Clemons' Last-Second Three Lifts Maine
March 27, 2022 - NBA G League (G League)
Maine Celtics News Release
PORTLAND, ME - The Maine Celtics, presented by Unum, capped off an electric fourth quarter with a 35-foot buzzer-beater from Chris Clemons, beating the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, 110-107.
Maine was led by Clemons with 22 points, three rebounds and six assists. Juwan Morgan posted 20 points, 11 rebounds and two assists. Matt Ryan finished with 17 points and four rebounds on 5-11 shooting from deep. Denzel Valentine had 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Deonte Burton totaled 13 points and nine rebounds.
Nate Hinton's 35 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals carried Fort Wayne. Jordan Bell registered 19 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, two steals and four blocks. Gabe York tallied 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Darius Adams had 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Walt Lemon Jr. recorded 12 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Burton spun into the paint from the right block and finished softly with his left hand to get the scoring started. Bell's seven-footer put Fort Wayne on the board. Burton found Brodric Thomas for a two-handed slam before softly finishing another lefty lay-in. Clemons' pull-up transition three put Maine ahead 11-4 after a 5-5 start from the field and Burton added another three soon after. The Celtics went on a 1-8 stretch following the perfect start and Valentine ended the Mad Ants' run with a left wing triple. After a low-scoring first quarter, Maine led 22-18.
The Celtics' 7-2 run to begin the second gave them a nine-point lead. Thomas' emphatic rejection of Troy Baxter Jr. saved a dunk for Maine. Both teams struggled to create offense and finish plays in the second, with Fort Wayne dipping below 30 percent from the field and Maine below 40 percent. The offenses would eventually pick up, with Fort Wayne going on a 7-0 run to get within four, 31-27. Thomas suffered a broken nose late in the second, which halted play as he exited the game with the Celtics ahead 44-38. A 6-0 run into the locker room helped the Mad Ants tie the game, 44-44. Maine shot 17-46 (37 percent) from the field, 6-27 (22.2 percent) from distance and 2-3 (66 percent) from the stripe in the first half. Fort Wayne shot 17-45 (37.8 percent) from the field, 2-12 (16.7 percent) from distance and 4-5 (80 percent) at the stripe.
Hinton drew a block on Burton and made the 1-for-2 free throw for the first points of the second half, giving Fort Wayne their first lead of the game. Hinton dropped in a hook shot before Ryan responded with a three. Maine turned it over four times in the first three minutes to go down 52-47 before back-to-back triples from Clemons and Morgan tied it at 54. Despite both teams struggling to score efficiently, the pace ramped up in the third quarter as Fort Wayne maintained a small lead. Valentine's bounce pass to a streaking Clemons put Maine back ahead, 59-58. Isaiah Cousins and Morgan buried a pair from distance to extend the lead to five, 65-60, but a 12-5 run from the Mad Ants gave them the lead back, going into the fourth up 72-70.
Valentine's and-one were the first points on the fourth. Morgan and Valentine canned consecutive threes to give the Celtics a 79-78 lead. John Bohannon's energetic defense and active hands on the interior protected the rim and forced tough shots for Fort Wayne. Ryan caught fire and hit four-straight threes to keep Maine's cushion intact, and Morgan's free throws made it 100-93 with just under two and a half minutes left. Bell hit a three and Hinton sank an improbable leaner from the corner to cut the Mad Ants deficit to one, 102-101 with a minute to go. In a hectic final minute, the Celtics and Mad Ants traded buckets until the game was tied at 107 with 11 seconds remaining. Clemons isolated Hinton beyond 30 feet from the basket, pulled up and nailed a buzzer-beater to put Maine ahead 110-107 with under a second remaining, catapulting the Celtics to a needed win. Maine finished 40-86 (46.5 percent) from the field, 20-51 (39.2 percent) from deep and 7-13 (53.8 percent) from the line. Fort Wayne finished 40-92 (43.5 percent) from the field, 7-33 (21.2 percent) from deep and 12-18 (66.7 percent) from the line.
The Maine Celtics will round out the 2021-22 regular season with a three-game road trip, starting with a two-game set against the Greensboro Swarm before wrapping up the season with a matchup with the Lakeland Magic.
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