Grand Rapids Punches Ticket to Showcase Cup Championship
January 18, 2015 - NBA G League (G League) News Release
SANTA CRUZ - The Grand Rapids Drive cruised to the NBA D-League Showcase Cup Championship game in convincing fashion on Saturday night, defeating the Santa Cruz Warriors 100-77.
Lorenzo Brown led the way with 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting, including connecting on four of his six attempts from behind the arc. In addition he tallied five rebounds, three assists and one steal.
The Grand Rapid's bench combined for 56 points, a tally that outscored not only their own starters (44 points), but the Santa Cruz starters as well (48 points). Gigi Datome recorded 17 points and eight rebounds, while Brandon Fields and Kammeon Holsey contributed 18 points and 13 points, respectively.
Santa Cruz scored the game's first three points to take their only lead of the game on a three-point play from James Michael McAdoo, who finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and three steals. Mychel Thompson shot fifty percent from the field, hitting 6 of his 12 shots on the way to an 18-point night. The Warriors' 77-point effort was the team's lowest scoring output of the season, despite playing in front of 2,215 fans at their home Kaiser Permanente Arena.
The visitors controlled area around the rim with a 46-32 advantage in the paint and held Golden State Warriors' assignee Ognjen Kuzmic to zero points, despite the big man's 11 rebounds.
Grand Rapids will take on the Bakersfield Jam in the inaugural Showcase Cup championship game, set for Monday, Jan. 19 at 10 a.m. PT. Bakersfield advanced earlier today with a double-digit victory of their own, a 104-88 over the Sioux Falls Skyforce. Monday's game will not count in the regular season standings.
Santa Cruz will hit the road for their next game to take on the Los Angeles D-Fenders on Wednesday, with a scheduled tip set for 7 p.m. PT.
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