St. John's Edge can't come up with another winning rally against Express

On Wednesday night, for a third straight game, the St. John’s Edge mounted a furious fourth-quarter comeback against the Windsor Express.
This time it wasn’t enough.
At Windsor, Ont.,the Express won their ninth straight home game, downing the Edge 123-116.
It was the third straight National Basketball League of Canada meeting between the two teams; the Edge (17-12) had won twice at Mile One Centre in St. John’s last weekend, in both cases rallying late for victories.
On Wednesday at the WFCU Centre, they looked like they might be able to do it again, coming up with a whopping 45 points in a wild fourth quarter (Windsor had 36 in the frame), but it the visitors still couldn’t overcome a lead that the Express (16-14) took early and kept expanding throughout the game.
In fact, after Windsor’s Ryan Anderson sank a free throw 14 seconds into the contest, the home side remained in front the rest of the way — there would be no lead changes in this one.
Russell Byrd, making his first appearance of the season for the Edge, led St. John’s with 25 points off the bench.
Byrd was acquired in an early February trade with the Island Storm, with Maurice Jones going the other way. However Wednesday didn’t mark his debut with St. John’s; he had been with the Edge in 2017-18 before signing as a free agent this past summer. After starting the current season with the Storm, he joined a team in Qatar, but signed with the Edge after they acquired his rights.
Des Lee (23), former Express player Shaquille Keith (18), Junior Cadougan (17) and Obinna Oleka (12) all scored in double figures for St. John’s, with Oleka finishing as the team’s top rebounder with nine boards.
Glen Davis had nine points and eight rebounds for the Edge, with almost all of his production coming in the second half, when he played 20 of his total 27 minutes.
The Express had no less than four starters score more than 20 points: Horace Wormely (27), Tyrrel Tate (23), and Anderson and Juan Pattillo, both with 22.
Pattillo, Windsor’s leading scorer, was back in action after missing weekend play in St. John’s because of injury, but the team was without Chris Davis, serving a one-game, league-imposed suspension. And we’re still waiting on the status of former league MVP Royce White, who was signed by the Express a week ago, but hasn’t played yet — he’s on Windsor’s injured reserve list.
The Edge won’t have much time to lick their wounds from Wednesday’s loss. They’re back on court tonight in London to take on he defending champion London, whose lineup includes former St. John’s players Alex Johnson and Rudolphe Joly.
It’s part of a four-game Ontario road trip for St. John’s, one that continues Saturday against the Kitchener-Waterloo Titans and Monday versus the Sudbury Five.