Sports stats



Sound bounces Baltimore 122-118

January 16, 2006 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Strong Island Sound News Release


Moriches, NY- Raphael Edwards scored 25 points to lead the Strong Island Sound to a 122-118 win against the Baltimore Pearls in ABA action on Friday night. A standing-room only crowd observed an entertaining game in which an undermanned Baltimore squad fought until the final buzzer.

A split-squad team from Baltimore (the team had a second game scheduled in Newark) took the place of the suspended North East Pennsylvania Breakers. The six players who were present did not give up and gave it their all. They nearly pulled off a victory and were led by Rodney Blackstock who scored 44 points in 48 minutes in an incredible effort. Arthur Shauenten added 24 points. The Pearls also had major contributions on the boards from Burgess Williams (15 rebounds) and 5'8" Arthur Lewis Jr. (12 rebounds).

The Sound were helped by 21 points from Jerome "Fridge" Holeman, and 16 points each from Gary Williams (including 4-7 from 3-point territory), and Garnett Thompson. Roberto Gittens had a big night defensively in the paint with 4 blocks.

Big man Garnett Thompson added some big inside buckets in the fourth quarter that fended off the Baltimore effort. "We had good ball movement and had the defense on their heels" stated Thompson when asked about the points scored in the paint. "We're happy with the win after the two game losing streak", added Thompson. "We played as a team with a lot of intensity".

The game was held at William Floyd Middle School and the Sound welcomed all the students from the high school that participated in the event. A loud and enthusiastic group of 750 fans let out a sigh of relief when the game was official. The game was sponsored by WBLI and Goya.

The Sound rebounded after dropping two straight road games the previous weekend. On Friday 1/6/06 the Sound traveled north of the border to Montreal and were defeated by the Matrix 96-89. Gary Williams led the Sound with 26 points. The following day, the Sound faced the Harlem Strongdogs in Manhattan for a matinee. A super effort by Raphael Edwards still resulted in a 121-118 loss. The forward scored 43 points on 11-23 shooting, 4-6 from 3-point range, 9-12 free-throws, 4 rebounds and 1 steal.

The Sound face the Buffalo Rapids at St. Joseph's College on Saturday 1/14/06. The game will be the initial "CYO Appreciation Night". The Sound then travel to Maryland on Sunday 1/15/06 to meet the tough Nighthawks.

The next home stand begins on Friday 1/20/06 at Suffolk Community College when the Darryl "Chocolate Thunder" Dawkins leads the Newark Express into Long Island. The game will be "Corrections Officer/Sheriff Appreciation Night". All employees of these agencies will be admitted to the game for free. For details, contact Joe Pietaro, Director of Media Relations at (631) 207-2227 extension 107 or jpietaro@strongislandsound.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.

• Discuss this story on the American Basketball Association message board...

American Basketball Association Stories from January 16, 2006


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Strong Island Sound Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central