G League Rio Grande Valley Vipers

Asumnu, Collins Lead RGV to Third Straight Win

Published on March 31, 2008 under NBA G League (G League)
Rio Grande Valley Vipers News Release


Hidalgo, TX; March 31, 2008-

Despite returning from an injury, Vipers Forward Trent Strickland encouraged Head Coach Brian Walsh to start Stanley Asumnu after his career performance on Saturday night. The selfless act by Stricland led to Asumnu's second straight double-double in the Vipers 120-113 victory over the Albuquerque Thunderbirds on Monday night at Dodge Arena. The Vipers win is their fourth straight over the T-birds and their third in a row overall.

The Vipers were surprised by a different starting line-up for Albuquerque as Jeff Ruland started four players who had seen little-to-no action in the three-game series. The move proved to work initially as the normal starters exploded in the second quarter with 37 points as the T-birds took a 59-51 halftime lead. The Vipers trailed by as many as 12 in the second half, but a furious offensive fourth quarter led by Kris Collins allowed the Vipers to regain the lead and haul in the victory. The Vipers outscored the T-birds 39-27 in the final frame to seal the win.

Asumnu tallied 20 points and hauled in 11 rebounds in his second straight start. Collins was a pair of rebounds and three assists shy of a triple-double on Monday. Collins tied his career high with 31 points as he chalked up his fifth straight 20-plus point game. Strickland scored 17 and added six boards off the bench, while Ivan Johnson scored 17 of his own despite being in foul trouble for most of the game. The D-League's leading scorer Desmon Farmer added to his all-time D-League scoring record with 24 points.

Will Conroy and Julius Hodge led the way for the T-birds with 16 points, with both players coming off the bench. Conroy also dished out six assists in the loss. Phoenix assignee Alondo Tucker scored 13 points and hauled in five rebounds also coming off the bench.

The Vipers have only one game left on their inaugural season schedule. The Vipers will have to wait 11 days before their final game when they face the Tulsa 66ers at Dodge Arena on April 11. Tip-off for the final game is set for 7:00 pm.

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