NLL Colorado Mammoth

Jones 'socks' Bandits, Mammoth Improve to 3-0

January 17, 2016 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Colorado Mammoth News Release


DENVER - When Adam Jones gets hot, look out! The Mammoth forward averaged better than a hat trick per game last season. On Saturday night at Pepsi Center, the lefty doubled his normal output and recorded his first sock trick (six goals in a game) of the year to lead the Mammoth to a 15-14 overtime win against the Buffalo Bandits on HealthONE Field at Pepsi Center. Colorado is now the NLL's lone remaining unbeaten.

But it didn't come easy for the home team. An 11-10 lead at the end of the third quarter quickly evaporated in the final period. Three straight goals by the visitors in the first two-minutes-and-19-seconds put the Mammoth down by two. Then defenseman and fourth-round-draft-pick Bryce Sweeting, making his NLL debut, scooped up a quick loose ball off the ensuing face-off and buried a bounce-shot past Buffalo's Anthony Cosmo to inch within one.

"The goal that Sweeting got...that really got us going!" said coach Pat Coyle.

After the Bandits increased their lead back to two at 5:48 in the fourth, Jones completed his sock trick. Then Joey Cupido, the 2015 NLL Transition Player of the Year, scored his first of the season to tie the game at 14. Dillon Ward then proceeded to put on a goaltending clinic in the last five minutes to preserve the tie score. Jones hit the crossbar with 2.4 seconds remaining in regulation on what would have been his seventh of the night, and the game-winner. But it wasn't to be.

Instead, it was Mike Burke at the 3:25 mark of overtime who found the back of the net to propel the Mammoth to victory.

"It came to me; I guess I could have shot right away but I decided to step around and put it in," explained the forward. "It was exciting! It made up for an otherwise pretty mediocre game by myself so I was happy to redeem myself with that goal at the end."

Through three games, Colorado leads the league with a 15.67 goals-per-game average. Saturday's contest was the third time this season that the Mammoth won despite allowing 13 or more goals. All of last year, Colorado was only victorious twice when allowing 13-plus.

"I'm really proud of the way we battled," said Coyle. "Not our finest game during periods of that, so it's nice to feel like we're maybe getting a bit of an identity that we're not going to fold and go away..."

Jones now leads the league with 13 goals this season. (Only one other player has eight or more.)

"We're starting to gain some chemistry, and getting used to playing with each other," said Jones, who also had two assists. "[Chris] Wardle and Eli [McLaughlin] were setting great picks all night and that was getting me open for easy shots."

Colorado's first 13 goals of the game were scored by left-handed players. But the final two - Cupido's equalizer and Burke's overtime winner - were scored by righties.

"Good teams find ways to win in the end!" said Jones.

Through three games this season, Colorado has done just that.

John Grant, Jr. had three goals and three assists in the win. Wardle had a pair of goals. Eli McLaughlin had one goal on five shots. Callum Crawford didn't score but had nine assists to lead all players in points.

Colorado heads to Vancouver to take on the Stealth (1-1) next Saturday, Jan. 23 at 8pm MT.

Check out the Colorado Mammoth Statistics



National Lacrosse League Stories from January 17, 2016


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