San Diego Surf Close out Homestand with 119-110 Win Over Riverside Rainmakers

Published on December 1, 2010 under American Basketball Association (ABA)
San Diego Surf News Release


SAN DIEGO - The ABA's San Diego Surf closed out their two game homestand with a 119-110 win over the Riverside Rainmakers Saturday night (11/27) at Hourglass Arena. The win pushed the Surf to the number five position nationwide in the American Basketball Association's weekly Power Rankings

The first half was tightly contested with both teams playing a fast paced transition game. San Diego led after one quarter 29-28, only to see Riverside take over in the second quarter and go ahead 57-54 at halftime.

The Surf came out on fire in the third quarter, outscoring the Rainmakers 40-11 to take a 94-68 lead. San Diego's aggressive defense forced turnovers and performed well on the boards, often limiting their opponents to one shot on several possessions.

San Diego let Riverside back into the game in the fourth quarter as the Rainmakers outscored the Surf 42-25. Unfortunately for Riverside, they had such a huge deficit after three quarters that they could not come all the way back and were forced to foul as time elapsed in the final minutes. San Diego converted most of the free throws and held on for a 119-110 win.

"The past two games we've let teams back in the game in the fourth. We tend to get away from what we should be doing, which is burning the clock, and we get too comfortable and keep pushing the ball," said guard Mo Clady.

The Surf's roster is designed more for speed and gives up some height as a result. Aaron Hands, a 6'7" forward is one of the taller players on the team and gets up the court pretty well for a big man in a fast paced system.

"I run hard and I've always been on an up and down team. If I'm not crashing the boards I'm used to running up the court and making a bee line for the basket," said Hand about his style of play.

Rainmakers head coach Texas Battle was not happy with his team's play in the second half.

"We came out early and we ran what we were supposed to run. We ran the offense. We played for the most part, good transition defense, but what killed us overall, especially in the second half, is the transition defense--not getting back on D. I don't know where our offense went. In the first half it seems like when we run the offense, we're fine, but in the second half we get guys that want to go one-on-one, and that's just not us."

Battle also gave the Surf a lot of credit for hustling in the second half.

Surf head coach Terry Mason will take the win, but feels the team has a ways to go to realize its full potential.

"It was a very tough game. Again, I have a very young team. I thought we had some letdowns on defense throughout the game, and that's something that we need to address in practice.

"I feel that the guys came through on the end and I want to say something special about Dan (Brady). Dan came in the end with some very key rebounds for us. Kono (Kadima) hit some crucial threes, and I thought we did well. Of course Tim (Denson) came through down the stretch hitting the four free throws at the end of the game. Everybody contributed, and it was a good team win, but we still have a lot of work to do."

Leading the way in scoring for the Surf was former University of Missouri player Glen Dandridge with 30 points. Half of his point total came from five three-pointers. Cornell Williams scored a total of 20 points with four three-pointers.

"We got some good shooters on this team. Cornell (Williams) and Glen (Dandridge), both those guys can get it going from deep any night. So it's on me and Tim (Denson) to push the ball and find them open on the perimeter," said Clady about the Surf's perimter game. Overall, the team finished with 15 three pointers for 45 of its 119 points.

The Surf open December with a three game road trip that starts on Wednesday 12/1 with a game against the Compton Cobras.

The Surf's next home game will be Sunday, December 19th against the Compton Cobras at Hourglass Arena. For more information, please visit the Surf's website at www.SurfHoops.com .

Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.

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American Basketball Association Stories from December 1, 2010


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