Coaches, Writers to Choose All-Stars

Published on December 26, 2002 under United Indoor Football Association (UIF)
Ohio Valley Greyhounds News Release


CBA Head Coaches and beat writers will select the American Conference and National Conference All-Stars for the 19th CBA All-Star Classic on January 13-14 in Sioux Falls, SD. The CBA All-Star coaching staffs will be awarded to teams with the highest quarter-point average in each conference at the conclusion of games completed on Saturday, January 4.

The 10-man American Conference roster will be announced Monday, January 6, and the National Conference players will be released on Tuesday, January 7. The festivities begin at 10 a.m. CST, January 13, when the National Conference squad will hold a public practice at the Sioux Falls Arena. The American Conference will run drills at 12 p.m., and at 3 p.m. the All-Star Fan Jam begins, featuring the Slam-Dunk Competition and Long Distance-Shootout. There will be an All-Star Reception at 7:00 p.m. in the arena.

Both clubs will conduct shootarounds at 10:00 a.m. (National) and 12:30 p.m. (American), which are open to the public, on Tuesday, January 14. The 19th CBA All-Star Game will tip-off at 7:00 p.m. During the contest, reporters and NBA scouts will make their selection for All-Star Most Valuable Player honors, to be announced after the game.

CBA PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Yakima Sun Kings guard Fred Vinson was named National Conference Player of the Week, while Gary Steelheads forward Silas Mills earned American Conference honors, for the period of Dec 15-21.

Vinson averaged 23.7 points per game for the Sun Kings, leading Yakima to a perfect 3-0 record for the week. The 6-4, 197-pound product of Georgia Tech ('94) shot 57 percent from the floor (24 of 42) and 58 percent from three-point range (15 of 26). In a 122-108 win over the Idaho Stampede on Dec. 21, Vinson punctuated his week with a 32-point effort, hitting 11 of 18 shots from the field, five of seven on three-pointers.

Mills, signed as a free agent on Dec. 12, averaged 26.7 points in just over 32 minutes of playing time per contest. Mills hit on a blistering 74.4 percent of his shots (29 of 39), and added 8.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists and two steals per game in leading the Steelheads to a 3-0 week. Mills opened the week hitting 11 of 12 shots in a 29-point, eight-rebound, six-assist, three-steal effort, leading Gary to a 105-101 victory over the Great Lakes Storm on Dec. 18.

Other players receiving consideration for National Conference honors were Sioux Falls Skyforce guard Randy Livingston (21.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 8.7 apg, 2.3spg; first triple-double of the CBA season), Dakota Wizards guard Malik Dixon (20.5 ppg, 4.5 apg) and Idaho Stampede guard Brian Green (18.5 ppg). The three other players receiving consideration in the American Conference were Rockford Lightning forward Albert White (33 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 55.3% FG), Grand Rapids Hoops forward Jerald Honeycutt (25.3 ppg, 12.3 rpg) and Great Lakes Storm forward Desmond Ferguson (25.7 ppg).

CBA TRANSACTIONS

12/24/02
-The CBA League Office fined Head Coach Jeff Grayer (Great Lakes) for failing to leave the court immediately following Game #67.
-Sioux Falls waived Patrick Doctor.

12/23/02
-Dakota placed Miles Simon on the Injured Reserve List.

12/20/02
-Rockford signed John Jackson and waived Kenny Younger.
-Great Lakes placed Antonio Smith and Cory Hightower on the Active Roster; and placed Marvin Gay and Eric DeYoung on the Injured Reserve List.
-Idaho signed Nick Davis and waived Gary Williams.
-Grand Rapids placed Antoine Boxsie on the Active Roster and placed Kei Madison on the Injured Reserve List, retroactive to 12/13/02.

12/18/02
-Sioux Falls placed Patrick Doctor on the Injured Reserve List.

12/17/02
-Sioux Falls signed Randy Livingston.

AROUND THE CBA (Contributed by the respective team's media relations department)

DAKOTA WIZARDS: On Wednesday (12/18) the Grand Rapids Hoops built a 13-point first half lead and held on to defeat the Dakota Wizards 122-113 at the DeltaPlex Arena. The Hoops received a balanced scoring effort as all five starters scored in double figures. Entering the final quarter, Grand Rapids held a modest 11-point lead, but Dakota was able to quickly shave the advantage to 107-106 with three minutes remaining. However, two late three pointers by Alex Scales gave Grand Rapids the win and 5.5 of a possible 7 quarter points. Dakota was able to top the Hoops 31-27 in the third quarter, with Rashad Tucker contributing 13 of his team-high 23 points, for their only quarter victory of the night. The Wizards took on the Grand Rapids Hoops again on Friday night and the Hoops forced 20 turnovers, while committing just six, in a 111-108 win over the Dakota Wizards, taking six quarter points and handing the Wizards their first two-game losing streak of the season. The Hoops were paced by Jerald Honeycutt's 34 points and nine rebounds. Larry Ayuso added 26 points, and Eric Murdock had 21 points and 13 assists. Dakota, which has lost four of seven after an eight-game winning streak, was led by Andy Panko, who had 22 points and 18 rebounds..... The Dakota Wizards ended their six-game road trip with a 113-105 loss to the Great Lakes Storm Saturday. The Wizards finished the road trip with a 2-4 mark. The Storm (7-9) earned 5.5 points with the victory, but remained in last place in the CBA's American Conference. After beating the Storm on Monday, the Wizards (11-6) lost their third straight game after dropping two straight to the Grand Rapids Hoops this week. Malik Dixon led the Wizards with 28 points while Miles Simon and Courtney James had 15 apiece and Andy Panko scored 14..... The Dakota Wizards are currently in first place in the CBA's National Conference and lead the league in quarter-point averages (4.56)..... The Wizards will next face the Idaho Stampede Thursday (12/26) at the Bismarck Civic Center. Tip off is 7:05 p.m.

GARY STEELHEADS: Silas Mills became the first Gary Steelhead player this season to earn American Conference Player of the Week honors. The 6-foot-7 forward helped lead the Steelheads to a 3-0 mark last week – the first time this season they went undefeated in a week. Mills averaged 26.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game last week. He made 29 of 29 field goal attempts (.744) and was 21 of 29 from the free throw line ..... Gary has won five games in December and that is the most the franchise has ever won in the month of December ..... The Steelheads' four-game winning streak is their longest of the season ..... During that stretch, the Steelheads are averaging 5.5 quarter points per game (22 total quarter points) ..... The Steelheads have partnered with American Red Cross to sponsor two blood drives. The first one is Saturday, January 4 at the Merrillville Blood Donation Center from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. Steelie, the mascot, will be there. Those donating blood will receive two ticket vouchers to the Steelheads vs. Idaho game on January 18 ..... The second drive will be from 5:30-9:30 p.m. during the Steelheads game at the Genesis Convention Center. Fans donating that night will receive two vouchers to a future Steelheads game ..... The 65 rebounds and 44 defensive rebounds on December 21 at Grand Rapids is a team season-high. The 21 offensive rebounds ties a season-high set on December 19 vs. Rockford ... The team will have another "Keep Kids Warm Night" on Monday, December 30 when the Steelheads host Grand Rapids. Fans are encouraged to bring coats to give to the less fortunate in Northwest Indiana ..... Saturday, January 11 will be the next televised game on Chicagoland's Television (CLTV) as the Steelheads host Rockford ..... It is also "Teddy Bear Donation" night as fans are encouraged to bring a new, teddy bear for donation. The bears will be given to a special unit at the Methodist Hospitals, where the players, Steelhearts and Steelie can present them to patients.

GRAND RAPIDS HOOPS: The Grand Rapids HOOPS enjoyed their first extended period at home thus far this season, as they compiled a 2-1 record during the past week. To begin the stretch, the HOOPS hosted the Dakota Wizards for a Wednesday night match-up at the DeltaPlex Arena, and for the first time in five games, Grand Rapids was able to take the upper hand, defeating the Wizards 122-113. Grand Rapids used 58 percent shooting to take a 13-point halftime lead, and then held on to take 5.5 of 7quarter points. Larry Ayuso led a trio of 20-point scorers with 27 points. Kevin Simmons added a season-high 24, and Eric Murdock also chipped in 20 points and nine assists. Two nights later, the two teams met once again as Grand Rapids handed Dakota its first two-game losing streak of the season, winning by the score of 111-108. Jerald Honeycutt came up big once again, leading the HOOPS with 34 points (12-20 FG) and nine rebounds. Ayuso also contributed 26 points as Grand Rapids took six of seven points..... To round out the week, the Gary Steelheads came to town for a Saturday night showdown. After defeating the Steelheads in their first four meetings of the season, the HOOPS luck ran out as they fell 128-106. Gary had seven players score in double figures, including four with 20 or more. Grand Rapids struggled from the field all night, shooting a dismal 40 percent for the game..... The holiday season was a success all around for the HOOPS as they saw over 2,000 people attend the three games through their "Give the Gift of Basketball" program, which provided tickets to local social organizations free of cost.

GREAT LAKES STORM: The Storm defeated the National Conference leading Dakota Wizards last Saturday 113-105 (5.5, 1.5). The eye of the Storm, Cory Hightower led his team with 37 points..... Great Lakes' Desmond Ferguson set a CBA record by connecting on 13 three-pointers Monday night, but the Rockford Lightning won the shootout, taking six quarter points in a 155-147 victory over the Storm. Ferguson broke the old mark for three-pointers in a game of 10, set by Gary's Darrin Hancock in last season's regular season finale against the Grand Rapids Hoops. Ferguson finished the night with a CBA season-high 50 points. James Head added 29 for the Storm..... Head Coach Jeff Grayer and all of the Storm players will be making a special trip to Genesee county Urban Christian Youth Organization basketball clinic this Saturday, December 28th at Summit Middle School. The clinic begins at 9:00 A.M. Elementary and Middle School age kids from over 100 churches in the Genesee county area will be participating.

IDAHO STAMPEDE: The Idaho Stampede went 1-2 during the week of Dec. 16-23. Idaho lost a home game against Sioux Falls 104-117 on Dec. 19th, before bouncing back to beat the Skyforce the following night 98-91. Danny Johnson led the Stampede with 18 points in the loss, while Byron Mouton led the team in rebounding with 13 boards. The following night, Johnson again led the team in scoring with 20 points, while Mouton posted his second straight double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds..... Idaho hit the road for a match-up with Yakima on the 21st, but came away with another loss in the Yakima Valley SunDome, 108-122 (2,5). Brian Green posted a team-high 24 points, while newly acquired forward Nick Davis and Chianti Roberts each pulled down seven rebounds..... The Stampede then returned home for a couple of days, before hitting the road again for a Christmas-night match-up with Sioux Falls, in which they lost 86-84 (5-2)..... On Monday, Dec. 23rd, the players and coaches of the Stampede donated their afternoon to the Hope House in Nampa, ID. The team gave the house a special holiday gift, by giving a short basketball clinic before spending some time talking with the kids about life, basketball, etc. The Hope House is a non-government funded home for abused and abandoned children, run by Donna Velvick. The House is funded by private money that is raised for the facility, which has its own school and is totally self-contained. Children of all ages, ranging from infants to high schoolers, live at the house, which is in an old grange hall in south Nampa, off of Lonestar Road.

ROCKFORD LIGHTNING: With just a week remaining in Rockford's 150th year as a city, Rockford's basketball team decided to do a little Sesquicentennial Celebration of their own by breaking the 150-point plateau for the first time since the franchise moved to Rockford in 1986. CBA scoring leader David Harrison's scored 31 points and three others broke the 20-point barrier in the Lightning's 155-147 victory over the Great Lakes Storm Monday Night in Birch Run Michigan. The Lightning collected 6 of the 7-quarter points, improving to 4-0 against the Storm and 7-0 against Michigan teams this season. The 155 points eclipses the previous Rockford Lightning record of 147 accomplished in a victory over Rapid City on January 30th 1991. It's the most points scored by a CBA team since Fort Wayne scored 160 in a double overtime win over Harrisburg on December 10th 1994. The last time a team scored more points in a non-overtime game was March 4th 1992, and the Lightning were the victim—a 156-113 loss to the Omaha Racers. The two teams combined for 302 points, the most combined points in a non-overtime game since Omaha's 170-159 victory over Santa Barbara on December 13th 1989..... The Lightning now average 132.2 points per game on the season, 1.4 points behind the all-time CBA record of 133.6 set by the 1980-81 Rochester Zenith..... The Lightning are 5-3 away from the MetroCentre so far this season. That makes the Bolts the only CBA team with a winning record on the road...David Harrison could become the first player in CBA history to lead the league in both scoring and steals in the same season. Harrison averages 28.0 points per game (Grand Rapids Jerald Honeycutt is second at 24.4) and Harrison is pacing the CBA in steals at 3.9 (.9 more per game then second place Eric Murdock of Grand Rapids).

SIOUX FALLS SKYFORCE: The Sioux Falls Skyforce completed their week with a 2-2 record, including a 86-84 victory over Idaho on Christmas night. The week was highlighted by the return of former NBA player and Skyforce fan-favorite Randy Livingston. In his first three games of the season, Livingston averaged 21.3 ppg, grabbed 8.3 rpg, and dished out 8.7 apg. During the week, Livingston connected on 58.3% of his 3-point attempts. The Force began their week with a 106-89 defeat to Yakima. In his season debut, Livingston scored 17 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. He followed that performance by recording the first triple-double of the season when he scored 24 points, snagged 13 rebounds, and set his teammates up with 12 assists in route to leading the Force to a 117-104 win over Idaho. The following night Sioux Falls suffered a 98-91 loss to the Stampede, after being outscored 30-18 in the fourth quarter. However, Sioux Falls responded with a 86-84 win on Christmas night at the Arena in front of 3,735 fans. The Force was led by Kelley McClure's 21 points and George Reese's 20. Sioux Falls grabbed 5 quarter points in the win. The Skyforce host Grand Rapids on Friday night and Yakima on Saturday before kicking off a 4 game road trip that takes them to Idaho, Dakota, Gary, and Great Lakes.

YAKIMA SUN KINGS: The Yakima Sun Kings ran their winning streak to four games with a 122-108 (5,2) win over the visiting Idaho Stampede on Saturday night. The victory improved the Sun Kings record to 11-7 while the Stampede fell to 6-11. Fred Vinson hit 11-of-18 field goal attempts, including five-of-seven three point attempts, to score a game-high 32 points. Tyson Wheeler had 21 points on five-of-eight shooting from three-point range while Mike Elliott came off the bench to add 16 points. Paul Shirley recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 boards. Brian Green led the Stampede with 24 points while Byron Mouton and Danny Johnson had 21 and 16 points, respectively. Yakima outshot Idaho from the floor, 58.7% (44-of-75) to 47.7% (42-of-88) and won the battle of the boards, 48 to 39. The Sun Kings also hit 13-of- 22 three-point attempts (59.1%)..... The Sun Kings head out for a three-game road trip beginning on December 27th at Dakota and return to the SunDome to face Idaho on January 3rd. The game is sponsored by NWInfo.net and KCYU-TV Fox 68. Special guest will be the high-flying mascot Hot Wing.

PRIMETIME PERFORMANCES

Jerald Honeycutt of the Grand Rapids Hoops poured in 29 points and pulled down 20 rebounds in a 131-130 loss to the Rockford Lightning on Dec. 15. James Head posted 25 points, 15 rebounds and 5 steals for the Great Lakes Storm, in a 121-109 loss to the Dakota Wizards on Dec. 16. Silas Mills of the Gary Steelheads hit 11 of 12 (.917) from the field for 29 points, in a 105-101 win over the Great Lakes Storm on Dec. 18. He also posted 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals. Randy Livingston recorded the season's first triple-double on Dec. 19, in a 117-104 Sioux Falls Skyforce victory over the Idaho Stampede. He posted 24 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists. Cory Hightower of the Great Lakes Storm scored 37 points on 10-16 (.625) shooting from the field and 16-18 (.889) from the foul line, to lead his team to a 113-105 win over the Dakota Wizards on Dec. 21. He also pulled down 8 rebounds.

THIS WEEK IN CBA HISTORY

On Dec. 12, 1979, the Maine Lumberjacks defeated the Lancaster Red Roses 158-146 in double overtime. In the contest, Sylvester Cuyler of the Red Roses and Charles Jones of the Lumberjacks established and tied a CBA record with 10 personal fouls apiece. The 1979-80 season was the CBA's first under the No Foul-Out Rule, which exists today. Instead of sitting down after a sixth foul, a player can remain in the game, although his team is assessed with a technical foul if he commits a seventh or additional foul.

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United Indoor Football Association Stories from December 26, 2002


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