Sioux Falls Skyforce at Westchester Knicks 7:00 p.m. Maine Red Claws at Canton Charge 7:00 p.m. Texas Legends at Rio Grande Valley Vipers 8:00 p.m. Idaho Stampede at Austin Spurs 8:30 p.m. Bakersfield Jam at Los Angeles D-Fenders 10:00 p.m. Santa Cruz Warriors at Reno Bighorns 10:00 p.m
The Maine Red Claws, presented by Unum, snapped a three-game losing streak, thanks to another triple-double by Tim Frazier. Maine (18-8) defeated Canton, 104-92. Frazier finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists. It is his second triple-double of the season and just the sixth in Red Claws franchise history. Frazier becomes the first Red Claws player ever to record multiple triple-doubles. Frazier grabbed the 10th rebound in the final seconds, putting the cap on a dominant performance by Maine. Andre Dawkins, on assignment from the Boston Celtics, finished with 27 points on 8-15 shooting (6-11 from three point range). It is his second straight 27-point performance with the Red Claws. Jason Calliste scored 17 points off the bench on 6-9 shooting. Christian Watford added 12 points and 5 rebounds, and Omari Johnson scored 11 points and grabbed 8 boards. Entering the second period down 24-22, the Red Claws out-scored the Charge 27-16 in the 2nd quarter. The Charge cut Maine's double-digit lead down to five entering the 4th, but the Claws daggers down the stretch put the game away. The Red Claws return home tomorrow night for a 7 p.m. showdown with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. Tickets are on sale now and start at just $6. Call 207-210-6655 or visit www.MaineRedClaws.com for more information. Press release from the Maine Red Claws
The Westchester Knicks (8-19) fell to the Sioux Falls Skyforce (16-11), the NBADL affiliate of the Miami Heat, 109-99 in the first game of a back-to-back weekend match-up. The Skyforce started out hot, going on a 12 point run early in the quarter. With only three points on the board from an Andre Barrett long shot, Westchester was unable to light up the boards again until Cleanthony Early, on assignment from the New York Knicks, sank a shot from beyond the arc with 7:18 on the clock. With Sioux Falls leading the entire quarter, Westchester was able to sneak back within three points from sharp shooting off the bench, the score 25-22. Twenty of Sioux Falls' points in the first came in the paint. The Knicks struggled to find their shots in the second, shooting just 36 percent to Sioux Falls' 65 percent. Adding to their second quarter troubles, Westchester was only able to convert on 4-of-8 from behind the line. A quarter that would haunt the Knicks for the entire game, the Skyforce would take the second and the half, leading Westchester 59-44. Westchester found their groove again in the third, winning the quarter 26-25. Sioux Falls was only 3-for-8 from far out; 8-for-17 in all scoring attempts. The Knicks came within three points with 5:23 on the clock off a jump shot from Early but were unable to squeak out the lead with the Skyforce on top for the entire quarter. Heading into the final twelve minutes, Sioux Falls stayed on top over the Knicks, the score 84-70. A fiery Antetokounmpo stole the show in the fourth, beginning with a monster block off a Palo Bubu shot attempt. Showboating after a monster dunk would cost him though as he was charged with a technical foul after hanging ten on the rim. He would end the quarter with 11 points, but made just 1-of-5 free throw attempts; he was 3-12 on the night from the line. Despite outshooting the Skyforce 31-25 in the final quarter, the Knicks were unable to make a comeback from a wobbly first half. A Cleanthony Early dunk with 14.9 seconds on the clock impressed, but was futile in the game's impending outcome. As a team, Westchester connected on just 15-of-28 free throw attempts, leaving 13 points on the table. Neither team made headlines from beyond the arc on the scorebook but Sioux Falls made shots when they counted, keeping the momentum in their favor. Both teams had 50 points in the paint, the Knicks with the edge on second chance points with 17 on the night. But Sioux Falls would outshoot Westchester 52 percent to 44 percent, sealing the deal for the win. On assignment from the New York Knicks, Cleanthony Early led Westchester with a double-double, recording 20 points, 10 rebounds, and two steals. Defensive power Thanasis Antetokounmpo contributed 19 points, adding four rebounds and two blocked shots. Darnell Jackson had the Knicks' other double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Skyforce forward Scotty Hopson scored a game-high 24 points, adding nine rebounds and three assists. Center Shawn Jones posted a double-double, contributing 16 points and 12 rebounds. Forward Henry Walker netted 17 points, also supplying four rebounds and a blocked shot. Six total Sioux Falls players found double digits. The Westchester Knicks return to the Westchester County Center for part two of a back-to-back contest with the Sioux Falls Skyforce tomorrow, Jan. 31 at 7:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on MSG 2, YouTube, and AM 1230 WFAS. The Knicks will be wearing special jerseys highlighting Main Street Pediatric Dentistry and Smile Train, an international children's charity with a sustainable approach to a single, solvable problem: cleft lip and palate. Tickets for the Westchester Knicks are on sale now at Ticketmaster outlets and the Westchester County Center Box Office and start at $10. For information on season tickets and partial plans, visit westchesterknicks.com or call (914) 559-6889. Fans can stay up-to-date on team news by following the team at: @wcknicks on Twitter and on Facebook at facebook.com/wcknicks. Press release from the Sioux Falls Skyforce
The Rio Grande Valley Vipers (13-14) led the entire game in tonight's 133-126 win over the Texas Legends (15-11) at State Farm Arena. Three Vipers players scored double-doubles. Jaron Johnson led with 28 points and 10 rebounds. Glen Rice, Jr. followed with 25 points. Toure' Murry notched 24 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds. Nick Johnson added 18 points. Clint Capela scored 17 points, 12 rebounds and 6 blocks. Ricky Ledo led the Legends with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Mike James added 21 points. The Vipers started the game with a 7-0 run before Ledo connected on a shot from behind the arc to put Texas on the scoreboard 7-3. The Vipers largest lead of the first quarter was 28-16 at the 4:11 mark. William Buford responded with a dunk that sent the Legends on a 15-4 run to end the first quarter trailing 32-31. Jaron Johnson scored 16 of his 28 total points in the second quarter. The Vipers largest lead of the first half was 60-47 with 4:32 remaining in the quarter. With under a minute left, Renaldo Balkman made a layup to close Texas' deficit to 65-61. Murry followed with two free throws to give RGV a 67-61 advantage at the half. A dunk from Nick Johnson gave RGV its largest margin of the game, 91-73, with 2:52 remaining in the third quarter. Yuki Togashi responded with a layup for the Legends, but Akil Mitchell followed with a dunk to put RGV's lead back at 18 points, 93-75. With 1:04 left in the game, James made a three-pointer to close put Texas within 127-121, but it was not enough to help the Legends overpower the Vipers. RGV won 133-126. The Vipers hit the road tomorrow for a game in Frisco, Texas versus the Texas Legends. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (CT). Next week, RGV hosts the Oklahoma City Blue on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7 p.m. (CT) at State Farm Arena. Follow the action live all season on FOX Sports 1700 AM or watch games live at NBADLeague.com. For more information about the RGV Vipers 2014-15 season or to purchase season tickets, contact the Vipers at 956-972-1144. Press release from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Bryce Cotton posted a game-high 33 points and San Antonio assignee Kyle Anderson recorded a double-double with 30 points and 11 rebounds as the Austin Spurs (18-9) took down the Idaho Stampede (4-24) by a 118-112 final score Friday for Pink Night at the SWBC Court at Cedar Park Center. Also in double figures for Austin were Orlando Johnson with 21 points and Erik Murphy with 14 points. For the first time this season, every player on the roster added points toward the win. The teams were tied once during the contest. The Spurs had an 18-point advantage at one point, but the Stampede fought back to keep themselves in the game with sharp shooting from Jermaine Taylor who contributed 18 second half points. Free throw shooting proved to be the difference with Austin making 27 of 37, to Idaho's 14 of 23 attempts. Idaho was led by Joel Wright (22 points), Jermaine Taylor (22 points), and Jerrelle Benimon (20 points). The two teams meet again for matinee game Saturday, Jan. 31 at 1:00pm at the Cedar Park Center. For Austin Spurs ticket information, fans can call (512) 236-8333 or visit austinspurs.com or ticketmaster.com. Press release from the Austin Spurs
The Santa Cruz Warriors handed the Reno Bighorns a 113-111 loss Friday night in a contest that was anybody's game through to the final seconds. James Michael McAdoo had an explosive night in his first game back from a 10-day contract with the Golden State Warriors. He notched a game-high 39 points and 11 rebounds on a 16 of 23 shooting effort. Mychel Thompson scored 13 points, while Dominique Sutton, Elliot Williams, and Moe Baker added 10 apiece. Festus Ezeli, currently with Santa Cruz on a rehab assignment from Golden State, tallied 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots. Reno was paced by Tajuan Porter, who scored 24 points including four made three-point shots. Jordan Hamilton tallied 20 points and Ra'Shad James notched 15 points for the Bighorns. The first three quarters were tightly-contested, with Santa Cruz edging Reno by 4 points heading into the final period. A Jordan Hamilton three-pointer with 16 seconds left to go in the fourth quarter would tie the score at 111. Elliot Williams would get the bucket to go in the waning seconds as the Warriors edged Reno by two points with 1.8 seconds remaining. David Stockton would take the final shot for Reno as Santa Cruz's Aaron Craft got called for the foul with time expiring. The officials reviewed the play and determined that Stockton would shoot two free throws. Stockton would miss both shots as the Warriors claimed a 113-111 victory over Reno. Santa Cruz kept the edge on field goal percentage (49%-47%), rebounds made (50-47), assists (35-27), and steals (16-8). The Santa Cruz Warriors will face the Bighorns again tomorrow night in the final game of the two-game road series in Reno. Fans can listen to the broadcast on the Santa Cruz Warriors flagship station, KION 1460AM/101.1FM, or catch the game on the NBA D-League's YouTube channel, via http://www.santacruzbasketball.com. Press release from the Santa Cruz Warriors
