Yellow Jackets Knock off Number Nine Team in the Country in WIn

The Steel City Yellow Jackets have played some big games this season, but none came bigger than last night's 139-122 victory over the number nine team in the country the Richmond Elite. The Yellow Jackets improved to 12-7 with the victory and increased their winning streak to five games in a row.

The Steel City Yellow Jackets are making one final late season push to make the American Basketball Association playoffs. The stage was set yesterday for a big match-up as the Yellow Jackets, who have played very well at home this season, welcomed in the number nine ranked team in the country the Richmond Elite. A win for the Yellow Jackets would go a long way in helping their positioning in the playoff picture, and they had a packed house with a high energy crowd.

The Yellow Jackets would answer the call and came up with a huge win defeating the Elite by the final score of 139-122. This  was by far the best game the Yellow Jackets have played all season as their offense was able to move the ball around and the defense turned one of the most potent offenses in the ABA into a one dimensional attack.

This match-up was tight right from the get go with both teams firing on all cylinders early on. Both offenses had their leaders step up early on as Antonio Reddic put up 14 points in the first quarter alone leading the Yellow Jackets to 37 first half points. For the Elite it would be Kevin Judon providing 11 points for his team on their way to scoring 32 in the quarter. You could tell right away this game was going to be tight throughout and the big set-up did not disappoint.

The second quarter was the highest scoring quarter of the game, but we saw a shift on both teams when it came to their offensive possessions. The Yellow Jackets went back to what has been working for them all season long as they used good passing to get the ball around. In total, nine Yellow Jackets would get on the board in the quarter. On the Elite side of the ball, their offense was getting more and more one dimensional as Duvaughn Maxwell ran their offense in the quarter putting up 10 points. When all was said and done the Yellow Jackets went into the locker room with a slim 76-68 lead.

Antonio Reddic would lead the Yellow Jackets in scoring at the halfway point as he put up 20 points in the first half. He was followed by Dre Anthony, 15 points, and Khari Bess, 9 points. For the Elite, it would be Duvaughn Maxwell leading the way at half time with 19 points. He was followed by Kevin Judon, 18 points, and Bernard Alston, 9 points. This was a heated contest throughout and the second half was shaping up to be an exciting half of basketball.

The third quarter was a back and forth affair as both teams played strong defense and had potent offensive attacks. Antonio Reddic found the offensive groove that lead him to eight straight games of scoring 30 or more points on this night as he put up 11 in the quarter. This combined with Lawrence Baker's 13 points gave the Yellow Jackets 31 points in the quarter and the Yellow Jackets would lead 107-99 heading into the final quarter of play.

The Yellow Jackets defense stepped up big time in the third quarter and allowed the Jackets offense to take control of this game. Duvaughn Maxwell put up 12 points in the quarter, but that was all the offense the Elite could put together as they only put up 23 points in the quarter. For the Yellow Jackets, six different players combined to put up 30 points to help secure the 139-122 victory.

Antonio Reddic found his way back into the 30 point range after a couple games break as he lead the Yellow Jackets with 38 points on the night. He was followed by Lawrence Baker, 26 points, and Gil Cummings, 17 points. For the Elite, Duvaughn Maxwell would score a game high 39 points on the night to lead the team. He was followed by Kevin Judon, 24 points, and Anthony Wynn, 20 points.

Things got ugly after the final whistle blew in this one, but when all was said and done the Yellow Jackets picked up their fifth straight win and improved to 12-7 on the season. This game was the best all-around game for the Yellow Jackets on the season as they passed the ball well and played hard nosed defense when needed.. It showed that the Yellow Jackets can play with the best of them and went a long way in helping the team through their final playoff push.

Steel City Player of the Game: Antonio Reddic

Antonio Reddic found his way back into the 30 point range after a couple games in the 20's and that was enough to earn him the Steel City Player of the Game. He lead the Yellow Jackets with 38 points on the night and sparked this Yellow Jackets offense throughout the night. Reddic has been a big part of the Yellow Jackets success this season whether it be in the starting five or coming off of the bench. In his third season, Reddic hasn't slowed down a beat and he has showed night in and night out that he still has it.

Up Next:

The Steel City Yellow Jackets head out on the road to continue their weekend facing off with top 25 teams in the country when they face off with the number one ranked DMV Warriors. The Yellow Jackets will be looking to improve upon their 3-4 road record while trying to take down the top team. The last time these two teams met, it came down to a buzzer beater three point shot that gave the Warriors a one point victory. For updates on today's game you can follow along on the Yellow Jackets Facebook Page for all the action. As the Yellow Jacket continue their late season push, everyone is beginning to Catch the Buzz.

Jackets Take Road Loss End Up Splitting Weekend

The Steel City Yellow Jackets went on the road last night to take on the Richmond Elite in the second game of the weekend. However, they were not as lucky as their first game as they fell to the Elite 118-98 dropping their season record to 7-6.

The Steel City Yellow Jackets played the second half of a weekend double header last night when they traveled down to Richmond, Virginia to take on the Richmond Elite. The Yellow Jackets would play solid basketball throughout, but fell just short in the end as the Elite were able to grab the victory by the score of 118-98 dropping the Yellow Jackets to 7-6 on the season.

The Yellow Jackets had an ok road record coming into the game as they sat at 2-2 on the season and were trying to improve upon that in this one. In Friday's contest, the Yellow Jackets would have a slow start and had to work to get back in the game and pick-up the victory. This game, however, was the exact opposite effect. The Yellow Jackets came out firing on all cylinders early in this one, lead by the red hot veteran Antonio Reddic who scored 14 points in the first quarter alone.

The Yellow Jackets would use this rallying point to mount an early 32-25 lead. To go along with Reddic's efforts, the Yellow Jackets would hit three big three point shots by Gil Cummings, Johnathan Logan, and Dre Anthony to rack up the points early. Logan has been the guy the Yellow Jackets have turned to when they needed a clutch three point shot this season and they went to him again early in this one.

The Richmond Elite would try to fight back in the second quarter, with the help of Anthony Sally's seven point effort that included a big three point shot. They did outscore the Yellow Jackets 26-24, but it was not enough to take the lead as the teams went into the locker room with the Jackets leading by the score of 56-51. One thing the Jackets have been great at this season is having the lead at half time as there are only four games all season in which the Jackets did not lead going into the break.

Antonio Reddic would lead his club in scoring at half time racking up 20 points in the contest and putting himself well on his way to continuing his streak of scoring 30 or more points in a game. He was followed by another great effort from Dre Anthony, who had 14 points on the night, and a tie between Juan Franklin and Gil Cummings for the third leading scorer with seven points each. For the Elite, Anthony Wynn led the half time score sheet scoring 15 points followed by Jaleel Nelson, 13 points, and Anthony Sally, seven points.

In the second half, both teams would come out hot as the Elite were trying to come back in this game and the Yellow Jackets were trying desperately to hold the lead. Gil Cummings and Dre Anthony would hit three point shots and Reddic would score seven in the quarter, but it was not enough to combat the Elite's 30 point attack that spread out between six different scorers and gave them a one point lead heading into the final quarter of play.

The offensive attack would only get better for the Elite in the fourth quarter as they put up their highest total of the game scoring 37 points . For the Yellow Jackets, it was their worst quarter of play in terms of scoring and even though Cummings hit two more three point shots, the Jackets could only muster 18 points in the quarter en route to falling to the Elite by the final score of 118-98. The loss drops the Yellow Jackets to 7-6 on the season and they fall to under a .500 winning percentage on the road, dropping to 2-3.

Reddic finished the day as the leading scorer for the Yellow Jackets with his 32 point effort, and increased his 30 points or more in a game streak to six. He was followed by Dre Anthony, 19 points, and Gil Cummings, 17 points, to round out the top three scorers. These were the only three Yellow Jackets to score in double digits on the day. For the Elite, it was Jaleel Nelson who would rule the day scoring 26 points. He was followed by Anthony Wynn's 23 point effort and Bernard Alston's 19 point effort.

Steel City Player of the Game: Antonio Reddic

Antonio Reddic has been absolutely red hot for the Yellow Jackets in recent weeks. With his 32 points in this game he has now scored 30 or more points in each of the Yellow Jacket's last six contests dating all the way back to December 17th against the Fredericksburg Grizzlies when he tied his season high scoring 38 points. Reddic has been one of the MVPs of this year's team so far and he will look to continue his success going into the last month and a half of the 2016/2017 regular season.

Up Next:

The Yellow Jackets will continue their slate of road games next Saturday, January 21st when they take on the Prince George's Valor. The next time the Yellow Jackets are scheduled to be at home is on February 3rd when they take on the Buffalo Blue Hawks. However, with their games on the 28th and 29th being moved up in the season, there is a possibility of home games on both of those dates. There are still plenty of opportunities left to see the Yellow Jackets in action so, if you haven't already, be sure to come on out and catch the buzz.