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Lightning Doesn't strike twice as the A's beat London

December 8, 2013 - National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada) - Orangeville A's News Release

London, ON. - The Brampton A's beat the London Lightning 108-101, giving them the league's best record at 11-4. The loss is London's (8-5) 3rd in a row.

There was a feeling of cheer and goodwill at the Budweiser Arena as Santa Claus and the visiting Brampton A's paid a visit to the defending two time champs.

The A's started the game a little rusty as the Lightning's smallball lineup got them out to a quick 7-2 start.

Led by NBL's player of the week Elvin Mims and St. Joseph's product Garrett Williamson the Lightning quickly tried to set the tone by aggressively attacking the basketball. The A's 3 point shooting got them back in the game in a hurry as four A's hit 3 pointers, led by Jameson Tipping with two, giving them a 29- 22 lead going into the 2nd.

The defending champs, backed by their cheering crowd came out in the 2nd quarter with a plan to aggressively attack the basket and press the A's guards. London had 9 offensive rebounds and forced 6 turnovers to give them a 53-47 halftime lead.

Coach Magley must have put his team's play on the naughty list at halftime because the A's came out and played inspired defense. Led by the steady play of veteran point guard Melvin Council, who ended the game with 17 points and Brampton Ontario's own Kevin Francis, who spearheaded the offensive charge with his best game of the season; with 25pts, 7 rebs, 3 assts, 2 stls, 1 block and was a blistering 4-4 from 3 point land. The A's outscored London 30-20, giving them a 4-point lead going into the 4th quarter.

The fourth quarter was a dogfight from the beginning, as both teams were inspired by their respective Coach's pep talks. Neither team backed down until Brampton capitalized on a technical foul by London's SG Tim Ellis. The Brampton team also got an emotional lift when swingman Rick Bodiford went down with an apparent knee injury and had to be carried off the floor. The A's got another clutch 3 pointer from Francis and hit four straight free throws by veteran and NBL All-Star candidate Cedric Moodie, who had a triple double with 17 pts, 11 rebs and 10 assts.

Th A's next game is Wednesday, December 11 th @ 7:30 PM, against the Ottawa SkyHawks at the Canadian Tire Centre, they then return home to the Powerade Centre to face the SkyHawks again on Saturday, December 14th @ 7:00 PM.

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National Basketball League of Canada Stories from December 8, 2013


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