Fort Wayne Mad Ants Knock the Westchester Knicks
By Ben Gibson
The Fort Wayne Mad Ants picked up their second straight win by taking down the Westchester Knicks on Thursday.
The Fort Wayne Mad Ants are putting together the foundation of a winning streak thanks to Thursday’s 119-111 win over the Westchester Knicks.
The win marks their second in a row as the Mad Ants get ready for the NBA Development League Showcase in Ontario.
On Thursday Alex Poythress kept his hot streak going with a 35 point performance against the Knicks, shooting 12 of 26 from the field, 2 of 3 from 3-point range, and 9 of 12 from the free throw line. Poythress also tallied 12 rebounds, three blocks, an assist and a steal in the game.
The strong performance followed his 28-point outing against the Long Island Nets.
Of course, Julyan Stone handed out plenty of assists, as usual, this time registering 10 assists and 10 rebounds for a double-double. He missed out on a triple-double with only eight points.
His average of 8.4 assists a game puts him fifth place in the NBA Development League.
Trey McKinney-Jones had a great outing with 28 points on 5 of 9 shooting while going a perfect 17 of 17 from the free throw line.
Stephan Hicks had 20 points on 7 of 16 shooting while grabbing seven rebounds.
At 15-7, the Mad Ants remain a game behind the Raptors 905 for the top spot in the NBA D-League’s Central Division.
Next up for the Mad Ants is the NBA Development League Showcase in Mississauga, Ontario.
There will be 22 games over five days according to a press release from the Development League.
"“We’re thrilled to bring the NBA D-League’s tentpole event to Mississauga and the Hershey Centre,” said NBA D-League President Malcolm Turner. “It’s always inspiring to watch our players put their skills on display in front of scouts from all 30 NBA teams and I’m looking forward to being part of the action as the basketball community’s focus shifts to Canada in January.”“We are honored and excited to be the host team for the 2017 D-League Showcase,” said Raptors President Masai Ujiri. “Following last year’s successful NBA All-Star Weekend in Toronto, we are eager to assist the League with the premier event for the D-League, its teams and players.”"
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The Mad Ants will face the Windy City Bulls on January 19th and the Maine Red Claws on the 21st.