Groove's Hulett a Handful for Altitude
GREENVILLE, S.C., Jan. 1 -- DeeAndre Hulett scored a season-high 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Greenville Groove to a 82-72 victory over the Asheville Altitude on New Year's Day at the Bi-Lo Center.
Hulett was 10-for-14 from the field as the Groove won their second game in a row and improved to 11-12 on the season. The Altitude fell to 12-9 with their second straight loss.
Billy Thomas also had a big game for the Groove with 21 points on 5-for-8 shooting from three-point range.
"We have really needed both DeeAndre and Billy for these past couple of weeks," said head coach Milton Barnes. "Without them we are not the same team offensively. Both of those guys did a great job today and I am really pleased with their efforts."
Rahim Lockhart and Eric Chenowith were the only other members of the Groove in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Brent Wright also had a strong game off the bench for the Groove with seven points and a season-high 11 rebounds. Tom Wideman grabbed 10 rebounds in his third consecutive start.
Guard Johnny Hemsley led Asheville with 20 points, while Rusty LaRue and Jermaine Tate had 13 and 12 points, respectively. Greenville outshot its neighbors to the north 47.9 percent to 38.2 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Altitude 53-45. The win was the first of the season for Greenville over Asheville, which had lost the three previous meetings to the Altitude.
"We had three days off and we looked bad," said Asheville head coach Joey Meyer. "I'm not trying to take anything away from Greenville, but we did not play very well and we did not deserve to win the game. We haven't practiced in two weeks, and boy it showed. Hopefully, that is not the Asheville team we have or we in deep trouble. Greenville played well and deserved to win."
