Giants Down Fury in Shootout
The Jacksonville Giants overcame a halftime to deficit to defeat the Tampa Bay Fury, 130-116. It was the Giants sixth straight win of the season. Jacksonville was able to stay calm in adversity and show the ABA why they are the reigning champions. The hometown Tampa Bay crowd was tough, but the Giants responded with a convincing win.
“It was a great team win, “ said Maurice Mickens. “We stuck together and played championship basketball.” Micken’s was named the offensive player of the game. The veteran point guard contributed in a big way for the defending champs. Mickens scored a season high 33 points. The former ABA MVP was difficult to contain. Tampa Bay made defensive adjustments but just could not stop Mickens.
Defensively, the Giants played just as strong. Jacksonville was able to withstand an early Tampa Offensive run and make the necessary adjustments to make key stops. The powerful defensive play was led by Defensive Player of the Game Elijah Smith. Smith led the Giants with six blocks and 11 rebounds in the contest. Other notable defensive players included Bernard Nugent and Aaron Bowen.
Nugent, Brandon Davis, Bowen, and Larry Dumas all rounded out the scoring leaders for the Giants.
“We started getting stops on defense and offensively we started making shots,” said Head Coach Jerod Tucker.