66ers Fall to D-Fenders in Front of Record Crowd
March 11, 2014 - NBA G League (G League)
Tulsa 66ers News Release
OKLAHOMA CITY, MARCH 11, 2014 - The Tulsa 66ers fell to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, 117-109, at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City in front of 11,423 fans, an NBA D-League regular-season attendance record.
Students from 84 cities throughout Oklahoma and four surrounding states traveled to Chesapeake Energy Arena for Thunder Field Trip Day, representing 248 unique zip codes. The matinee game gave students the opportunity to experience the Thunder game-night entertainment of Rumble the Bison, the Thunder Girls, Storm Chasers and more while cheering on the 66ers.
"It meant a lot to our team to be able to play in Oklahoma City in front of so many fans," said 66ers Head Coach Darko Rajakovic. "It was a great experience and really fun to coach in this kind of atmosphere."
Reggie Williams, on assignment from the Oklahoma City Thunder, was one of six Tulsa players in double figures, posting 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Mustafa Shakur tallied 18 points, four rebounds and five assists.
Maurice Sutton collected 16 points and six boards off the bench and Isaiah Wilkerson scored 14 points while shooting 4-for-7 from behind the three-point line. Xavier Alexander and Rodney Bartholomew scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, while each grabbing eight rebounds.
Los Angeles outscored Tulsa 25-21 in the opening quarter before Tulsa began the second frame with a pair of three-pointers to take the lead. The 66ers won the quarter 37-35 but the D-Fenders held a 60-58 lead at the half. The 66ers came out of the halftime break with a strong defensive presence that held the D-Fenders to 17 points on 30.4 percent shooting in the third quarter.
LA used a big run in the middle of the fourth to help take a 111-102 lead into the final 50 seconds of the game. Tulsa quickly clawed back as Little hit a deep three followed by a quick steal by Alexander on the inbound that led to a layup by Williams. With five points in a five-second span, Tulsa pulled within four with 36 seconds remaining, but the D-Fenders held on with perfect free throw shooting in the final seconds.
"The start of the third quarter was a really important part of the game and our guys did a great job defensively in holding LA to 17 points," said Rajakovic. "Going into the last quarter, LA started hitting some tough shots on the other side. We'll come back to the gym tomorrow and continue working."
Tulsa (18-23) pulled down 47 rebounds and distributed 26 assists, including eight from Scoop Jardine.
Los Angeles (23-15) was led by Josiah Turner with 31 points, four rebounds and seven assists.
The 66ers are back in action on Thursday night when they host the Sioux Falls Skyforce at the SpiritBank Event Center. For ticket information, visit Tula66ers.com.
• Discuss this story on the NBA G League message board...
NBA G League Stories from March 11, 2014
- Charge Fall at Home to Skyforce - Cleveland Charge
- Warriors Recall Guard Nemanja Nedovic from Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA D-League - Santa Cruz Warriors
- Williams Recalled from Tulsa 66ers - Tulsa 66ers
- 66ers Fall to D-Fenders in Front of Record Crowd - Tulsa 66ers
- D-Fenders Win First Game of Road Trip over Tulsa - Los Angeles D-Fenders
- Austin Toros to Host Military Appreciation Night - Austin Spurs
- NBA D-League Update - G League
- Oklahoma City's Reggie Williams Assigned to NBA D-League's Tulsa 66ers - G League
- Williams Assigned to Tulsa 66ers - Tulsa 66ers
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
