by WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – The Westchester Knicks (9-25) suffered another setback to the Atlantic Division-leading Maine Red Claws (22-11) in Westchester tonight, falling 99-81.
The Westchester Knicks started the game on a 7-0 run, the Red Claws unable to score until forward Romero Osby laid one up almost five minutes into the game. Temporarily paralyzed, the Knicks seemed unable to find a way to score while Maine took over the lead. Both teams hit just 30 percent of their attempts in the first, the Red Claws taking it 21-15.
Westchester improved their shots in the second quarter, hitting 9-of-18 to Maine’s 7-of-25. Still, the Red Claws managed to edge the Knicks in the quarter by one, with the help of 10 second chance points. Maine held on to the lead, heading into the half 44-37.
The third quarter was all Red Claws, who took almost twice as many shots as Westchester, hitting 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. Westchester had just one assist to Maine’s seven; Maine also out-rebounded the Knicks 15 to 10. Omari Johnson had 11 points in the quarter for the Red Claws, hitting a perfect 3-for-3 from deep.
It was a game of numbers for the Red Claws, who took a staggering 99 field goal attempts, an astounding 44 of which were from beyond the arc. While Westchester connected on a higher percentage of their attempts, the Red Claws won the numbers game to ultimately win the night in Westchester.
Omari Johnson came off the bench for a game high 30 points for the Red Claws, posting a double-double with 14 rebounds. Forward Christian Watford provided 13 points, forward Chris Babb with 12. Romero Osby rounded out the double-digit scoring for Maine with 10 points, also producing seven rebounds.
New addition Doron Lamb paced Westchester with 27 points, adding five rebounds and three assists. Center Ben Strong (Red Lake Nation) stretched his double-double streak to four games with 10 points and 17 rebounds. Another new face in Westchester, Trey Gilder ended the night with 17 points and five rebounds. Walker Russell Jr. contributed 10 points, hitting 3-of-3 from deep with two assists.
