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The Greenville Groove, with 12 straight victories, are on the best run of the NBDL's inaugural season.
"It's perfect timing," Greenville head coach Milton Barnes said. "Our guys have done an outstanding job and they're committed to winning. I hope it can last 10 more games (the remaining six in the regular season and two in each of the playoff rounds). It will be extremely tough."
The Groove play two games against North Charleston and one each against Roanoke, Huntsville, Mobile and Asheville. Greenville, which wraps up the regular season on March 23 against North Charleston, owns a winning record against all of its remaining opponents except North Charleston.
In their last meeting, the Groove posted a season-high 106 points in a 13-point win over North Charleston on February 25. Greenville out rebounded North Charleston 40-32, shot 55.1 percent from the floor and held the Lowgators to just 31-of-78 shooting.
"I've always said defense and rebounding win championships," Barnes added. "We've been able to establish and maintain a defensive presence. We've been able to maintain it throughout."
During their winning streak, the Groove have held their opponents to only 69.6 points per game and scored over 80 points of their own over that span.
Barnes, like many NBDL coaches, believed that prolonged winning streaks would be tough to come by because the talent is so spread out throughout the league. That's why he's been so taken aback by his team's recent success.
"We know what it's like to lose," Barnes said. "We've lost in different ways this season, and we've gotten a taste of what it's like to lose. That's what's fueled our desire to win."
Around the NBDL
Asheville (21-28): The Altitude have dropped four of their last
five games and are 4 1/2 games out of a playoff spot with just
seven games remaining. Since an 82-75 win over Mobile on
January 30, Asheville has only three wins in its last 16 games.
... Forward Jermaine Tate recorded his second double-double of the
season with 10 points and 10 rebounds in a 73-62 loss against
Mobile on February 24. Tate has reached the 10-rebound plateau
in three of his last seven games. ... Center Paul Grant and forward Lee
Scruggs lead the team in scoring with 11.0-point averages.
Columbus (27-22): The Riverdragons have gone 3-2 over their
last five games and remain in third place in the league, three
games behind second-place North Charleston. ... Forward Tremaine
Fowlkes was signed to a 10-day contract by the Los Angeles
Clippers on February 23. Fowlkes was again re-signed to a
second 10-day contract on March 7. ... Forward Nate Johnson was suspended for
one game after accumulating his sixth flagrant-foul point of the
season, which is one over the league limit. Johnson served his
suspension at Fayetteville on March 1, an 88-78 win for the
Riverdragons, who improved to 5-0 against the Patriots this
season. ... Forward Gabe Muoneke is second in the league in scoring with a 17.0 average.
Fayetteville (18-32): Despite the changes and the effort that
head coach Jeff Capel put forth when he took over the team on
January 8, the Patriots are not going to the playoffs.
Fayetteville has gone 13-15 since Capel took over but remains in
last place in the league and eight games out of a playoff
position with five games left. ... Forward Antwain Smith suffered a
season-ending knee injury on March 5. Smith tore the
ACL in his left knee with 3:38 remaining in the second half of
Fayetteville's 86-85 overtime loss to Huntsville. Smith was
averaging 13.7 points and 7.2 rebounds in 36 games with the Patriots.
Greenville (32-18): The Groove used an 11-1 record during the
month of February to take over the top spot in the league,
coming back from five games behind league-leading North Charleston.
Greenville, which has won 17 of its last 19 games, established
league records for victories in a month, consecutive wins and
consecutive home victories. ... Forward Ansu Sesay and guard Billy Thomas
were named the league's Co-Players of the Month for February.
Sesay averaged 15.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists a game during the month,
and Thomas averaged 15.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 steals.
Huntsville (25-24): The Flight are in a dog fight for the fourth
and final playoff spot. If the post-season were to begin today,
Huntsville would miss the playoffs. The Flight trail Mobile by
a half game, but the Revelers have one game in hand. Huntsville,
which is two games out of third place, has six games remaining,
including its season finale at home against Mobile on March 22.
The two teams have split the first eight games this season. ...
Forward Eric Chenowith was suspended one game for an elbowing incident
on February 23. Chenowith missed the Flight's 82-74 win over
Roanoke two days later.
Mobile (25-23): The Revelers had their three-game winning
streak snapped with a 63-60 loss to Roanoke on February 28. The
60 points ties Mobile's second-lowest point total this season.
The Revelers scored 56 against Greenville on December 8 and had
60 on December 18 against Fayetteville. ... Mobile currently
holds the fourth and final playoff spot, just one-half game ahead of
Huntsville with seven games to play. ... The Revelers play four
of those games on the road, where they are 14-10 this season.
They play Columbus three times, including the last game of the
regular season on March 23. Mobile is 5-2 against the
Riverdragons this season.
North Charleston (30-19): The Lowgators find themselves in some
unfamiliar territory, with that being second place. North
Charleston had its three-game win streak snapped with a
78-66 loss to Huntsville on March 6. ... The Lowgators are 1 1/2
games behind Greenville with six games remaining. North
Charleston, which has a 13-11 record at home, plays four of its
games at North Charleston Coliseum, including two against the
Groove. The Lowgators and Greenville meet in the regular-season finale on March 23. ... Forward Jamal Kendrick, was signed by North
Charleston on March 1, has averaged 6.7 points and 18 minutes in
three games. Kendrick replaced forward C.J. Black, who will miss the
remainder of the season with a groin injury.
Roanoke (18-30): The Dazzle have lost three in a row and seven
of their last eight games, falling into seventh place and seven
games out of a playoff spot. ... Of its eight remaining games,
Roanoke has three games against Fayetteville and three against
Asheville. The Dazzle are 5-2 against the Patriots this season
but just 2-5 against the Altitude. ... Baring some unforeseen
circumstances, Roanoke will finish the regular season with the
most three-point field goals attempted of any team in the
league. The Dazzle have attempted 733 shots from beyond the arc
and made 261. The next closest team in terms of attempts is
North Charleston with 593.
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