Flight get into the zone against Patriots
March 26, 2004 - NBA G League (G League)
Fayetteville Patriots News Release
The Fayetteville Patriots played better Friday night than they did on Wednesday. Yet the end the result was the same â a Huntsville win and a Patriots loss.
The Flight got 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists from Mateen Cleaves to lead the Flight to a 102-98 win at the Crown Coliseum. His backcourt mate Alex Scales added 18 points and Damone Brown came off the bench to score 17 as the Flight earned its second straight win over the Patriots this week.
The win puts Huntsville two games out of first and game-and-half out of second, a placement that would guarantee the team at least one home game in the NBDL Delta Air Lines Postseason.
Junie Sanders led the Patriots with 22 points and six assists, while Cedric Henderson added 19 points and Bryan Lucas finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Ernest Brown also had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
On Wednesday, the Patriots lack of defense led to a 25-point defeat. Friday, it was the Flight's defense made the difference.
After Huntsville watched Patriots guards Brian Brown and Sanders drive to the basket constantly in the first half, going a combined 8-for-12 from the field for 22 points, Flight coach Ralph Lewis made a change.
"Their guards were doing a tremendous job of getting to the basket and getting easy shots,'' Lewis said. "We had to go zone to force them out on the perimeter a little bit. We were successful, and I think that got us going in the right direction."
The Patriots took a 52-45 lead into the half. But the Flight's zone slowed down the Patriots penetration and halted their frequent trips to the line. The Flight, led by Cleaves, took advantage. Cleaves scored 10 third-quarter points and pulled the Flight to within one, 75-74, at the start of the fourth quarter.
With the score tied at 79 with 9:29 remaining in the game, the Flight's zone really took effect. The Flight went on a 13-5 run over the next six minutes, a stretch that saw the Patriots shoot just 2-for-11.
"We became very stagnant once they went zone,'' Patriots coach Capel said. "I don't think we really ever reacted to it well."
The Patriots were able to cut the Flight's lead to 98-94 with 31.8 seconds remaining. The Patriots cut it to two when Lucas intercepted Scales' in-bound pass and raced down the floor to try to score. He missed, but Ernest Brown followed the miss to make it 98-96 with 24.4 seconds remaining. But with the shot clock off the Patriots were forced to foul and the Flight didn't do them any favors.
They went 4-for-4 from the line in the final 19 seconds of the game to put the Patriots a game-and-half out of the playoffs with six to play. Fortunately for Fayetteville, the Roanoke Dazzle lost in overtime to the Columbus Riverdragons. The Patriots, losers of three out of their last four, will try to stay in the playoff race against the Riverdragons on Monday at the Columbus Civic Center.
The Patriots again played with just eight players because Alvin Pettway is away on a personal matter and Jason Capel is injured. "We definitely had better effort tonight, but we did not have enough fire power," Capel said. "No question not having 10 players hurt us tonight. But I think their zone was still the most effective tool they used against us."
Huntsville plays this evening at 5 against Columbus at the Van Braun Center in Huntsville.
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NBA G League Stories from March 26, 2004
- Riverdragons Upend Dazzle Again in Overtime, 96-93 - Columbus Riverdragons
- Flight get into the zone against Patriots - Fayetteville Patriots
- Altitude overthrow Lowgators to soar into first place - Asheville Altitude
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