Opening Night Overtime Thriller Falls Short for 66'ers
December 6, 2008 - NBA G League (G League)
Tulsa 66ers News Release
Tulsa, Okla., December 5, 2008 - Will Conroy scored 16 of his game-high 31 points in overtime for the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, as they spoiled the home opener for the Tulsa 66ers 102-93 on Friday at the SpiritBank Event Center.
Tulsa started the game shooting 10-of-18 from the field in the first quarter, and built a 12-point lead with nine minutes remaining in the first half after an Adam Liberty jump shot. The Thunderbirds roared back with a 24-to-13 run to cut the 66ers lead to 46-45 heading into halftime.
Albuquerque had another run in the third quarter, as the 66ers were outscored in the period 15-27. With 10:34 remaining in the game, Tulsa managed a 14-to-2 run of their own to tie the game at 76, after a Ronald Dupree layup, leading to the exciting finish in overtime.
Tulsa had 28 turnovers in the game, while shooting 10-of-19 from the free throw line. Albuquerque shot 26-of-32 from the line, and turned the ball over 25 times.
Including Conroy, the Thunderbirds had with six players score in double figures. Cory Underwood scored 21 and grabbed nine rebounds. Kris Clack had 14 points off the bench, Cheyne Gadson and David Noel finished with 11 each, and David Monds added 10 points in Albuquerque's first win of the season.
"We are struggling right now with our lack of consistency. We can play really well at times, and then inexplicably we don't play well at all for a stretch," 66ers Head Coach Paul Woolpert said. "We just need to put it together for 48 minutes."
Moses Ehambe scored a team-high 26 points, including 7-of-10 from three-point range, for the 66ers in the loss. In his first game with the 66ers, since being signed on Wednesday, Dupree contributed 16 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. He also dished out five assists and grabbed four rebounds. Center Chris Richard contributed 13 points and snatched down eight rebounds.
Tulsa (0-3) heads to Los Angeles on Sunday, the start of a five-game road trip, their longest of the season. Albuquerque (1-3) continues on their five-game road trip to Fort Wayne that same afternoon.
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