Maine Red Claws (26-17) vs. Springfield Armor (7-35)
1:00 PM Sunday, March 21, at the Portland Expo

The Maine Red Claws today face off against their nemesis, the worst team in the D-League, the Springfield Armor.

The Red Claws’ struggles against the Armor have been well-chronicled here: they are 5-3 against the Armor this year. Although those three losses were all on the road, they still sting – without them Maine would have all but clinched the #3 seed in the D-League playoffs. As it is, Maine is jockeying for position and every game counts, so the Claws can hardly afford to be embarrassed at home tonight.

These teams haven’t faced off since January 31, and a lot’s changed in those nine weeks. For one, the big trade that sent Morris Almond and T.J. Cummings to Maine for Noel Felix and Tony Bobbitt. In that last match-up, Almond and Cummings knocked in 41 of Springfield’s 90 points, while Felix and Bobbitt added 20 for Maine, who won 111-90.

Maine has made other moves since then as well, of course, as has Springfield. Abdulai Jalloh, who the Armor picked up after he was cut by the Claws, has blossomed in Springfield, while UMass product Chris Lowe – who Maine added after he was cut by the Armor – has long since left the scene. After getting a lot of DNP’s in Maine, Jalloh is averaging 9PPG with the Armor. Without Almond, Cummings, or JamesOn Curry, Justin Hawkins has taken up the slack offensively for Springfield. Still, with the talent on the Springfield roster dropping off rapidly after that, the Red Claws won’t even be in trouble if they can’t contain them.

If Maine plays their usual basketball – either offensively or defensively, if not both – they should have no trouble with Springfield. Hopefully Maine’s gotten over the hump with the Armor and we can all enjoy a nice, relaxing Sunday matinee. As always, you can join in and watch for free on FutureCast.