Game 25

The Westchester Knicks used a dominant first-half to outlast the Sioux Falls Skyforce 95-91 at the Westchester County Center on Friday night.

Travis Trice II and Jordon Crawford led a balanced scoring attack for the Knicks in the victory. Trice had 20 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor to go along with six assists and three rebounds while Crawford totaled 16 points on 7 for 12 shooting from the floor with five assists, four rebounds and two steals in 28 minutes off the bench.

Jordan Bachynski and Darion Atkins also reached double figures for Westchester. Bachynski had 15 points on 50 percent shooting with seven rebounds and three blocks while Atkins registered 10 points, four rebounds and three assists.

Jarnell Stokes and Rodney McGruder carried the scoring load for the Skyforce. Stokes had 21 points on 8 for 13 shooting with a game-high 15 rebounds while McGruder recorded 19 points and seven rebounds.

Keith Benson added 16 points and nine rebounds while Jabril Trawick chipped in with 15 points and eight boards.

Jimmer Fredette played just the first quarter before leaving the game with illness. In 12 minutes, he finished with eight points on 2 for 4 shooting from the floor including a make on his only attempt from beyond the arc and 3 for 3 from the free-throw line.

Game 26

Westchester had no answers for the Maine bench as the Red Claws knocked off the Knicks 119-105 at the Portland Expo Building on Saturday night. Every player off the Main bench scored at least 12 points while scoring 62 points, including 11 of the team’s 21 3-pointers in the big win.

Levi Randolph and Coty Clarke did most of the damage. Randolph finished with 19 points on 6 for 8 shooting from the floor, including 4 for 4 from beyond the arc while Clarke managed 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

Andre Stringer and Omari Johnson also had solid performances for the Red Claws. Stringer had 15 points, seven assists and three rebounds while Johnson totaled 15 points, two assists and two steals.

Gani Lawal and Jimmer Fredette paced the Knicks in the loss. Lawal had 20 points on 9 for 12 shooting from the floor to go along with nine rebounds while Fredette finished with 18 points on 6 for 13 shooting from the floor, including 1 for 4 from beyond the arc and 5 for 7 from the free-throw line. He added seven assists, five rebounds  and a steal in 38 minutes.

Jordan Bachynski totaled 16 points on 7 for 11 shooting from the floor with six rebounds and five blocks while Travis Trice II put up 13 points on 6 for 11 shooting with seven assists.

Fredette got his offense going early with a running floater before he handed out three assists. After a pair of free throws and another assist, he added five more first-quarter points on a short jumper and a 3-pointer.

After going scoreless in the second quarter, he found his offense again in the third. He started it out with a baseline jumper followed by a reverse lay up in traffic. He finished the quarter out with a fast break lay up and three free throws.

Game 27

The Westchester Knicks limped into the all-star break with a 93-85 loss to the Iowa Energy on Tuesday morning. After scoring 56 points in the first-half, the Knicks scored just 29 points in the last two quarters for their second loss in a row.

James Ennis and Andrew Harrison did most of the damage offensively for the Energy in the win. Ennis totaled 25 points on 4 for 8 shooting from beyond the arc while Harrison managed 18 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals. Iowa also got a huge performance from Alex Stepheson who finished with 17 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots.

Jimmer Fredette led five Knicks in double figures in the loss with 25 points on 8 for 17 shooting from the floor, including 1 for 3 from 3-point range nd 8 for 8 from the free-throw line. He added six rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block in 38 minutes.

Gani Lawal and Travis Trice II also had solid outings for Westchester. Lawal had 12 points and eight rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench while Trice had 11 points, six steals, five assists and four rebounds.

Fredette got his offense going midway through the first quarter with a pair of free-throw before he knocked down his first field goal of the day on a spin move to get open in the paint.

He caught fire 10 second-quarter points in just over three minutes on two lay ups, four free throws and a pull-up jumper to push the Westchester lead to 12 at the break. He followed that up with seven points in an 80 second spurt in the third with two more free throws, his only 3-pointer of the game and another jumper.

He added two fourth-quarter baskets came on a floater in the lane and a fast break lay up.

On the season, he is averaging 22.6 points on 48.7 percent shooting, from the floor, including 42.7 percent from 3-point land and 91.4 percent from the free-throw line. He also averages 4.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.7 steals in 36.1 minutes a night.

Up next for Fredette is a trip to Toronto for all-star weekend where he is scheduled to participate in the 3-point contest and the all-star game.