eight boards and three blocks.  Remember when I said he should start? I still believe this.
• Marcus Dove had 14 points and nine boards.
• The Wizards moved the game to a noon start because they thought the Vikings game would hurt attendance.  I nearly slept through the game because of this.  Still, the Vikings lost - all is right.
  
• Diamon Simpson had 14 points, 11 boards, six steals and three blocks.  I like this guy.
• Why isn't Joe Crawford starting? 15 points and six assists off the bench isn't impressive, but he's more talented than Horace Wormely.