PORTLAND — The Maine Red Claws, presented by Unum, got off to a solid start and cruised to a 115-102 victory Saturday night at the Portland Expo.
Jalen Jones led Maine (9-3) with 28 points on 10-17 shooting, while Marcus Georges-Hunt finished near another triple-double with 26 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists. Damion Lee added 19 points and 8 boards, while Jason Calliste paced the bench with 11 points, and Arthur Edwards added 10 in the win.
Dallas Lauderdale, making his Red Claws debut, opened the scoring with a bucket inside on the first possession. After the initial 7-3 run, the Nets got into the swing of things as well, with Beau Beech making his first three shots, all three-pointers. Long Island led 19-17 early in the 1st quarter. The Red Claws went on a 13-0 run to close out the quarter, highlighted by Jones’ emphatic slam. The Claws led 32-21 after one.
In the 2nd, things cooled off for the Red Claws, while the Nets went on an 8-0 run to get back in the game. Maine finally scored five minutes into the period, when Georges-Hunt put in a lay-up. Beech followed that up with a quick three-ball, and Long Island had cut the lead to just two at 34-32. Yogi Ferrell put in a four-point play to give the Nets the lead. Jones put the Red Claws back on top in the final minute of the period, and after a quiet 2nd quarter, Maine led 51-47 at the break.
Maine opened the 3rd quarter with five straight points. Coron Williams dropped in a pair from downtown to get the Red Claws’ lead back to double-digits. Georges-Hunt dropped in a lay-up and a three-pointer to extend the lead to 73-56 halfway through the period. The Red Claws out-scored the Nets 32-19 in the 3rd, taking an 83-66 lead.
The Red Claws and Nets went back and forth in the 4th quarter; with Maine out to a comfortable lead, Georges-Hunt and Jones continued to pour it in, keeping the Nets at bay. Damion Lee put in a bucket to put the Red Claws up 18, and the Red Claws cruised from there. Maine shot 50% (39-78) from the floor, and 38.2% (13-34) from downtown, while going 24-27 (88.9%) from the free throw line. Long Island shot just 39.6% (36-91) from the field, 41.7% (15-36) from threepoint range, and 15-18 from the charity stripe.
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