Giants play against Chicago Steam. Photography by Gary Lloyd McCullough.
The Jacksonville Giants invaded the city of St. Augustine for the second time this season on Wednesday night. The Giants topped the Daytona Beach Sharks 103-89 in front of a full crowd at the St. Augustine High School gymnasium.
Point guard Maurice Mickens led the Giants with a team-high 20 points in the win. Chris Blake (18 points) and Jerrod Tucker (13 points) rounded out the leading scorers for Jacksonville, who improved to 20-6 overall this season.
The game featured many great basketball accolades, but one of the most exciting moments of the evening came at halftime when St. Augustine High School Basketball player Evan Moore landed a half-court shot and won 500 dollars. Moore was a captain and key contributor for the District Champion St. Augustine High School Yellow Jackets Basketball Team this past season.
Early in the game, Jacksonville struggled and fell behind by double digits to the Sharks. However, Jacksonville made key adjustments and regained the lead, 29-24, when headed into the second quarter. Micken’s landed two three-pointers in the second quarter while Blake added 12 points in the opening quarter.
The Giants continued to dominate in the second quarter and outscored Daytona 33-17 and went into halftime in the lead, 62-43. It is worth noting that Jacksonville won the game with several key players absent from play. Veteran guard Ed Horton, center Bruce Brown, Duke Jones, and Bernard Nugent all were out with injuries.
Jacksonville will host the Texas Sky Riders this Saturday night at the Veterans Memorial Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 pm. This will be the final home game at the arena for the 2015-16 season.