Blue Ducks soar in 117-112 win
June 20, 2005 - United States Basketball League (USBL)
Brevard Blue Ducks News Release
Melbourne, FL -Mark Hadden wasn't about to let happen again what happened to his team Saturday night, when the Blue Ducks throttled his Next-Level Sports All-Stars team, 140-99.
The West Palm Beach-based sports agent reached into his company's roster and brought a deeper, more talented team with him to the Clemente Center Sunday night.
"That's the great thing about playing agents' teams," explained Blue Ducks owner, Mike Richman. "You can play them five times and get five different looking teams. You think you're familiar with them, but you're not. You never know what players to expect so you can't become complacent."
Hadden's plan worked for most of the night, though he didn't get the final result he was looking for as the Blue Ducks came back from the largest deficit they've seen all season to defeat the All-Stars, 117-112 in front of 701 in Melbourne.
Hot-shooting T.T. Hall, one of the new faces Hadden brought with him last night, helped Next Level get off to a quick 5-point lead at the start of the game. Next Level led by six, 34-28 at the end of the first quarter.
Next Level stretched its lead to 13 points, at 49-36 midway through the second period, before the Ducks fought back. Brevard, which had not been behind by that much all season, clawed its way back into the game, ending the half with a 12-3 run, highlighted by an Earl Hines put-back at the buzzer, to cut the lead to 55-52.
The second half of the game saw another new face for Next Level, center Kenny Williams, take over. Williams, who frustrated the Blue Ducks big men all night, scored on an assortment of post moves, dunks and put-backs to help put the visitors in control and keep the pressure on Brevard. Next Level led 82-79 after three.
It wasn't midway through the final period, when Brevard's Corey Evans took control with several clutch baskets, that the Ducks grabbed a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
Evans wound up pacing Brevard in scoring with 31 points. Earl Hines had another strong game, posting a double-double with 20 points to go along with 11 rebounds. The Ducks placed 5 players in double figures in scoring. They have placed at least five players in double digits in each of their first six games.
The Blue Ducks took better care of the ball, posting 18 turnovers while the team totaled 20 steals, leading to 28 turnovers for the visitors.
Kenny Williams was a dominant force, leading Next Level in both points and rebounds, posting 35 and 18, respectively. Rolando Hall netted 26 points on 9 of 19 shooting from the field, including 5 of 11 shooting on 3-pointers.
The Blue Ducks will enjoy their biggest break of the season - 2 days. They play again Wednesday at the Clemente Center against the "same" Next Level team. Tip-off is at 7:00 PM.
For tickets, call (321) 751-BLUE or visit the website at www.BrevardBlueDucks.com. Tickets are also available at the Clemente Center box office which opens an hour before game time.
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United States Basketball League Stories from June 20, 2005
- Blue Ducks soar in 117-112 win - Brevard Blue Ducks
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