A great crowd turned out to witness the return of long-time head coach Bill Jones to the bench. Coach Jones had his year long suspension lifted earlier this week after a successful appeal was heard by the league.

A night after getting ejected in his final game coach Tony Jones would slide one seat down the bench and take over assistant coaching duties. As for the play on the court Windsor was looking for revenge against the London after losing to the Lightning on the road just two nights prior.

The only thing that could stop Windsor coming out of the gate was themselves. Brandon Robinson was most likely melting the ice underneath the WFCU hardwood as he was on fire to start out. There seemed to be something extra motivating Robinson tonight as he and counterpart Warren Ward we jawing the entire first quarter.

The home debut for Rudolph Joly began with lock down defense and a refreshing jolt of inside scoring. The big man was imposing his will on London forward Chad Posthumus. At the end of one quarter the Express held a 28-17 lead over the struggling London Lightning.

Windsor kept their feet on the throats of London coming out of the break on an 8-2 run. There was not much excitement for the majority of the quarter. That is until London forward Akeem Wright leapt through the air and slammed home a rim rattling dunk.

Highlight plays aside Windsor still held ten point lead. The fans loved Tony Bennett’s defensive effort forcing a travel and collecting a steal all in the matter of 30 seconds. The efforts of the whole team were a by-product of their 48-36 lead at half.

Coach Jones had his team playing with the same level of intensity as they finished with in the first half. Chris Commons began taking guys to school down low in the third. Working both the right and left sides the showed why the paint at the WFCU centre is referred to as the House of Commons. What was once a sizeable lead for London had progressively deteriorated until eventually London tied the game up with a clutch three-pointer.

With the game tied up it was time to call on a superhero. Alex Johnson’s buzzer beating and-one shot allowed Windsor to regain the lead with time winding down in the third quarter. Despite being outscored 29-22 in the quarter Windsor still led London by a score of 70-65.

The fourth quarter of this contest was nothing short of a back-and-forth dog fight. Johnson did not need heat vision in the fourth quarter to show why they call him Superman. Johnson’s three made triples elevated the Express offense and their lead over London. Windsor was not making it easy on themselves all night with a glaring inability to sink free throws.

The Express lead was down to just a single point with under a minute to go. Brandon Robinson’s clutch free throws extended that lead. What looked like a hopeless moment for Chris Commons turned into a game saving play. Commons missed both his free throws on one end to subsequently block the potential game winning three by London. Windsor would take this thriller of a game by a score of 91-88.

The post Welcome back Coach Jones! appeared first on In Play! magazine.

Windsor travelled to London to take on the rival Lightning, a team the Express have won their last two matchups against dating back to the Clash at the Coliseum.

Theo Davis would start in place of the suspended Kirk Williams Jr. Williams Jr. is serving the first of his three game suspension after an incident that occurred in last weeks game against the Orangeville A’s.

Windsor jumped out to an early lead thanks to the sharp shooting of Tony Bennett. That lead did not last long. London went on a run late in the quarter and were able to grab the lead. London’s Nick Okorie airmailed a no-look alley-oop to Marcus Capers who finished with an electrifying dunk. London’s offense looked like too much for Windsor to handle on the road early on. After one quarter, the Lightning led 26-20.

London carried their momentum into the second quarter. A 14-2 run kicked off the quarter for the Lightning due in large part to their ability to hit shots at the three point line. Brandon Robinson was trading threes with the Lightning in an attempt to shorten the Lightning lead. Windsor was outscored 30-15 in the second quarter by London giving the Lightning a 56-35 lead at half.

Windsor was looking to intensify their offense and get some stops on defense in the third. Newly signed Canadian centre and University of Quebec at Montreal alum Rudolphe Joy notched his first two points in an Express uniform in the third quarter, cutting the lead to 20. Maurice Bolden had a huge third quarter with a ferocious dunk and a huge swat on the defensive end. After a much better third quarter Windsor had cut into the London lead but still faced an 81-66 deficit heading into the fourth.

Long-time Express forward and fan favourite Chris Commons hit a career milestone in the fourth quarter of this game as he secured his 2, 000^th career National Basketball League of Canada regular season point.

Commons didn’t stop there however, hitting some clutch three’s down the stretch giving Windsor a two point lead late in the fourth quarter. Instead of getting their usual lead and squandering it away in the second half Windsor showed some resilience and battled back from down 21. Former Express and current Lightning guard Ryan Anderson got some revenge on his old team when he knocked down a triple to break the 98-all tie. That would be enough for London to take the lead and the game. Windsor’s comeback fell short as London was victorious by a score of 104-98.

The Express move on to Niagara for game two of their three game stretch. Windsor concludes said three game stretch at home against the London Lightning on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 7:30 p.m.

The post Lightning Shock Windsor, Commons hits Milestone appeared first on In Play! magazine.

Coming off a pair of road games the Windsor Express returned home to the WFCU centre to square off against the Orangeville A’s.

Newcomer and Oklahoma City native Eric Frederick would be in uniform for the Express for this one. Orangeville entered the WFCU centre coming off a home loss to the Niagara River Lions.

Firing on all cylinders would be an understatement when describing the way the Express offense started out Thursday night. A 14-2 run by Windsor featured a Kirk Williams Jr alley-oop dunk from Tony Bennett the likes of which Express fans have grown so accustomed to seeing over the years. During the first quarter Theo Davis provided a much needed inside game that Windsor has lacked all season. Windsor would lead 28-17 after one quarter.

When Davis left the floor early in the second quarter it was evident Windsor became instantly softer in the middle. Things got interesting late in the second quarter and this action had nothing to do with basketball. When Williams Jr got into a scuffle with Orangeville forward Flenard Whitfield it seemed to be nothing more than a gentleman’s disagreement.

Instead both players needed to be restrained and words were exchanged in what developed into a small shoving match. Both players were ejected as a result. When the dust settled there was still 46 seconds to play in the half. Windsor held on for those final moments and led 49-48 at the break.

With their top scorer now ejected from the contest Windsor needed some of their veteran players to settle the team down and take over the offense. Express forward Chris Commons started the quarter with a pair of triples, pushing Windsor out to a ten point lead. Windsor would dominate all shooting categories resulting in a 76-64 lead entering the final quarter.

Windsor’s defense to begin the fourth quarter was lack-luster. Coach Tony Jones was becoming more and more angry with his team’s inability to get a much needed stop down the stretch. Alex “Superman” Johnson showed Express fans flashes of his memorable North Carolina State career, hitting some clutch shots in the final minutes of the game. After a series of free throws Superman and the Windsor Express would secure the victory by a score of 99-95.

Player of the game was Chris Commons following his 32 point, three rebound game. Windsor’s record improved to 9-9 following the victory. Orangeville would drop to 5-8. The Express go back on the road Thursday and Friday to take on London and Niagara respectively.

Windsor returns home to play their 401 rivals the London Lightning Saturday Feb. 20 at 7:30 p.m.

The post Express win hard FOUGHT battle vs Orangeville appeared first on In Play! magazine.

Windsor Express Struck by Lightning, Slay River Lions, go 1-1 on the Week.

The Windsor Express slayed the Niagara River Lions during the second game of a back-to-back home set. After both teams lost the night before fans saw some noticeable names left out of the lineup. Tony Bennett would start the night on the bench after scoring 32 points in the losing effort the previous night. For Niagara, they would be without the National Basketball League of Canada’s second leading scorer Logan Stutz for the entire game. Adrian Moss was able to knock down some clutch shots in the fourth quarter to give the Express a 108-103 win.

The Express may have won the war but Niagara took the battle on the offensive glass by a wide margin, out rebounding Windsor 20-9 offensively. After losing a Jan. 22 game to London in which Windsor was dominated on the glass it has been interesting to see how first year coach Tony Jones has used his front court players. Jan. 22 was the first game in nearly three weeks for Express forward Kirk Williams Jr who was away from the team dealing with an off-court issue. Williams Jr, who was a mainstay in the Express starting five before his departure, has assumed a bench role while attempting to get back into the swing of things.

“My body is going to be my body so it’s the same as before,” said Williams Jr “Im just trying to get back to where I was before I left. When I got back there was like 30 new plays so I had to relearn it all.”

Most fans are aware that the NBLC is a league where players bounce around from team to team quite often.  With players constantly moving around and rosters always changing it becomes tough on coaches to constantly teach new players the playbook. Paul Cooper was signed in an attempt to beef up the Express front court but saw just over three minutes against London and no time against Niagara. Not everyone can be Brandon Robinson who has started every game except one since signing with Windsor and has only gone on to lead the league in points per game and steals per game while averaging 25.2 points, 6 assists and 7.7 rebounds a night. With Windsor getting out rebounded on a nightly basis it will be interesting to see how the Windsor big men are mixed and matched in an attempt to tighten the rebounding gap moving forward.

A few fresh faces saw the floor against Niagara. Chris Matthews would start his first game for Windsor, replacing the resting Bennett. Jamal McQueen came off the bench and registered 5 points, an assist and a rebound on his seven and a half minutes of work. While both Matthews and McQueen making the most of their minutes both players may find it difficult seeing the floor as Windsor looks to make a run in the division. Even with the Express starters playing so well coach Jones says the players who perform the best will play the most.

“Those guys came in and contributed. It’s all about the coaching staff building some confidence in those guys and when they get on the floor that they’re productive. I can foresee them playing a lot more in the future,” said coach Jones

The Windsor Express is now 6-6 on the season and they are quickly approaching the third annual Clash at the Coliseum game on Feb. 3. This event is one of the biggest events in the NBLC and is a big hit with fans and casino players alike. The Express will travel to Niagara Jan. 28 and look to continue their reign over the River Lions. The Island Storm then come from out east and travel to Windsor to do battle with the Express on Friday, Jan. 29 at the WFCU centre.

The post Express Weekly – Windsor Draws Even on the Week appeared first on In Play! magazine.

Express make things interesting, lose comeback attempt 123-115

Thank you to everyone who is reading the first edition of Off The Rails.

If I can promise you one thing it is that we will have fun with this. I gained this position with In Play! Magazine because of my internship with the Express but I am in no way biased towards the team. I’m here to fulfill all your Windsor Express needs and give you my honest opinion.

Let’s get right into the game action. After getting to .500 on the season Windsor would play game one of a back-to-back. The London Lightning entered the WFCU centre in first place in the Central Division. Former Express and current Lightning forward Kevin Loiselle received his NBL Canada championship ring before the game. It was a surprise to many to see forward Kirk Williams Jr. at the arena after dealing with a personal matter for many weeks. Game Pix

To put it simply London would start out hot going on a 15-3 tear and Windsor looked sluggish. Windsor’s inability to defend the three pointer hurt them in the first half. Maurice Bolden’s two-handed slam helped the Express stay in the game but Windsor still trailed 30-19 heading into the second quarter.

In his first game back Kirk Williams Jr drove to the basket and slung a slick no look pass to Brandon Robinson who finished it off with a dunk. Windsor was finally able to settle down on the defensive end and notched some turnovers that led to an 11-3 run to end the quarter. Tempers ran hot but London led 58-51 through two quarters. After giving fans seemingly nothing to cheer about in the first quarter the Windsor faithful were on their feet helping set the tone for the Express run.

More alley oop dunks led off the third quarter, this time with Robinson dishing to Bolden on the receiving end. Carrying momentum into the half Express guard Tony Bennett propelled his team past London for their lead of the game with his stone cold three pointer. Don’t be surprised if you see Chris Commons in a public service announcement any time soon as he was bullying guys in the paint all night. After a 33 point swing Windsor was in the driver’s seat heading into the fourth, up 90-82.

The officials let the boys play going down the stretch. Three point shooting was the difference all game and it was no different in the fourth. London shot their way to a command lead. Windsor was deflated after Stephen Maxwell received a full court pass that he miraculously slammed home. London would leave Windsor victorious defeating Windsor 123-115.

Coach Tony Jones knows his team needed to improve statistically to stay in this ball game.

“When you go to the line and only make six out of your 13 free throws it’s going to be difficult to win games. Shooting 21 per cent from three is unacceptable. We know what we have to work on and we will go get them tomorrow,” said coach Jones.

The “they” coach Jones is referring to is the Niagara River Lions who visit the WFCU centre once again on Saturday, January 23, 2016 for a 7:30 tip time. Windsor will need to win this game to get back to .500 and stay out of the basement in the Central Division.

The post Express make it Interesting, Can’t make Comeback appeared first on In Play! magazine.