Riverdragons Sharpshooters Heat Up

The Riverdragons have won three straight and four of their last five games. The Altitude, who shot just 30.6 percent from the field, are headed in the other direction, dropping four of their last five games. The two teams meet each other again Tuesday night in Asheville.

The Riverdragons were led by small forwards Tremaine Fowlkes and George Reese, who each had 17 points, hit 8-of-11 shots from the floor and made one free throw.

The 17-point effort was a season-high for Reese. Fowlkes, the third-leading scorer in the NBDL, has led or been tied for the team lead in scoring in five of his last six games.

Jason Hart led the Altitude with 12 points. Guard Johnny Hemsley pitched in 11 points but scored just two in the last three quarters.

The Riverdragons, who led by as many as 29 points in the fourth quarter, controlled the inside from the opening tip, shooting a sizzling 64.7 percent from the field in the first quarter to build a 24-20 lead. The Riverdragons would go on to outscore the Altitude 42-18 in the paint.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Riverdragons were also able to establish a presence on the inside, blocking a season-high six shots. The Riverdragons entered Monday night's game with just 12 blocks this season, ranking dead last in the league.

With the win, the Riverdragons improved to 5-2, setting up a possible first-place showdown with the current NBDL top dog North Charleston this Saturday, Dec. 8, on Fox Sports Net South at 4 p.m. in Columbus.

The Riverdragons also received strong performances from guards Chris Garner and Nate Johnson. Garner, who ranks sixth in the NBDL in assists, had a season-high eight assists, while Johnson scored 10 of his 14 points in the first quarter. Johnson's 14-point effort tied his season-high.

Riverdragons quotes

Coach Jeff Malone
"I told my guys before the game it's time for us to raise the level and go out with that killer instinct. For the first time this season I think we actually did that. We took a 10-point lead and turned it into a 20-point lead. This is the first complete game we've played all season. You do have to expect them to come back at their place tomorrow night. We will find out even more about our team tomorrow night in Asheville."

George Reese
On the Riverdragons being the top scoring team in the league: "They say that a team is a mirror image of the coach, and everyone knows Coach Malone was a great offensive player. We have a lot of talent on this team and Coach's system taps right into it."

Tremaine Fowlkes
"The second half has been a big key for us; we are beginning to learn how not to have defensive breakdowns in the third quarter. On the offensive side, I am trying to get into the flow of things and our guards are helping me out hitting me at the right time. I need to rebound a little better but hopefully things we continue to go right for us."

Asheville quotes

Coach Joey Meyer
"We were awful. That's about the best I can say. We were awful. We didn't play at all tonight. They were good, though. They took us individually and scored on us. We just couldn't stop them. We didn't execute and got behind. We've actually been a pretty good team playing from behind but not tonight. No shots went down and we couldn't get anything going."

Chris Carrawell
"It was terrible we got our butts kicked it was simple as that. We didn't play well and they just beat our butts. We didn't play as a team tonight. When you are playing against players, they exploit that. They exploited us tonight and hopefully we can come back tomorrow night and get a win."