Armor Drop Nail-Biter to Red Claws 93-89
December 8, 2013 - NBA G League (G League)
Springfield Armor News Release
SPRINGFIELD. Mass. - Guard Justin Johnson registered a career-high 25 points and the Armor (0-5) had the Red Claws (4-1) on ropes down the final stretch of the game, but Maine held on for the 93-89 victory Sunday afternoon at the MassMutual Center.
Five Red Claws reached double figures with forward Chris Wright leading the way with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting on the afternoon. Maine started hot, leading by as many as eight in the first quarter, but the Armor battled back to exit the first frame within just five at 24-19 after a Red Claws trey with 30 seconds left.
Maine continued to add to its lead early in the second quarter, stretching the advantage to nine with just over eight minutes left in the half, but Springfield again rallied with a 19-10 run over the next seven minutes to knot the game at 44. Over the next 1:46, Springfield outscored Maine 4-3 to take a 48-47 lead into the locker room, its first halftime lead of the season.
Johnson scored 14 of his 25 points before the break, while guard Gary Forbes added 11 points to the first half effort. The Red Claws also had two players in double figures at the break with Wright logging 12 and center Romero Osby with 10.
The two teams equaled each other in the third, scoring 24 points apiece as the Armor took its first lead heading into the fourth quarter this season at 72-71. After the Armor pushed its lead to three at 74-71 following a jumper by Johnson, the Red Claws quickly knotted the game back at 74 with just over 10 minutes to play. A back-and-forth affair saw the teams trade leads over the next six minutes before Maine grabbed a three point advantage with 3:26 to play, but Johnson once again stepped up to tie the game twice with under a minute to play courtesy of a pair of jumpers.
With 20 seconds on the clock, Maine's Chris Babb drove to the basket and connected on a layup, drawing a foul by Johnson who was then charged with a technical foul. The Red Claws converted the four-point play to make the score 92-88 and held on for a 93-89 victory.
Maine struggled from the free throw line throughout the game, converting on just 56.8 percent of its shots from the charity stripe, but connected on four of its last five over the final 20 seconds to secure the win. Springfield edged Maine on the glass 45-39, 19 of which were offensive boards leading to 15 second chance points. The teams traded leads 16 times on the afternoon and found themselves tie 10 times.
Armor forward Willie Reed recorded his third double-double of the season, scoring 19 points and pulling down a game-high 17 rebounds, 10 on the offensive end. The Red Claws received 29 combined points from Marcel Anderson and Frank Gaines off the bench, with Anderson hitting two clutch free throws with under four seconds to play to put the Armor in a four-point deficit.
The Armor will return to action Friday night at 7:00 p.m. when they travel to Maine for the second of three straight meetings between the two teams. Springfield will then return home Friday, December 14 to host the Red Claws at 7:00 p.m. inside the MassMutual Center. For more information on the Armor, visit www.ArmorHoops.com or call (413) 746-3263. Keep up with the Armor on Facebook and Twitter !
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