Steelheads Double Dipped at Kansas, 95-79
May 23, 2007 - United States Basketball League (USBL)
Gary Steelheads News Release
GARY, Indiana (May 23, 2007) - For the third time in three meetings, the Gary Steelheads found the Kansas Cagerz too much to handle, losing 95-79 in Salina, Kansas. It was the second loss to the Cagerz in 24 hours, with Kansas prevailing last night 106-100. With the loss, Gary fell to 10-6 on the season, while Kansas pulled even with Gary in the USBL's Midwest Division at 10-6.
The Steelheads trailed early in the game, but pulled back to take a 16-15 lead after an 8-0 run midway through the first quarter. Gary held the Cagerz to a single field goal over the final seven minutes of the quarter for a 23-17 lead. But Kansas got some traction in the second quarter, connecting on 9-of-11 shots for a 46-37 halftime lead. The Steelheads shot just .424 from the field in the first half.
Forward Marlowe Currie, who had scored a grand total of six points against Kansas in the two previous meetings, scored eight points in the first half alone. Eddy Barlow paced Gary first-half scorers with nine points.
In the third quarter, things went from bad to worse early. With Edwards pinned to the bench with an injury, it took the Steelheads 4:15 to score a point. The Cagerz had a 13-point lead by the time forward Jamario Moon broke the Gary drought with a jumper. Despite that, the Steelheads fought uphill to close the gap to 64-58 at the end of the third quarter.
But the Cagerz scored seven of the first eight points opening the fourth quarter, building a 71-59 lead. Then Brendan Plavich and Anthony Jackson scored on back-to-back three pointers to increase the lead to 78-61. From there, the Cagerz coasted home with the victory.
The Steelheads were already shorthanded, without both center Chris Alexander and guard Rob Griffin. Edwards, injured in the first half, scored just two points in nine minutes. Twenty-four hours earlier, he had scored 30 points against the Cagerz.
Gary distributed the scoring load with five players in double figures, paced by guard Eddy Barlow with 17 points. Guard Louis White tossed in 16 points, while forward Jamario Moon added 13. Currie and forward Corey Minnifield added 10 points apiece. Anthony Johnson once again paced the winners with 27 points. The Steelheads were outrebounded 55-44.
With the loss, Gary fell to 10-6 on the season, while Kansas pulled even with Gary in the Midwest Division at 10-6.
The Steelheads will head home for a rematch with the Cagerz at the Genesis Center on Saturday night.
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