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Isaiah Whitehead scores 36 but Long Island falls to Erie, 114-102

By Net Income
Long Island Nets v Canton Charge Photo by Allison Farrand/NBAE via Getty Images

Isaiah Whitehead scored 36 points in 31 minutes, but it wasn’t enough as the Erie BayHawks (18-16) clipped the Long Island Nets (18-15) Friday night inside Erie Insurance Arena 114-102. It was the Seton Hall product’s biggest G-League scoring output.

Whitehead shot 13-of-24 (54.2 percent) from the floor, including an 8-of-13 (61.5 percent clip from beyond the arc, recording four rebounds and a steal. He did not record an assist, playing the 2 and 3 for coach Ronald Nored

His big G-League game comes after his recent call-up with Brooklyn where in two games and 20 minutes this week, he scored 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting, including 2-of-3 from deep. Whitehead has improved his 3-point shooting this season in both the NBA and G-League, hitting 49-of-133 for 36.8 percent. Last year, he shot only 29.5 percent.

Here’s his highlight package...

Milton Doyle, the Nets big scorer all season —and the G-League’s sixth leading point producer— finished with eight points on 2-of-12 shooting, missing all six of his 3-point attempts. Doyle was named to the Midseason All-NBA G League team two days ago.

Kamari Murphy, Whitehead’s teammate at Lincoln High School in Coney Island, pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds, to go along with eight points, three assists and two steals in 41.2 minutes. Long Island recorded 30 fast break points to Erie’s 18, but their defense was not up to the task, permitting the Bayhawks, Atlanta’s G-League affiliate to go on big runs and beat up the Nets on the boards.

As a team, the BayHawks outscored the Nets 68-42 in points in the paint and pulled down 53 rebounds to Long Island’s 43.

Erie finished the first quarter on a 14-8 run, to take a seven-point, 27-20, lead heading into the second quarter of action. The BayHawks extended their lead early in the second, 39-25, off of a Jaylen Morris layup with 8:05 left in the half. Behind Craig Sword’s 11 first half points, Erie went into the intermission of tonight’s contest holding a 63-48 advantage. Sword (11), Raphiael Putney (10) and Jordan Mathews (10) each poured in double-digit points in the opening half.

The Nets crept their way back in the opening minutes of the second half, cutting their deficit to single-digits, 67-58, off of a Whitehead three-pointer. Erie responded by going on a 12-8 run, to take a 79-66, lead with 4:50 left in the third quarter. After three quarters of action, the BayHawks held an 11-point, 88-77, lead.

Long Island’s 6’7” swingman Thomas Wimbush opened the fourth quarter with a putback layup, bringing Long Island within nine. With 5:46 left in regulation, Whitehead knocked down two free throws, to close the gap to 97-92. The BayHawks were able to hold off Long Island’s comeback, finishing with a 114-102 win. Erie now holds a 2-1 regular season record against Long Island.

Jeremy Evans, the six-year NBA vet and 2012 Slam Dunk champ who’s trying to get back in the L, notched a double-double, 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting and a game-high 12 rebounds, two steals and one block in 27.1 minutes.

Evans, who’s dealt with ankle issues since the start of the year, received a technical foul during a skirmish that saw Nets forward Akil Mitchell ejected with 4 minutes, 24 seconds left in the first quarter. In all, seven technicals were assessed in a highly chippy game.

Josh Magette, who may be the G-league’s best pure point guard, had nine assists to go with a team-high 22 points on 7-of-14 in 34 minutes. Atlanta assignee Tyler Cavanaugh contributed 15 points, eight rebounds and two steals in 23.0 minutes as a reserve.

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