D-Fenders Drop Season Opener to Jam

Published on November 28, 2008 under NBA G League (G League)
Los Angeles D-Fenders News Release


EL SEGUNDO, CA - The Bakersfield Jam dominated the second half, outscoring the Los Angeles D-Fenders by 27 points, in route to a 116-90 victory in the first game of the 2008-09 NBA Development League season Friday at STAPLES Center.

Led by a pair of Golden State Warriors on assignment, the Jam took control of the game at the start of the third quarter, using a 22-2 run to eliminate a one-point halftime deficit. Richard Hendrix led the way for Bakersfield with a game-high 31 points and 14 rebounds. Fellow Warriors teammate chipped in with 20 points of his own.

"They came out and executed better (after halftime);" said D-Fenders Head Coach Dan Panaggio. "I thought we forced up some bad shots and gave up some early buckets. I thought we got overwhelmed."

Los Angeles (0-1) dropped their season opener for the first time in franchise history. The D-Fenders were led by their starting backcourt of Joe Crawford and Brandon Heath, who scored 25 and 24 points respectively. Dwayne Mitchell posted a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, but the Jam were too strong inside, outscoring Los Angeles 54-36 in the paint and garnering 21 second chance points off of 13 offensive rebounds.

"It was a very good basketball team that we played tonight;" Panaggio added. "Let's chalk it up as a learning experience."

After a see-saw first half which saw 15 lead changes and six ties, Bakersfield put the ball in the hands of former D-Fenders center Nick Lewis who scored 10 of his 18 points in the third quarter, including two long from behind the arc in the stanza. Jam guard Mateen Cleaves led the game with 12 assists.

The D-Fenders will try to rebound against the expansion Reno Bighorns at STAPLES Center on Sunday, November 30th with a 9:30pm scheduled tipoff. Bakersfield travels to Reno for a contest on Saturday night.

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