PORTLAND — It was all but over.
Trailing the Springfield Armor by six points with 53 seconds left Sunday, the Maine Red Claws appeared to be finished.
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Then, for the first time all game, the Red Claws’ offense heated up, and a pair of 3-pointers enabled them to send the game to overtime. Maine stayed hot in the extra three minutes, draining three straight 3-pointers to beat the Armor 110-101 at the Portland Expo.
The Red Claws (19-29) have a new player, and a chip on the shoulder of Kenny Hayes, to thank for the improbable victory.
First, Lawrence Hill blocked a shot, then hit a 3-pointer to cut Maine’s deficit to 96-93 with 43.7 seconds left in regulation.
After another stop, Hayes came off a screen and hit a 3-pointer with 8.6 seconds remaining. Hayes had been hit in the eyes twice by Springfield’s Jerry Smith.
“Coach drew up a play in the huddle. Screen for me to get open and he said, ‘make a play’ after that,” Hayes said. “I was looking to make a play. I was already mad about the little cheap shot to the face. Second one was an accident and I hope the first one was an accident, but I took it as if it wasn’t. It got me going.”
He could still see the basket just fine. Hayes was 5 for 5 on 3-pointers and scored 25 points.
Newcomer Cedric Bozeman started overtime with a 3-pointer. Then Morris Almond chipped in a 3-pointer and Hayes added another as the Claws pulled out to a 105-98 lead.
“Not only did they make them, they made them loud, and that’s what you need to do,” Maine Coach Dave Leitao said of the 3-point barrage.
Bozeman made plenty of noise in his first home game with the Red Claws. The veteran went 3 for 3 on 3-pointers and finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists.
Though Bozeman, 29, has only been with the Red Claws for a few games, that’s been plenty of time for him to pick up some teasing from his teammates.
“He’s a vet in the game. We were teasing him earlier. What are you, 35? He’s got the bald head hair going. He looks like my dad,” Hayes said.
He didn’t look like an old man on the court. Bozeman did the dirty work down low, picking up loose balls. He ran the point to create mismatches. Hayes said he wished Bozeman had joined the Red Claws a month ago.
“It’d be a lot of fun,” Bozeman said. “(Hayes is) a scorer. He can score. He plays good with the ball and without the ball. I would have had a lot of fun playing with these guys if I was here the whole time.”
Sunday wasn’t bad for a short-timer. The Red Claws have just two games left, and Bozeman will play in the Philippines when the season ends.
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