Category: Basketball

The Birmingham Squadron hosted its annual Literacy Day this morning at Legacy Arena, with kids from 35 local schools helping the New Orleans Pelicans’ NBA G League affiliate draw far and away their biggest crowd of the season.

And what lesson did the 4,544 fans learn by watching the Squad tangle with Brooklyn’s developmental club, the Long Island Nets?

Well, they discovered this is a really good brand of basketball.

And in this particular matchup, it was Long Island who played it best.

University of Alabama product Noah Clowney led Long Island and all scorers with 33 points and he had plenty of help as the Nets took a 134-124 decision to sweep the two-game set.

Keon Johnson came off the bench to score 22 points in a winning effort, followed by Kennedy Chandler (20), Kaiser Gates (18) and Kyler Edwards (17).

Malcolm Hill had 29 points for Birmingham, Dereon Seabron added 26, Jordon Hawkins – assigned to the Squadron from the Pelicans today – chipped in 19, Izaiah Brockington and Karlo Matkovic each finished with 15 and Jalen Crutcher added 10.

Long Island finished with a 42-33 rebounding advantage and Birmingham had 17 costly turnovers.

“Long Island is very, very good,” Squadron coach T.J. Saint said. “They’re very physical. We lost because they were more physical. Rebounding is for sure our Achilles’s heel. It’s something I’ve already thought about how to teach next season, but come at it from a totally different approach.

“It’s so valuable … we’re 17-2 on the season when we win the rebounding battle.”

Birmingham trailed by eight points entering the fourth quarter of a game in which Long Island always seemed to stay a step ahead.

A Crutcher three at 9:01 tightened things up to six at 104-98, but the Nets then reeled off five straight points to grab a double-digit lead.

The eventual winners maintained a healthy cushion the rest of the way, improving to 16-11 and jumping into the third playoff position.

Birmingham dropped to 13-15. With just six games left and three and a half games out of the sixth and final postseason spot, its hopes of playing into April are fading.

“If we don’t make it, they’re the team I’m pulling for,” Saint said. “I like that team a lot.”

Matkovic – who had seven points over the first 12 minutes –started the game with a slam. But after Johnson’s 3-pointer at 4:49 put the Nets in front, 24-21, they led the rest of the frame. At the end of one Long Island was ahead, 31-29, with Clowney pacing the leaders with 11 points.

Long Island led by as many as 12 in the second quarter but Birmingham started chipping away at the deficit late, cutting it to 73-66 at halftime.

Hawkins and Hill – each with 14 points – helped the hosts get back in the hunt, although Clowney, Gates and Chandler’s combined 47 points kept the Nets on top.

The Squadron got as close as two in the third stanza, but Long Island refused to give up its advantage.

An 83-81 lead grew to 92-81 with under three minutes left in the quarter, and when the buzzer sounded Mfon Udofia’s charges still showed the way, 98-90.

The home team never got closer than six the rest of the way.

Next up: The Squadron travels to Wilmington, Delaware, on Friday to take on the Delaware Bluecoats at Chase Fieldhouse.

Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. The teams will meet again on Saturday at the same venue with a 5 p.m. start.

OTD in 2022: The Squadron dropped a 110-104 overtime decision to the Texas Legends.

Jared Harper led six double-digit Birmingham scorers with 25 -points, and also dished out 10 assists to get the double-double.

Zach Hankins got a double-double of his own with 19 points and 17 rebounds, and Zylan Cheatham joined the club with 10 points and 10 boards.

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.