Snowbears face defending champs in round two
Published on March 8, 2005 under American Basketball Association (ABA)
Utah Snowbears News Release
The Western Division Champion Utah Snowbears (26-1) head into the 2nd round of the 2005 ABA Playoffs as the number one seed.. With a 122-76 win Monday over Tijuana, round two is on Wednesday March 9 at 7PM, against the two-time defending ABA Champion, eighth seeded Long Beach Jam. Long Beach is led by a host of talented players, including former NBA star Dennis Rodman and Japanese star point guard Yuta Tabuse. The Jam roster is loaded with former NBA and International stars, including Jelani McCoy from UCLA, Sean Chen from the Chinese National team, plus the 2004 ABA Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year in Derrick Dial and Juaquin Hawkins. Utah won their previous meeting in Long Beach 118-113, coming from 28 points down in the third quarter to win. Here are the recaps and more information. For tickets call (801) 533-BEAR (2327). For more information, visit the Snowbears on the web at www.utahsnowbears.net.
Utah 118, Long Beach 113 (Sunday, January 23, 2005)
Long Beach, CA - Let a sleeping dog lie. Or is let a sleeping Snowbear alone? Utah rallied from 28 points down on the road to defeat the defending ABA Champion Long Beach Jam 118-113 Sunday at the Pyramid. Down 85-57 in the third, Utah outscored the Jam 63-31 the rest of the way to improve their record to 22-0. Long Beach fell to 10-8.
Jack Hartman got the Jam off to a fast start with 7 points early, and Jerry Dupree added 6 to give the Jam a 29-25 lead after one period. Fred Vinson added fuel to the fire by hitting three 3 point shots to increase the Jam lead to 61-51 at the half. Utah struggled early in the third with its shooting, and Long Beach took advantage of a hot hand by Derrick Dial to run the lead to 27 midway through the third. At that point Ike Austin was given a technical and the talk on the floor was one sided as the Jam let Utah know that the game was over and to be on their way back home.
Jared Ramirez fed Curtis Millage for an alley oop slam in transition, and from that point on, the Utah veterans Alex Austin and Tony Farmer took over and led the Utah comeback. Farmer hit three 3's of his own and Austin heated up for 9 points as Utah cut the Jam lead to 18. Ike Austin went zone on defense and the Jam went cold, as Utah used its big lineup to shut down the perimeter shooting. Hayes and Tucker manned the guards and used their size to dictate post play on offense as Utah trailed after three 95-81.
To start the fourth, Utah used its depth and conditioning to pressure Long Beach into turnovers and bad shots, while Tyrone Hayes dominated the boards, and Utah's defense held Long Beach to 7 points in the final 7 minutes. Harold Arceneaux hit a huge three, and then added four more points in transition, and the Snowbears gained 108-107 lead with 93 seconds left. Millage and Tucker made 5 free throws in the final minute, and Arceneaux and Tucker rebounded Jam misses to lock the game away for Utah. Arceneaux led all scorers with 27, while Tucker added 24. Austin finished with 21 and Millage had 15, all in the second half. Tony Farmer had 14 points and Hayes led Utah with 12 rebounds. Derrick Dial led the Jam with 16 points with Dupree and Vinson.
The game can be heard on the Snowbears website at www.utahsnowbears.net or locally on WMRI 1550 AM Radio. All Utah Snowbears games are archived and can be heard anytime. The game will also be recorded for replay by Japanese Television.
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.
American Basketball Association Stories from March 8, 2005
- Master P joins Snowbears, Austin to appear on ESPN2's "Cold Pizza" - Utah Snowbears
- Snowbears face defending champs in round two - Utah Snowbears
- New Jersey SkyCats Graduate Sixth Person - New Jersey SkyCats
- Utah Snowbears rout Dragons, prepare for Dennis Rodman and Long Beach Jam - Utah Snowbears
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