Mill Rats' 21 Point Comeback Denied
December 14, 2013 - National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada)
Saint John Riptide News Release
(Saint John, NB): The Saint John Mill Rats mounted a furious comeback after trailing by 21 points midway through the third quarter, but were denied from completing it as the Windsor Express walked away with a 115-108 win at Harbour Station.
The Express jumped out to an early 10-point lead in the first quarter at 36-26. Casey Love drained a three point bank shot at the end of the quarter or the margin would have been thirteen. Windsor was on fire, hitting 9-17 from three point range in the first half en route to a 65-53 halftime lead.
The Express built their biggest lead at 88-67 on two free throws by Stefan Bonneau with 3:16 left in the third quarter. But then Saint John went on a quick 9-0 run on three pointers made by Chris Matthews, Jermaine Blackburn, and Anthony Anderson to close with 88-76 at the end of three quarters. Saint John kept clawing and fighting in the fourth and took a 105-104 lead on Chris Matthews' three pointer with 1:14 remaining. But the officials then whistled Blackburn for a foul on a three point attempt by Windsor's Quinnel Brown with 58 seconds remaining, and then promptly issued a technical foul on Mill Rats Head Coach Rob Spon. The resulting five free throw attempts and possession of the ball netted Windsor six points, which gave them a five point lead.
Jermaine Blackburn hit from three to cut the deficit to two, 110-108, with 18 seconds left. Darren Duncan hit one of two free throws, but Windsor got the offensive rebound and Saint John was forced to foul to stop the clock.
Blackburn led the Mill Rats with 25 points, Anthony Anderson 24 points, and Casey Love had 18 points. Stefan Bonneau had 32 points for Windsor which included 16-17 from the foul line.
Anthony Anderson's 24th point passed Brandon Robinson's record as the All Time Scoring Leader in NBL Canada history.
Saint John's record stands at 9-6, while Windsor improves to 11-5.
The Mill Rats have postponed the Sunday December 15th game versus the Moncton Miracles due to the impending snow storm. The game has been rescheduled for Wednesday, February 26 at 7:00PM.
The Mill Rats next home game is Friday December 20th at 7:00PM against their divisional rival, The Island Storm.
Single game, season & flex tickets are still on sale at the at the Harbour Station Box Office by calling 506-657-1234.
National Basketball League of Canada Stories from December 14, 2013
- Express Buzz Through Mill Rats - Windsor Express
- SkyHawks can't break Powerade Centre curse - Ottawa SkyHawks
- Mill Rats' 21 Point Comeback Denied - Saint John Riptide
- Mill Rats News & Notes - Saint John Riptide
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