The Steel City Yellow Jackets are starting their third week of the 2016/2017 season and are riding high having won two games in a row since dropping their home opener. They scored a season high 132 points last week and look to build off of that effort this weekend when they take on the Cleveland Am Pro'ers.
To say that a team who has made the playoffs in each of their first two seasons of existence is getting even better is almost unheard of. However, for the Steel City Yellow Jackets, that statement is becoming a reality. The team is riding a two game winning streak coming into week three of American Basketball Association action and their stats through the first three games are already looking better than last years team.
In the 2015/2016 season the Yellow Jackets started the season off 1-2 after dropping their first two games and coming back to win the third one. They had scored a total of 364 points and averaged 121.3 points per game. Taking a look at this year's ball club, the team has jumped out to a 2-1 start including a 2-0 record against Chesapeake Conference opponents. In total this season they have scored 370 points this year and averaged 123.3 points per game.
While the scoring is the same, the record is totally turned around from a year ago. The key to this year's club is the ability to play together and no where everyone is all the time. There is a lot of communication on defense and lots of passing on offense. The mixture of both veterans and rookies on this team has been something that has helped the team gel on offense.
It also helps that the Jackets are hitting from beyond the three-point arc on a very consistent basis. Lawrence Baker leads the club in that department with his 60% three point field goal percentage on the season, 19-32. The next closes guy to Baker is Gilmore Cummings who has hit 37% of his three point shots through the first three games.
In terms of offensive numbers, look no further than Baker to see who is leading in points. After being named the Steel City Yellow Jackets Player of the Week in week one where he put up 53 points in the first two games, he added 24 more points last Saturday to up that total to a team leading 77 points on the year. Juan Franklin sits right behind Baker with his 60 points on the year after putting up a single-game team high 32 points in the home opener against the Kentucky Enforcers. Marcus Smith rounds out the top three on the Yellow Jackets squad with his 51 points on the season.
As good as this team is offensively, there defense is just as good. The team allowed a season low 102 points agains the York Buccaneers last Saturday and came away with a lot of rebounds. Antonio Reddic leads the club in that department with 23 rebounds through the first three games. Baker sits right behind Reddic with his 17 rebounds on the year, which includes his near double-double against the Reading Wizards when he had nine rebounds.
Another plus for the Jackets is that many of their rookies got their first taste of ABA action and are now better prepared and can be used as depth options for the Yellow Jackets. Luke Kochka, Khari Bess, Matt Sutton, and Melvin Ford all made their ABA debuts this past week and performed well. This will be key as the season progresses so that more and more Yellow Jackets can see action and give the stars more of a rest.
This weeks matchup was supposed to be against the Trenton Cagers, however, the Cagers have cancelled and as a result the Yellow Jackets will matchup with the Cleveland Am Pro'ers this Saturday at 7 p.m. The Am Pro'ers are not an official part of the American Basketball Association, but they have agree to play the Yellow Jackets to entertain the fans at Barack Obama Academy Gymnasium.
The Am Pro'ers have not faced off against the Yellow Jackets in the past, so it will give the team a new look as they enter Saturday's game. The Yellow Jackets enter play with the 20th best record in the ABA out of the 88 team league, and look to improve their winning streak to three games on the season as they once again search for a spot in the ABA playoffs.
The Steel City Yellow Jackets will aslo be honoring the Pewee Football Champions at this Saturday's game. Some of the teams that will be honored include The Garfield Gator Baby Twerps, East End Raider Mighty Mites, Homewood Twerps, Wilkinsburg Big Team, Swagg Baby Twerps, Morning
Side Twerps, and the Duquesne Twerps among others. The Yellow Jackets will be celebrating champions of the gridiron while trying to chase a championship on the hardwood as well.
The tip-off for Saturday's game against the Cleveland Am Pro'ers is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Barack Obama Academy Gymnasium. Tickets for adults are 10 dollars a piece while student tickets are just five dollars. Tickets can be purchased either at the gate or through eventbrite.com. Come on out and support the Yellow Jackets on their championship run so you too can Catch the Buzz.
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