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A late steal by Renaldo Major and a free throw from Joe Jackson helped send the Austin Spurs to a 103-102 road loss to the Bakersfield Jam.
This matchup between two division leaders lived up to the billing as it was close throughout. The Spurs opened up a 28-22 lead at the end of one but the Jam closed the half with a solid second quarter and trailed 49-48 at the half.
Payne had a solid game off the bench finishing with 18 points and seven rebounds in 29 minutes. He went 1-3 from three-point range and also added a couple of steals and blocks to his line. JaMychal Green led the Spurs iwth 23 points and 11 rebounds. Jonathan Simmons added 20 points off the bnech.
Casey Prather led the Jam with 22 points while Earl Barron and Joe Jackson finished with 20 points each.
The two teams will meet again Friday night in a rematch.