By Michael Strickland
___
UPDATE: 2/23/14
From the Idaho Press Tribune
Stampede guard Reggie Hearn knocked down a jumper at the buzzer to give the Idaho Stampede a 129-128 overtime victory over the Los Angeles D-Fenders on Saturday.
Hearn’s bucket came seven seconds after he was called for his sixth foul. With two Stampede players inactive and two other players having already fouled out, Idaho was forced to keep Hearn in the game resulting in a technical foul.
Los Angeles guard Shawne Williams missed the technical free throw, keeping the game at a 127-127 tie. D-Fenders guard Terrence Williams, who drew Hearn’s sixth foul, made one of two free throws with 7.9 seconds remaining in overtime to give Los Angeles a 128-127 lead.
A different look in Idaho (Randy Belice/NBAE/Getty Images used by Permission)
UPDATE: 2/17/13
Idaho guard Pierre Jackson scored 30 points, dished out eight assists and had four steals (all team highs) for the Futures team at the NBA Development League All-Star Game on Saturday. Dee Bost dished out seven assists and four points for the Prospects team, which won the game 145-142. Prior to the game, EJ Singler won the D-League Three-Point contest.
Read more here:
http://www.idahostatesman.com/...
UPDATE: 2/10/13
RENO — Pierre Jackson scored 13 of his game-high 28 points during the third quarter, and Idaho snapped a seven-game road losing streak with a 103-92 victory over the Reno Bighorns on Sunday.
Dee Bost had 15 points and 16 assists for his sixth double-double of the season, and Derrick Caracter (15) and E.J. Singler (14) scored in double figures off the bench for the Stampede (17-13). Kevin Murphy scored 13 points on 6-of-20 shooting, Dallas Lauderdale pulled down 13 rebounds, and Jason Ellis added 12 boards.
Read more here:
http://www.idahostatesman.com/...
VIDEO: Pierre Jackson Breaks Single-Game Scoring Record with 58!
UPDATE: 2/4/13
Boy do I love this team:
Today's Idaho Press Tribune Reports:
STAMPEDE’S JACKSON NAMED TO ALL-STAR GAME: The Idaho Stampede’s Pierre Jackson has been chosen to play on the NBA D-League Futures Team on Feb. 15 in the eighth annual NBA D-League All-Star Game in New Orleans.
The game will air live on NBA TV at 1 p.m. at Sprint Arena.
Jackson leads the league in scoring with 29.1 points per game, including six different games of 40 or more points. He’s also sixth in the league in assists with 6.2 per game.
UPDATE: 1/9/13
Idaho opened the D-League Showcase — a collection of games and NBA scouts/player personnel directors in one building for three days — with a 93-88 victory over the Canton Charge on Monday afternoon, the Idaho Statesman reports.
The Stampede (first place in the West Division with an 11-6 record) knocked off two division leaders in three days — Rio Grande Valley (13-3 in the Central) on Saturday in Boise and Canton (10-6 in the East). Idaho trailed 75-68 with 7:37 left in Monday’s game, but finished with runs of 14-3 and 11-6 to secure the victory.
Pierre Jackson led Idaho with 33 points on 10-of-23 shooting, while Richard Howell posted a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds in 28 minutes.
UPDATE: 12/28/13
"Idaho and Texas entered Friday’s contest with identical 8-3 records,"the Idaho Statesman reports.
The two NBA Development League teams then showed how evenly matched they were, as they went to two overtimes before the Stampede prevailed with a 129-126 victory.
The game featured 23 lead changes and 11 ties.
It was the first contest at CenturyLink Arena for Idaho since Nov. 30. Since then, Idaho played eight consecutive road games
.
Guard Pierre Jackson, the league’s top scorer, led Idaho with 41 points, and Richard Howell contributed a double-double (12 points, 16 rebounds).
UPDATE: 12/21/13
Following a nice collegiate career at Baylor, Pierre Jackson has since gone on to tear up the NBA D-League. Averaging just under 31 points through eight contests (on 46% from the field and 43% from deep), to go along with 5 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and an even more impressive 2.4 steals, the Idaho Stampede guard has appeared rather dominant all season long.
Having helped lead the way for Idaho through an 8-0 start thus far, the team remains standing as the lone undefeated squad in the NBA D-League. That's pretty impressive, and quite the change in culture for a group that won just nineteen games all season long last year.
And Jackson's largely in part to thank for his team's success up to this point. He's a proven winner, and is fresh off winning consecutive NBADL Player of the Week awards. What's more, just this past Saturday, the 22 year old poured in a league season-high 49 points in his team's latest victory.
I love the community feel surrounding Boise's NBA D- League Team. It brings me back to my days growing up in the east, watching legends from the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets. I first learned the term "Thread the needle pass" after my father identified an amazing throw that Eric "Sleepy" Floyd had just completed.
I remember sitting at courtside and marvelling at the sheer size of Darryl Dawkins, and how he effectively began the "Gorilla Dunk," a now common occurrence in the sport.
On the playgrounds of New York and New Jersey, shooting hoops was a social gathering that connected people at all levels. Stepping out one afternoon and seeing aspiring, future, and past NBA stars was a common occurrence.
I'll never forget those days.
After moving to Idaho eleven years ago, I sometimes wondered if, and how I would be able to share these precious slices of positive inner-city energy and culture, with my children.
So imagine my joy when I realized that, along with the staff and players of the Idaho Stampede; my experience can be re-created right here in Boise.
That is why this team has meaning for me.
First and foremost, Idaho has a winning streak, wrote Chris Langrill in the Idaho Statesman. The Stampede defeated the Bakersfield Jam 107-97 on Saturday night at CenturyLink Arena. Last season, Idaho began 1-12 and didn’t put together back-to-back wins until Jan. 3, he added.
“To be able to close out these two wins says a lot,” second-year coach Michael Peck said. “We have a young team. Not one starter had D-League experience before this weekend.”
The Idaho Stampede completed a weekend sweep of the Bakersfield Jam, winning 107-97. Idaho improved to 2-0 with the win.
After multiple lead changes, the two teams were tied at halftime 45-45. Idaho used a 37-point fourth quarter to close out Bakersfield and secure the victory.
For the second consecutive night, Pierre Jackson led Idaho with 32 points while adding six assists. Richard Howell posted another double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds. The Stampede had five players with double digit scoring.
Bakersfield was led by James Nunnally (21 points) and Jared Cunningham (17 points). The Jam shot 50 percent from 3-point range, shooting 10-20. Brian Butch added nine points and 10 rebounds.
"In all, the new look Stampede knocked off a very formidable opponent in the Bakersfield Jam," writes Gino Pilato on his blog.
Jam head coach Will Voigt is one of the best coaches in the league, and by defeating a well-conditioned, and smart basketball team such as the Jam, the ‘Pede have plenty to be happy about. However, with former assistant coach Joel Abelson and the Reno
Bighorns coming to town this Saturday, for a matinee showdown, be sure that the Bighorns will enter Boise looking to put of the flames on the Stampede’s hot start.
The Idaho Stampede are the exclusive NBA D-League affiliate of the Portland Trailblazers. I can thank them for returning me to a slice of my good, urban upbringing.
__
Do you love books? Do you want to get published?
Like Michael Strickland, Publishing Consultant, on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/...
__
Follow Michael Strickland on Twitter @PublishWithUs
___
And see:
Michael Strickland's Idaho Arts and Culture Spot
http://michaelstricklandidaho.blogspot.com/