Tulsa Holds off Delaware
February 7, 2014 - NBA G League (G League)
Tulsa 66ers News Release
TULSA, OK - Mustafa Shakur scored 29 points, including nine of Tulsa's final 13, as the Tulsa 66ers held off the Delaware 87ers, 106-104, on Friday night at the SpiritBank Event Center. Shakur shot 11-for-19 (58 percent) and added two rebounds, six assists and four steals.
Andre Roberson, on assignment from the Oklahoma City Thunder, posted his third consecutive double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Maurice Sutton collected 16 points and four rebounds while Reggie Williams scored 12 points with three assists. Ron Anderson totaled 10 points, seven rebounds and two steals and Xavier Alexander added 10 points, six rebounds and five assists off the bench.
The 66ers defense forced 27 Delaware turnovers. Tulsa tallied 12 steals on the night, with eight 66ers recording at least one takeaway.
"We had periods where were playing really good - sharing the ball, playing really good defense," said 66ers Head Coach Darko Rajakovic. "I think we opened the game really well, but we didn't continue with the same energy and allowed Delaware to pick it up and get back in the game. We stayed in the game and we fought through those problems and got the final stop."
Tulsa (11-19) began the game with aggressive defensive play, forcing 10 turnovers in the opening quarter. The 66ers shot 57.7 percent in the quarter to take a 37-29 lead at its conclusion.
Delaware (8-24) opened the second quarter with a 16-5 run to lead 45-42, but the 66ers quickly responded with an 8-0 run to build a five-point lead. The 66ers headed into halftime up 63-55 as Roberson, Shakur and Williams each scored 12 points in the first half.
The 87ers used a 10-2 run at the start of the second half to tie the game at 65. After a Tulsa run, Delaware tied the game for a second time in the frame on a Tiny Gallon put-back followed by a Michael Lee three-ball to take the lead. Shakur sunk a 25-foot three-pointer with three seconds remaining to tie the game at 85 heading into the fourth.
After back-and-forth scoring throughout the first four minutes of the fourth, Tulsa strung together consecutive buckets to take a 95-91 lead. Delaware stuck with Tulsa and pulled within one point on a pair of Vander Blue free throws with 2:11 remaining.
Roberson drove to the rim to extend Tulsa's lead back to three at the 57 second mark, but Arnett Moultrie responded with a bucket of his own to make it 105-104. Shakur was fouled with nine seconds remaining, where he made one of his foul shots before Tulsa held Delaware to a missed three-pointer on the final possession to seal the win.
The 87ers were led by Gallon with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
The two teams square off again on Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the SpiritBank Event Center. For ticket information, visit Tulsa66ers.com.
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