Armor Fall Short in Front of Season-Best Crowd

Published on March 23, 2013 under NBA G League (G League)
Springfield Armor News Release


Springfield, Mass. - The Springfield Armor, presented by MGM Springfield, fell to the Maine Red Claws 115-108 tonight in front of a season-high 5,644 fans at the MassMutual Center.

The Armor (17-27) jumped out to a quick 11-5 lead and never trailed in the first quarter tonight en route to a 27-24 lead over the Red Claws (24-23) at the end of the first. Dominique Jones had the hot hand early for Springfield, scoring 11 points on 3-of-3 from the field and 4-of-4 from the foul line to help the Armor build an early advantage.

In the second quarter, the Red Claws' Jermaine Taylor caught fire. Taylor scored 21 of his MassMutual Center-record and NBA D-League season-high 49 points on 9-of-12 shooting to help Maine turn an eight-point deficit (32-24) early in the quarter into a six-point advantage (58-52) by intermission. Taylor scored 27 of the Red Claws' 58 first-half points, while Jones paced the Armor with 19 points.

Jermaine Taylor continued his stellar evening in the third quarter, pouring in 20 more points on 8-of-11 shooting to keep Maine in front. The rest of the Red Claws' lineup combined to shoot 5-of-16 in the quarter, but led by Taylor, the Red Claws sustained their momentum. Kris Joseph and Tyshawn Taylor each tallied eight points in the period and the Armor shot 50 percent from the field (11-of-22), but the Red Claws held a game-high 14-point lead, 92-78, after three quarters. Jermaine Taylor tallied 47 points through three quarters, including 41 points in the second and third quarters combined.

The Armor began to rally in the fourth quarter and chipped away at the double-digit deficit behind the duo of Toko Shengelia and Willie Reed. Shengelia and Reed combined to score 20 of the Armor's final 22 points tonight and Springfield managed to trim the deficit to as little as four points six times in the final three minutes. Each time the Armor threatened to make it a one-possession game, the Red Claws responded with a timely basket and Maine buried 13-of-14 free throws in the final period to salt the game away and earn a 115-108 victory.

Shengelia scored a team-high 23 points for the Armor tonight and added 11 rebounds in 30 minutes for his fifth double-double in 10 NBA D-League games this season. Jones added 21 points (19 in the first half) in 39 minutes and Reed added 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting with five rebounds in 32 minutes after a one-game absence due to right elbow soreness. Tyshawn Taylor contributed 15 points and a game-high eight assists in 36 minutes and Ben Uzoh chipped in eight points and six assists with just one turnover in 21 minutes off the bench.

Jermaine Taylor led the Red Claws with 49 points on 20-of-30 shooting, including 2-of-3 from behind the arc, in 44 minutes. He was also a perfect 7-of-7 from the foul line and the 20 made-field goals are an NBA D-League-high this season. Mark Tyndale added 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists in 41 minutes, Curtis Jerrells pitched in 12 points and six assists in 38 minutes, Chris Wright scored 11 points in 24 minutes and Fab Melo rounded out the double digit scorers with 10 points in 18 minutes before fouling out.

The Armor return to action on Wednesday when they host the Canton Charge at 7:00 pm at the MassMutual Center in the team's final home game of the 2012-13 regular season. The Red Claws continue their push for the playoffs on Thursday when they host the Erie BayHawks at 7:00 pm in Maine's regular season home finale.

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