CBA weekly

February 8, 2007 - Continental Basketball Association 1 (CBA 1) News Release

NATIONAL CONFERENCE WINS CBA ALL-STAR CLASSIC 134-131 IN OVERTIME

Ralph Holmes wins MVP; Hometown Butte Daredevils Sweep Skills Competition

The Continental Basketball Association today played their 23rd Annual CBA All-Star Classic in Butte, Montana at the Butte Civic Center. In front of 3,283 fans, the National Conference came out on top 134-131 in overtime.

The night began with a Slam Dunk Contest, followed by a Long Distance Shootout. The dunkers put on an amazing show that the fans enjoyed. Hometown favorite Anthony Richardson of the Butte Daredevils dazzled the crowd throughout and was won the Slam Dunk title over Carl Edwards from the Indiana Alley Cats. Edwards didn't make it easy on Richardson, as he had to pull the Dr. J jam out of the bag for his final dunk. Taking off from the free-throw line Richardson captured the "50" he needed for the victory.

Next up was the Long Distance Shootout. Eight shooters squared off and showed their shooting skills. Albany's Jamario Moon captured the last of three spots in the finals with a score of 16. Unfortunately for Moon that meant he had to shoot first in the finals and came up with only 10 points. Next up was Desmond Ferguson from the Minot Skyrockets. Ferguson put up 15 points to move ahead of Moon. The Butte Daredevils' David Bell was last to shoot by way of his 1st Round score of 20. Bell put up a score of 17 to capture the Long Distance Shootout. This is the third consecutive year that the hometown players captured both Contests.

The night continued with the 23rd Annual CBA All-Star Classic. Both teams put on a dazzling display of athleticism and talent for all to see. The American Conference was led by the exploits of Erick Barkley of the Indiana Alley Cats. Barkley had 25 points and hit a three pointer to put the game into overtime with 3.4 seconds left in regulation. Barkley also scored six of his 25 points in overtime and missed a half-court shot that would have put the game into a second overtime. Jamario Moon was fabulous in defeat. Moon had 17 points and 10 rebounds before suffering a sprained ankle early in the third quarter. Moon also swiped 5 steals and had 2 huge blocks. J.J. Sullinger had 22 points, T.J. Thompson had 18 points and Ray Cunningham chipped in with 14 points for the Micheal Ray Richardson-coached American Conference team.

Leading the way for Paul Woolpert's National Conference team was a familiar face, Ralph Holmes of his own Yakama Sun Kings team. Holmes had 25 points and pulled down 13 rebounds to earn himself Most Valuable Player honors. The hometown Butte Daredevils were well represented with John Millsap scoring 22 points, Odell Bradley had 19 points, and the man in the middle Nick VanderLaan pulling down a game high 16 rebounds.

"This was a great game for all of the fans of the CBA and Butte," said Paul Woolpert, coach of the National Conference team. "Ralphie was outstanding for us tonight. Nick pulled down some key boards and Galen Young was his usual steady self. My whole team was great to work with for a few days and I am glad I had the opportunity to coach each and every one of them. Micheal Ray's team put up a great fight and tonight was one of those games that it was too bad that someone had to lose. Erick Barkley hit a three to put the game into overtime and almost hit another one from half-court to do it again. Tonight 24 great players and coaches showed why they are All-Stars. I hope we put a put on a great show for the CBA and the fans of Butte had a good time."

DID YOU KNOW?

Although Pittsburgh's Rob Griffin is playing for his third franchise in the past three weeks, he never suffered the trade headache of Kermit Holmes, who was traded four times in a single day. Originally property of the Columbus Horizon, Holmes was traded in the 1993 off-season to the Rochester Renegade for a third-round draft pick and future considerations. That same day, Rochester then traded Holmes to the Hartford Hellcats for guard James Martin. That same day, Hartford then traded Holmes to the Rapid City Thrillers for a fourth-round draft pick. That same day, Rapid City then traded Holmes to the Oklahoma City Cavalry for guard Dell Demps and a sixth-round pick.

CBA ALL-STAR CLASSIC BROADCAST ON WEB TELEVISION NETWORK

Rebroadcasts available at cbahoopsonline.com

The Continental Basketball Association announcedthat it has partnered with Web Television Network to broadcast the 2007 Continental Basketball Association All-Star game and Skills Competition live on the internet.

Web Television Network (webtelevisionnetwork.com) is a comprehensive broadband initiative designed to provide fans, sponsors, media and the general public with quality live and archived steaming webcasts of games and other compelling video on-demand programming. WTN seeks to be the premier broadband destination for free, live video of Continental Basketball Association games and other video-on-demand features highlighting the League's teams and athletes.

Web Television Network has already partnered with the CBA's Pittsburgh Xplosion to broadcast the team's remaining 11 home games and is in negotiations to with the CBA to broadcast the league's remaining 82 regular season and postseason games.

"We are excited about our partnership with Web Television Network," said Pittsburgh Xplosion CEO Richard Hersperger. "The Network also will exponentially increase the number of our basketball games available. It will connect league fans in more ways than every before with their favorite teams."

WTN's goals are to produce more than 200 events with a focus on basketball regular-season and postseason contests, selected additional events and other specialty programming. In addition to the many live games, selected events will be archived for on-demand viewing for a specified time, allowing fans to catch a game they missed, watch it again or check out highlights.

"This is a great opportunity for the Continental Basketball Association," stated CBA Director of Operations Dennis Truax. "WTN is a cutting edge company that we are very happy to partner with to bring the fans of the CBA our showcase event, the CBA All-Star Classic."

PAUL WOOLPERT WINS JANUARY 2007 COACH OF THE MONTH AWARD

The Continental Basketball Association announced today that Yakama Sun Kings head coach Paul Woolpert has been named CBA Coach of the Month for January 2007. Woolpert, who won two championship rings as head coach of the Sun Kings (2000 and 2006), guided his team to a 9-3 record, earning 60.5 quarter points, for an average of 5.04 quarter points per game. The Sun Kings currently sport a 4.70 quarter-point average, which would put Yakama on a pace to finish with one of the best quarter-point averages in CBA history.

The Sun Kings' hot January run included a six-game winning streak, in which five games in a row garnered 6.0 quarter-points or better; Woolpert also coached his team to back-to-back 7-0 quarter-point shutouts against the Utah Eagles (Jan. 12) and Butte Daredevils (Jan. 13). Woolpert's team, which includes five members of the National Conference All-Star team, lead the CBA in several statistical categories, including offensive rebounds (Rocky Walls, 4.4 orpg) and assists (Galen Young, 6.8 apg).

During the month of January, Woolpert moved into 11th place on the CBA all-time list for most wins by a coach, with 189 victories. He has already passed CBA coaches Ron Ekker and Bill Musselman, and is only two victories away from tying Gerald Oliver (191 wins) for tenth place on the list. Woolpert narrowly edged out the Indiana Alley Cats' Carlos Knox for the Coach of the Month award; the Cats finished with a 4.73 QPA (61.5 quarter-points in 13 games) for the month of January 2007.

RONNIE FIELDS NAMED CBA PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Minot Skyrockets guard scores 5000th Career CBA Point

The Continental Basketball Association is pleased to announce that Minot Skyrockets 6'4" guard Ronnie Fields has been named the CBA Player of the Week for the week ending February 3, 2007. This is the first Player of the Week honor bestowed on a Skyrockets player.

In Friday night's matchup between the Minot Skyrockets and the visiting Indiana Alley Cats, Ronnie Fields came off the bench to score 23 points on the night, helping the Skyrockets win and move into second place in the American Conference. However, it was his ninth point - a jumper from the free throw line with 3:43 remaining in the third quarter - that gave Fields 5,000 career CBA points, only the 13th man in modern CBA history (and the 23th man since the league was born in 1946) to achieve this mark; and later finished the week with 5,026 career points. In 1997, Fields was the CBA Slam Dunk Champion and was a CBA All-Star in 2003-04 and 2005-06. Fields was also a member of the 2002-03 and 2003-04 All-League First Team and 2005-06 All-League Second Team.

Other players receiving consideration for Player of the Week were:

Jamario Moon, Albany Patroons

Nick VanderLaan, Butte Daredevils

Malik Moore, Great Falls Explorers

Erick Barkley, Indiana Alley Cats

Robert Griffin, Pittsburgh Xplosion

Elvin Mims, Yakama Sun Kings

TEAM REPORTS

Albany Patroons (16-8, 100.0 QP, 4.17 AVG, 1st place, American Conference)

It was a tough loss for the Albany Patroons, finishing up before the All-Star break at the Butte Civic Center with a 113-108 [5-2] loss to the Daredevils. T.J. Thompson continued his streak as the league's leading scorer with 33 points on the night; Jamario Moon earned a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds; he also had four steals that evening. Albany finished the first half though with the American Conference division lead and plenty of rest; the Pats would have played two more games before the Break, but their opponent, the Utah Eagles, folded.

Butte Daredevils (12-13, 84.5 QP, 3.96 AVG, 3rd place, National Conference)

CBA All-Star Nick VanderLaan continued his strong play this season by earning his 9th double-double of the season in a 113-108 [5-2] victory over the Albany Patroons. VanderLaan put up 21 points and yanked down 20 boards, just five rebounds shy of his season high. Odartey Blankson also had a double-double of his own, with 23 points and 11 rebounds for the night; Anthony Richardson blocked three shots to keep the win with Butte. Next up at the Butte Civic Center was a visit by the division-leading Yakama Sun Kings; try as they might, the Daredevils were not able to keep the victory at home, and lost 114-104 [6-1]. Ronald Ross led the Daredevils with 32 points; Nick VanderLaan continued his domination on the boards with a 13-rebound night.

Great Falls Explorers (16-10, 103.0 QP, 3.96 AVG, 2nd place, National Conference)

The Explorers hosted the Indiana Alley Cats on Tuesday night, and newly acquired Harold Arceneaux was with the Explorers for his first game in the Blue and White. The Weber State forward scored seven points in his Explorers debut, while Malik Moore (24 points) and Keith Salscheider (19 points) paced the team. But a last-second three-pointer that would have tied the game fell short, and despite the putback by Marlyn Bryant at the buzzer, the Explorers lost to Indiana 102-101 [5-2]. The Pittsburgh Xplosion were the next visitors to the Four Seasons Center, and the Explorers were ready, taking Pittsburgh down 116-93 [6-1] before a crowd of 1116. Keith Salscheider drained 21 points, including six from behind the 3-point arc, while the Great Falls defense held Pittsburgh's leading scorer, Kevin Pittsnogle, to only 9 points. In the second game of the series, a crowd of 1336 saw Great Falls dominate a shorthanded Xplosion team 121-97 [6-1]. The Blue and White suited up ten men; seven scored in double figures, led by Eric Strand's 19 points. Malik Moore only scored nine points on the night, but he dished out 12 assists in the match.

Indiana Alley Cats (16-13, 107.0 QP, 3.69 AVG, 3rd place, American Conference)

The fourth quarter of Indiana's 102-101 [5-2] victory over Great Falls on Tuesday night turned out to be the difference-maker, as the Alley Cats ran off a 14-2 run. The Cats' All-Star quartet each helped with the win - Erick Barkley led the Cats with 24 points, J.J. Sullinger hit a key block of Jovan Harris' late shot in the lane; Shaun Fountain nailed two clutch free throws to put the Cats up for good; and Carl Edwards finished the game off with 21 points of his own. The Alley Cats then visited Minot for a two-game series; but could not hold back the surging Skyrockets, losing 94-91 [5-2] an 117-103 [6-1]. In the first game, J.J. Sullinger's 33 points and 13 boards led all Alley Cats in scoring, while Erick Barkley notched 16 points to help the cause. In the second game, played on Saturday February 3, Erick Barkley put up 34 points, going 10-25 from the floor, 11-13 from the stripe and 3-5 from behind the arc, as the Alley Cats slipped into third place at the All-Star Break.

Minot Skyrockets (18-11, 117.5 QP, 4.05 AVG, 2nd place, American Conference)

The late-season acquisition of Ronnie Fields has paid off for the charging Skyrockets, as they upended the Yakama Sun Kings 101-97 [5-2. Fields scored 20 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. Jason Smith also had a stellar game for the Skyrockets with his double-double of 26 points and 14 rebounds. Minot then hosted the Indiana Alley Cats for a two game series, and won both contests handily, 94-91 [5-2] and 117-103 [6-1] to move into second place in the American Conference. The first game, on Friday Feb 2, featured Ronnie Fields' 23 points, including his 5,000th career CBA point. Fields led all Skyrockets in scoring, while Ray Cunningham picked up a double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Cunningham laced another double-double up in the Saturday contest, with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Desmond Ferguson led the Skyrockets with 24 points on the night.

Pittsburgh Xplosion (2-26, 59.0 QP, 1.75 AVG, 4th place, American Conference)

The Pittsburgh Xplosion continued their western road swing, hoping to snatch a victory from a team they previously upended, the Butte Daredevils. Despite splitting the first and fourth quarters, and taking the third quarter 29-27, the Xplosion's 15-point second quarter was not enough to stop Butte from winning, 100-93 [5-2]. Shawn Hawkins put 24 points on the scoreboard to lead the Xplosion in scoring, while Greg Jenkins' 7 rebounds led his teammates. Robert Griffin, late of the Utah Eagles and Yakama Sun Kings, became a member of the Pittsburgh Xplosion in exchange for the Xploson's 3rd-round draft pick, and joined the Black and Gold during their Western road trip, to play two games against the Great Falls Explorers. Griffin immediately lit up the scoreboard for 33 points against the Explorers, essentially one-third of Pittsburgh's total point output, as Great Falls picked up another win, 116-93 [5-2]. After scoring only nine points in the Great Falls loss, Kevin Pittsnogle did not play in Saturday night's rematch with Great Falls, and the Xplosion were drubbed 121-97 [6-1] against the Explorers. The Xplosion dressed only seven players, but Mark Williams and Robert Griffin each had 19 points on the night.

Yakama Sun Kings (21-8, 140.0 QP, 4.83 AVG, 1st place, National Conference)

The Sun Kings continued their epic road trip with a stint in Minot on January 30, where the Kings fell 101-97 [5-2] to the Skyrockets, with Elvin Mims and Eddy Barlow each notching 17 points apiece. New acquisition Moochie Norris played 24 minutes for the Sun Kings, and scored 4 points, with one assist and a rebound in his first game back in the CBA. Butte was the next stop on the Sun Kings' road odyssey on Saturday night, and Yakama took a 114-104 [6-1] victory at the Butte Civic Center. Ralph Holmes (24 pts) and Galen Young (25 pts) combined for nearly half the Sun Kings' scoring output; Rocky Walls pulled down 11 boards to lead the team.

• Discuss this story on the Continental Basketball Association 1 message board...

Continental Basketball Association 1 Stories from February 8, 2007

• Alley Cats Roll Over the Patroons - Indiana AlleyCats
• CBA announces changes to Xplosion schedule - Pittsburgh Xplosion
• February 14th Game Rescheduled - Minot Skyrockets
• CBA weekly - CBA 1

The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.