Aminu Leads Jam to Victory Over Bighorns

March 9, 2010 - NBA G League (G League)
Bakersfield Jam News Release


(Bakersfield, Calif. - March 9, 2010) - In only his third game for Bakersfield, Alade Aminu poured in a game-high 29 points and filled the rest of the stat sheet with 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks before fouling out late as he helped the Jam battle back from a 17-point deficit to beat Reno 118-112.

Despite playing shorthanded, without leading scorer and rebounder Brian Butch, the Jam hung tough with a streaking Reno team after the Bighorns jumped out to an early double-digit lead. Bakersfield gave up 67 first-half points, but tightened the screws considerably down the stretch and allowed only 45 in the final two frames.

With only 4:20 remaining in the game, a Trey Johnson floater gave the Jam its first lead at 101-100 and Bakersfield never looked back. The basket for Johnson (21 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds) was part of an 11-0 Jam run that had Reno reeling and turned a two-point deficit into a nine-point lead for Bakersfield.

By the time the Bighorns had begun to recover it was too late, as Johnson, Will Daniels and Reece Gaines (17 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) combined to shoot 9-for-10 from the free throw line in the last minute to seal the victory for the Jam. Point guard Jeremy Wise also played well in his return from injury (scratched cornea) and finished with 19 points, six rebounds and nine assists with only one turnover.

Late lapses for Reno wasted an impressive performance by Desmon Farmer, who finished with 28 points, nine assists, four rebounds and two steals. The Bighorns also got big nights out of Rod Benson (8 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocks) and DJ Strawberry (16 points, 9 assists, 4 rebounds) in the loss.

The Jam also saw two big men step up off of the bench to make up for the absence of Butch on the boards - John Edwards barely missed a double-double with 12 points, nine rebounds and two blocks, while Atila dos Santos scored only four points but finished with nine rebounds in just 10 minutes of action.

Bakersfield's homestand continues this weekend when the Jam plays host to Springfield for back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday. The Bighorns head back to Reno, where they will welcome the Utah Flash to town for a Friday-Saturday set of their own.

A complete box score for this game can be found at http://www.nba.com/dleague/games/boxscore.jsp?gameId=2020900295.



NBA G League Stories from March 9, 2010


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