Month: March 2024

The NBA G League playoffs don’t begin until April, but Sunday’s clash between the Birmingham Squadron and Long Island Nets at Legacy Arena most definitely had a postseason vibe.

The visiting Nets – affiliates of Brooklyn – started the afternoon in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, clinging to the final available playoff position.

The New Orleans Pelicans’ developmental club, on the other hand, was one and half games behind Long Island in the standings.

When it all shook out, 2,124 fans saw the Nets hold onto their spot and make Birmingham’s job harder with a 115-112 victory.

“We talked about before the game and halftime (how it was a playoff atmosphere) and that they’re a good team,” Squadron coach T.J. Saint said. “I think they’ve been in the most clutch games this season, and we’re 12-5 in clutch games. We’ve had a lot of them go our way and that one didn’t … it was unfortunate, and a tough loss.”

Malcolm Hill led Birmingham (13-14) with 23 points, followed by Jalen Crutcher (22), Dereon Seabron (18), Izaiah Brockington (16), Karlo Matkovic (16) and E.J. Liddell (10).

Patrick Gardner and Keon Johnson came off the bench to add 23 and 20 points, respectively, for the winners, who improve to 15-11.

Kaider Gates and Kyler Edwards each chipped in 13 points for Long Island, Jacob Gilyard added 12 and David Muoka netted 10.

With just 12 minutes left the Nets led by one, 88-87, setting the stage for a frantic finish.

With 5:51 to go Gardner nailed a 25-foot trey to put Long Island in front, 102-97, and moments later a Johnson layup increased the lead to seven at 104-97.

Seabron cut it to 104-99 on a short jumper and the Nets were teed-up, giving Birmingham a free throw that closed the gap to 104-100.

With 3:08 showing on the clock Matkovic’s bucket sliced the deficit to 107-104, and at 2:13, Hill’s 3-pointer knotted things up at 107-107.

But a Gardner layup made it 109-107 at the 1:50 juncture, and Gilyard hit two foul shots with 14.2 seconds left to give the visitors a 111-107 cushion.

Hill then sank two freebies, but Birmingham was still down, 111-109.

Gilyard had a chance to ice it at the line with :05 to go and hit both shots to make it 113-109.

Hill connected on a late three, but the Squadron was still one point shy.

Nate Pierre-Louis added two charity shots with a second left, and Birmingham never got a good look on the game’s final play.

“That last play we were trying to run into somebody and get a tip, and that’s just really hard to execute,” Saint said.

Crutcher scored the first eight points for Birmingham and finished a high-octane opening quarter with 11 points. Matkovic came off the bench to tally nine points, and the Squadron entered the second quarter on top, 40-29.

The pace slowed considerably over the second 12 – and the home team cooled off – but Hill and Matkovic joined Crutcher in twin-figures and helped Birmingham hold a 65-62 edge at the break.

Long Island led by as many as seven in the third quarter, thanks in large part to the scoring prowess of Gardner, Gates and Edwards, and were on top 88-87 going into the fourth.

Next up: The Squadron finishes up its two-game set with the Nets on Tuesday at 11 a.m.

OTD in 1992: The Birmingham Bandits of the Continental Basketball Association lost to the Rapid City Thrillers, 107-100.

Jim Farmer led Birmingham with 24 points while Skeeter Henry scored 20 in the loss. The biggest news of the night, however, came from Birmingham general manager Tom Maloney. He announced that Bandits owner Tom McMillen was attempting to sell the team and the chances of it remaining in Birmingham were “70-30 against.”

They say it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.

Truthfully, the NBA G League matchup between the Birmingham Squadron and Greensboro Swarm on Friday looked like it was going to be over pretty fast, with the visiting Swarm scoring on the New Orleans Pelicans’ developmental club early and often.

But after falling behind by as many as 19 points in the first half, Birmingham flipped the script after intermission to top the Charlotte Hornets’ farm club, 110-96, before 1,776 fans at Legacy Arena.

The Squadron entered the fourth quarter on top by five, and combined stingy defense with sharp shooting to outscore the team from North Carolina 30-21 in the frame and win going away.

The 33-point swing allowed T.J. Saint’s team to improve to 13-13 and stay in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race (one and a half games out of the final spot) with eight games remaining in the regular season.

“It’s a championship essence,” Saint said of his team’s ability to rally. “We came out flat, but it didn’t bother us. We were down seven at the half, but we really challenged them to make a push for the playoffs.”

Malcolm Hill, the G League’s leading scorer and now on a two-way contract with the Pelicans, led the winners with 29 points.

“I’ve nicknamed him the Terminator,” Saint said. “He’s one of the most locked in dudes you’ve ever seen. He puts time in on his own, extra … he’s a gift, man. He’s awesome.”

Jalen Crutcher finished with 17 points, E.J. Liddell had 15, Karlo Matkovic came off the bench to score 14 points and grab seven rebounds, and Dereon Seabron picked up a double-double (12 points, 12 assists).

The victors won the battle for points in the paint, 58-36.

Amari Bailey paced Greensboro (11-15) with 25 points, while Jaylen Sims was good for 17 points and 10 boards.

Other twin-figure Swarm players were Marcus Garrett (14) and Kent Bazemore (11).

The Swarm dominated the first quarter, grabbing an 11-2 lead right out of the gate and holding a 29-16 advantage after 12 minutes. Birmingham was just two of 11 from 3-point range, and Bailey had already racked up 12 Greensboro points when the horn sounded.

The Swarm led by 19 in the second period before the Squad starting chipping away. With just :54 to go before halftime a Landers Nolley trey cut the deficit to 50-46, and Greensboro had to settle for a 53-46 upper hand at the break.

Hill and Crutcher did much of the heavy lifting for the hosts in the first half, scoring 17 and 12 points, respectively.

Hill took over early in the third, tying the game with a free throw (55-all) at 9:50 and giving Birmingham its first lead of the night moments later with a 3-pointer.

His second consecutive trey at the 8:55 mark put his team in front, 60-55.

A Crutcher 3-pointer extended the advantage to 63-55, and then Seabron’s shot from outside the arc inflated the cushion to 66-55.

The Swarm kept their composure, however, whittling away at the Birmingham edge and slicing it to 80-75 with one quarter left to settle this one.

Next up: The Squadron hosts the Long Island Nets on Sunday at 3 p.m. The Nets are currently 14-11 and are in the sixth and final playoff position in the East.

Saluting the heroes: The Squadron is partnering with Children’s of Alabama and will wear specialty hero-themed uniforms featuring the names of Children’s of Alabama patients instead of player names on the back nameplate of the jerseys for Sunday’s matchup with the Nets.

“We are thrilled to honor the patients of Children’s of Alabama, as well as their families, with the hero-themed uniforms,” Squadron general manager Leslie Claybrook said. “When the patients see their names on our players’ jerseys, our goal is they see the players giving their all, like they do, to fight and persevere as true heroes and understand they have the Squadron’s full support.”

Each player’s game-worn jersey will be gifted to their respective Children’s of Alabama patient following the game.

OTD in 1948: The Birmingham Vulcans of the Southern Professional Basketball League saw their season come to an end with a 99-61 blowout loss to the Nashville Vols.

Bufford Maddox led Birmingham with 18 points and Red Glasgow added 14.

OTD in 1992: The Birmingham Bandits of the Continental Basketball Association defeated the Tulsa Zone, 128-106.

Skeeter Henry led the winners with 36 points while Eric Johnson notched the double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Chris Collier added 20 points off the bench in a contest that saw the Bandits score the first 12 points in a game played in front of just 347 fans at State Fair Arena.