Breaking Down The Boxscore - RAINMEN 106, KEBS 98

RAINMEN 106, KEBS 98
Rainmen Record:  2W-0L

Last night the Rainmen went on their first road trip of the regular season to face off against the Quebec Kebs.  The Kebs, who were fresh off an opening night win against the Saint John Mill Rats, were ready for the Halifax Rainmen to come to town.  But the Rainmen put out a well-balanced attack, having seven players in double figures to defeat the Quebec Kebs 106-98 in Quebec City last night. When you're a minor league basketball fan and your team goes on the road, you can't always watch your Halifax Rainmen online or on live television.  Sometimes, you just have to rely on boxscores to see how the team did.  Thankfully for the internet, we can at least break down the boxscore: 

Some Key Stats:

• Glaring Stat of the Night:  The Rainmen shot the ball well, going 38-70 (54%)
• Free Throw Watch:  Now, the Rainmen were known last season for being one of the worst free throw shooting teams in the PBL, losing a few games due to poor free throw shooting.  Last night, the Rainmen were 24-38 (63%) from the charity stripe, which isn't bad, but definitely will be an area for improvement.  Marshall Brown made his regular season debut and got to the line 12 times, which is a good sign from the former Frost Heave.
• Third Quarter Goodness: They say good teams win basketball games in the third quarter, and the Rainmen did just that, outscoring the Kebs 34-22.
• Leading Scorer for the Rainmen: Kavon Jones with 19 points.
• Double-Double Master:  Eric Crookshank continued his dominance on the boards with his 13 points and 16 rebounds.
• Quebec's Leading Scorer: Quinell Brown followed up his 28-point performance against the Mill Rats with 16 points against Halifax last night.
• Former Rainmen Watch: Cordell Jeanty - 10 pts, 8 rebounds, Aaron Spears - 12 points, 6 boards.
• Under 100 points: Halifax kept their opponent under 100 points for the second straight game
• Big Man Alert:  The recently signed big man, Torraye Braggs, will make his Rainmen debut this Sunday against the LFS Cavs.

Post Game Links:
Kebs De Quebec Official Home Page
" “We did not take advantage of the rebounds we took around the opponent’s hoop, and we gave up too many around our own. We also had a low field goal percentage, not to mention our poor three-point percentage. Our 43% from the field and 36% from the three point line speak for themselves”, commented coach Robert Spon. “The Rainmen dominated us due to their 54% field-goal shooting, ultimately I take the blame for this loss”, mentioned Coach Spon."

Halifax Chronicle-Herald
"Kavon Jones topped the Rainmen with 19 points, going 7-for-9 from the field, all in the first half. The rookie power forward, who started at centre with Halifax still awaiting the arrival of the recently signed Torraye Braggs, was used sparingly in the second half after picking up his fifth foul early in the third quarter."

Metro Halifax
"The Rainmen improved to 2-0 early in the Premier Basketball League season with a 106-98 triumph over the Kebs, riding a balanced attack that featured seven players hitting double figures."


Next up, the Rainmen are at the Metro Centre on Sunday to face off against the Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry, watch it live here on Haligonia.ca!

Romy Aquino covers the pro basketball game (the Canadian Flavour of the NBA, the PBL's Halifax Rainmen) from a fan's perspective.  He also can be found at NBA hoops blogs, Hip Hoop Junkies (A Member of TheScore.com's Sports Federation) and Hoop Heads North.  Follow him on Twitter: @romyaquino