The Erie BayHawks and Reno Bighorns will play a deciding Game 3 Thursday at 10 p.m. at the Reno Events Center after having two memorable games that went down to the final minute.

The second-seeded Bighorns won Game 1 Sunday, 106-101, at Tullio Arena in Erie, but the fifth-seeded BayHawks took Game 2 Tuesday, 114-111,  in Reno, Nev.

Tuesday’s win for Erie snapped Reno’s nine-game winning streak that began when the Bighorns beat the BayHawks at home, 100-89, on March 16.

The Reno-Erie winner will play Rio Grande Valley, the defending D-League champions, in the D-League semifinals. The third-seeded Vipers beat Bakersfield in three games.

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Point guard Blake Ahearn shot just 5-of-13 from the field in Erie's 106-101 loss in Game 1 Sunday at Tullio Arena.

Up 12 early in the fourth quarter, the Erie BayHawks wound up losing Game 1, 106-101, to the Reno Bighorns in the first round of the D-League playoffs Sunday at Tullio Arena.

Game 2 is Tuesday in Reno, Nev. at 10 p.m.  Game 3, if necessary, will be Thursday in Reno at 10 p.m.

Erie led 85-73 with 10 minutes, 43 seconds left in the game Sunday. Here’s how Erie got the lead.

1. Made shots: The BayHawks shot 51.1 percent in the first half to go up, 55-50, at the break. Ivan Johnson had 18 first-half points on 8-of-12 shooting. Erie had 26 points in the paint.

2. Strong bench play: Erik Daniels had nine points and five rebounds in the first half. Jermaine Beal hit a pair of 3-point shots. Erie had a 17-12 edge in bench points.

3. Energy: Playing off the crowd, the fifth-seeded BayHawks were quicker to the ball, had Reno frustrated and kept the second-seeded Bighorns off balance. Reno had eight turnovers in the first half.

Now here’s how Reno erased Erie’s lead.

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Earlier this week, Reno coach Eric Musselman called it case two coaches being “competitive.”

As the Erie BayHawks (32-18) head into Game 1 of their best-of-three D-League playoff series against the second-seeded Bighorns (34-16), check out how Musselman and Utah Flash coach Kevin Young got into it this season.

Now Musselman, who was an NBA head coach with the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings, wasn’t suspended for this, but this shows how “competitive” he can be.

Combo guard Loren Stokes has started five games for the Erie BayHawks (32-18) this season.

There are times when Loren Stokes shows why he scored 2,148 career points at Hofstra. Then he’ll have moments of indecision and make mistakes.

However, Erie coach Jay Larranaga feels as if Stokes is finding his groove at the right time as the fifth-seeded BayHawks play Game 1 of their best-of-three series against second-seeded Reno on Sunday at 5 p.m. at Tullio Arena.

“He’s comfortable,” Larranaga said. “He’s got a different games than most guys. He’s a basketball player. You put him on the court. He’s going to get rebounds. He’s going to get assists. Going to get points.”

In 22 games with Erie, Stokes, a Buffalo native, is averaging only 4.8 points, three rebounds and 2.1 assists. He shooting 53.8 percent from the field, but has only made 1-of-5 shots from 3-point range and is just 21-of-41 from the free throw line.

Stokes has only scored in double figures twice this season, going for 11 in losses against Iowa and Tulsa, but Larranaga had high praise for him.

“I don’t know if you can actually put him in a box of he’s a point guard, he’s a 2-guard,” Larranaga said. “He’s just a basketball player. My way of thinking, I am very specialized and I like organization and stuff. So Loren is one of those guys that I just want to put him out there and trust that he’s going to make the right decisions almost every time. I think he’s comfortable.”

Larranaga remembers watching Stokes have big games in college against George Mason, who is coached by Larranaga’s dad, Jim.

“He killed my dad’s team for four straight years,” Larranaga said. “He competes defensively. He rebounds and he’s a very good offensive player. So I think he’s ended the season well. Thought he played really well against Maine and against Iowa so we’re hoping he can be a big part of us in the playoffs.”

Blake Ahearn doesn't know what to make of how Reno selected the BayHawks.

Erie BayHawks forward Tasmin Mitchell buys it, but his teammate, Blake Ahearn, doesn’t know what to make of how the Reno Bighorns chose them as their first-round opponent in the D-League playoffs.

The D-League has the top three seeds pick their playoff opponnent. After top-seeded Iowa chose seventh-seeded Utah, Reno had the second pick.

The Bighorns chose Erie, a fifth-seed, but head coach Eric Musselman said the team had their player personnel assistant, Sammy Gelfand, pick a team out of a hat. He picked between Erie, Bakersfield and Texas.

“He’s our money-ball guy,” said Musselman, whose Bighorns are 1-0 against Erie this season, winning 100-89 in Reno on March 16.

Musselman said the team struggled to pick a team because Reno respects all the teams, but to go with drawing a name out of hat seems odd.

Mitchell buys it.

“You have no choice but to give us respect,” he said. “Our record shows for itself. Our record and how many games we put together. Yeah. I buy it. I buy it all the way.”

Ahearn isn’t so sure.

“I guess we got to take his word for it,” he said. “I can’t imagine if a head coach doesn’t feel comfortable with a team, he’s not going to chose us. I don’t think you can leave it up to picking out of a hat or a coin flip. I just find that very hard to believe, but do we take it personally and this and that? It’s gonna happen. Three teams have to pick somebody and the other two get paired up. It is what it is, but all that stuff goes out the window. It comes down to players making plays in the game. That’s what it will be.”

Guard Mike Gansey doesn't see his former team getting out the first round of the 2011 D-League playoffs.

Mike Gansey is picking against his former team.

On the website, Ridiculous Upside, Gansey picked the second-seeded Reno Bighorns (34-16) to beat the fifth-seeded Erie BayHawks (32-16) in the D-League’s best-of-three playoff series beginning Sunday at 5 p.m. at Tullio Arena.

Reno won its lone game against Erie this season, 100-89, at home March 16. Gansey is playing overseas in Spain. While with Erie last season, Gansey averaged 18.4 points.

This one is a bit of a head scratcher as my buddy Scott pointed out the Bighorns were 6-1 vs. Bakersfield this season but chose the Bayhawks instead.  Now I know Erie has been up and down the last couple weeks of the season but with Blake Ahearn and Ivan Johnson they have one of the best 1-2 combinations in the D-League.  Reno has been LOADED all season with an NBA roster it seems the entire year but Coach Eric Musselman has been able to put it together and have to give him some credit.

Pick: I really had a tough time picking a winner in this one but I have to go with Reno in three games here.  They just have too many athletic bodies to throw at and slow down Ivan Johnson. Despite the outstanding job Erie Coach Jay Larranaga has done this past year, the Bighorns will advance.

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No beard for Erie BayHawks reserve PF Kyle Goldcamp in the playoffs.

He was so excited.

Late last month, power forward Kyle Goldcamp was growing out his beard and viewing it as a good luck charm for the Erie BayHawks heading into the D-League playoffs.

The problem was Erie kept losing.

So the former Gannon standout shaved the whiskers and Erie won its last three games of the regular season.

The fifth-seeded BayHawks (32-16) will play Game 1 of the best-of-three first round series against second-seeded Reno (34-16) Sunday at 5 p.m. at Tullio Arena.

“Well, it was a pretty decent length and then we lost again at home to Iowa and I was convinced it was a bad-luck  beard,” Goldcamp said. “Then I shaved it between the Iowa games and we won by 20. As athletes, we’re a little superstitious so I have to keep going with it. I’ll be freshly shaved the rest of the way.”

Game 2 of the series will be Tuesday night (10 p.m.) in Reno. If a Game 3 is needed to decide the series, it will be played in Reno on Thursday night (10 p.m.).

The Erie BayHawks split their two-game series at Bakersfield by winning Friday night in double overtime, 123-121, and losing Saturday night, 126-98.

The BayHawks (28-16) are 1-3 on this five-game road trip that ends Tuesday night at Fort Wayne (21-23), which is clinging to that eighth and final playoff spot.

Setting a franchise record for most wins in a single season, Erie is in the fifth spot. It’s just a half game behind Reno (29-16), but would lose a tiebreaker to the Bighorns because they beat the BayHawks during this road trip.

Erie is just a half game ahead of Bakersfield (27-16), which is in the sixth spot. The big thing for the BayHawks is trying to get back to that fourth spot so they can have home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

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Kyle Spain and the Erie BayHawks have more work to do before the D-League playoffs begin next month.

A night in Reno.

The BayHawks resume their five-game road trip tomorrow at Reno (26-16) and follow that up with two games at Bakersfield (25-16) before rounding it up Tuesday at Fort Wayne (19-23).

Erie opened the road trip with a 133-126 loss Sunday at Iowa, which has the D-League’s best record at 32-11.

Erie (27-14) has clinched the playoffs and is right now a fourth seed. The top four seeds have home-court advantage for the first round and the top three seeds get to pick their first-round opponent.

Reno is just 1.5 games behind Erie and Bakersfield trails the BayHawks by two games. If the BayHawks lose those three, they could drop from fourth to seventh in a hurry.

Plus the Bighorns and Jam will own the head-to-head tiebreaker against the BayHawks.

And don’t think that game at Fort Wayne will be easy.

Erie is 4-1 against the Mad Ants, but they’re vying for the final playoff spot and have a former BayHawk in point guard Derek Raivio, who landed in Fort Wayne following a three-team trade last month.

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