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Game Day 7

January 29, 2011 - Premier Basketball League (PBL)
Rochester RazorSharks News Release


The Matchup: Two of the elite franchises in the Premier Basketball League square off in Nova Scotia. The homestanding Rainmen come off a defeat at Kentucky and play their second game under new head coach Mike Evans. Rochester was swept in a two game trip to Canada last weekend. Both teams have undergone serious change this week.

The RazorSharks (2-4) added the PBL's scoring leader from the dispersal draft via Vermont. Mike Williams brings a 20.8 per game scoring average to the Sharks and a presence inside. Williams rebounds 10.3. That ranks second in the league.

Guard Jerice Crouch averages 19.3 points. The Sharks now employ the first and fourth leading scorers in the PBL.

Williams and 6-10 forward Lorenzo Davis make their season debuts for the Sharks in this game.

The area of greatest need is to cut down on turnovers. The RazorSharks give the ball away 21.6 times per game, last in the league.

This is Rochester's fifth road game of the year. All told six of its first eight are away from home. The Sharks host Kentucky on February 12th, the first of seven straight home games.

The Rainmen (4-2) who hosted Saint John Saturday night, are third in the now seven team PBL. They split two games under the guidance of assistant coach Jeff Paris last week.

Head coach Les Berry left the team and subsequently resigned. Halifax hired former NBA player Mike Evans to replace him. He made his Rainmen debut Saturday.

Halifax was one of four teams to add a player from the Vermont Frost Heaves dispersal draft. Small forward Julian Allen averaged 16.7 points per game for Vermont.

The Rainmen can rebound. Erik Crookshank leads the PBL with 11.5 per game. Teammate Kavon Jones is third with another 9.6.

Taliek Brown leads the league with a 71% field goal percentage. Brown scores 16.8 per game. That's ninth in the PBL. He also averages 5.3 assists per game.

As a team, Halifax is second in scoring offense, field goal percentage offense, field goal percentage defense, and rebounds per game.

Of note: New Halifax coach Mike Evans spent nine years playing in the NBA with the Nuggets, Spurs, Bucks and Cavs. He was a first round draft pick by Denver in 1978. Evans was an assistant coach with the Toronto Raptors in 2006.

Of note: The Rainmen dance team is called the Weather Girls. They actually report the weather on a Halifax radio station's morning show.

Of note: The RazorSharks are two time PBL champions and a playoff finalist last year. They have never begun a season 2-4.

Quoteable: Rochester coach Rod Baker on his team's play, "I'm happy with our effort. Our intellegence is coming. It just takes time."

Live coverage: You can watch the Rochester at Halifax game on http://atsportstv.com/Home.aspx

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Premier Basketball League Stories from January 29, 2011


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.

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