Short-Handed Maine Celtics Win Shootout at Expo
Published on January 25, 2026 under NBA G League (G League)
Maine Celtics News Release
PORTLAND, MAINE - Tosan Evbuomwa scored 34 points, and Max Shulga collected a career-high 33 to lead Maine to a season-high 147 points in a 147-138 win over Greensboro Sunday afternoon.
The Celtics improve to 9-6 in the regular season with the victory and earn a split of the two-game series with Greensboro. The Swarm fall to 10-4 with the loss.
Shulga and Evbuomwan became just the ninth pair of Maine teammates to score 30 or more points in the same game in franchise history. Jalen Bridges connected on a game-high six three-pointers and finished with 24 points. Pedro Bradshaw added 16 points off the bench, while Kendall Brown with 12, Kameron Warrens with 11 and Aaron Scott with 10 made up the seven Celtics to finish in double-figures. The C's shot 54.4% (49-90) from the field and matched a season-high with 22 made threes, shooting 51.2% (22-43) from distance to pace Maine to over 140 points for the first time since November of 2022.
PJ Hall led Greensboro with 29 points and 12 rebounds in a losing effort. Liam McNeeley notched 28 on 11-15 shooting from the field. Seven different Swarm also finished in double figures. Marcus Garrett had 15, Antonio Reeves, Keyonte Johnson and Jaylen Sims all scored 13 while Ibou Badji finished with 10. As a team, Greensboro shot 34.3% (12-35) from three and 56.7% (55-97) from the field, but just 43.1% (22-51) in the second half.
Greensboro got off to a hot start. The Swarm made 7 of their first 8 shots and, with 7:41 to go in the first quarter, jumped out to a 16-9 lead, forcing a Maine timeout. Evbuomwan helped the Celtics rally back. The forward scored 11 of Maine's first 21 points, and with 5:36 to go in the first, assisted on a Kendall Brown three, which trimmed the deficit to 23-21. Evbuomwan finished the first quarter with 19 points and four assists. But behind 87% (20-23) shooting from the floor as a team, 17-17 shooting on two-pointers and 11 points from both Hall and McNeeley, Greensboro took a 44-38 lead into the second.
The Swarm began the game 20-20 from inside the arc, but the Celtics' shooting from beyond the arc brought Maine back into the game. The C's started the second quarter 4-5 from three, and after a Warrens triple brought the Greensboro lead down to one, a Brown layup gave Maine its first lead of the game at 56-55 with 8:10 to go in the first half. The Celtics grew the lead to as large as seven at 62-55 before a 7-0 Greensboro run pulled the game even at 62-62 with 4:37 to go in the second. Maine led by three in the final seconds of the half before a Keyonte Johnson basket made it 78-77 at the break. Evbuomwan led all scorers with 23 points on 7-10 shooting in the first half, while Bridges added 11 points and Shulga 10. Maine as a team shot 56.5% (26-46) from the floor and 52% (13-25) from three. Hall paced Greensboro with 15 points in the first half while McNeeley collected 13, and six different Swarm recorded multiple made field goals. As a team, Greensboro shot 71.7% (33-46) from the field and 36.4% (4-11) from distance in the first 24 minutes.
The offense continued to begin the third quarter. Greensboro opened the second half on a 14-8 spurt to re-take a 91-86 lead with 8:20 to go in the third. The Swarm upped the advantage to seven at 99-92 with 5:26 to go in the quarter before Maine's three-point shooting again closed the gap. Back-to-back threes from Warrens and Bridges pulled the C's within one, and with 4:15 to go in the quarter, a technical free throw tied the game at 99-99. After Maine grabbed the lead at 103-102, a Jaylen Sims three and a Hall dunk put the Swarm back ahead by five. But a Shulga triple ended the quarter to send the game to the fourth with Greensboro on top 107-105.
Shulga's big second half continued into the fourth. His jumper with 10:20 to go tied the game at 111-111, then one of his five three-pointers on the day gave the Celtics the lead back at 114-111 with 9:50 to play. Shulga scored 23 of his 33 points in the second half, including 15 in the fourth quarter. After Maine grew the advantage up to six, and with 5:53 to go, an Evbuomwan three gave the C's their largest lead of the afternoon at 127-118. The Celtics continued to pad the lead. Pedro Brandshaw connected on a three to make it 132-120, with 4:48 to go, capping off a 27-13 run to begin the fourth. The C's never looked back. Greensboro cut the deficit to seven at 139-132, but that was the closest it would get in the 147-138 Maine win.
Maine's five-game homestand continues Thursday night, January 29, when the Grand Rapids Gold visit the Expo. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
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