G League Rio Grande Valley Vipers

RJ Hunter Leads Vipers Past Stars

March 20, 2018 - NBA G League (G League)
Rio Grande Valley Vipers News Release


MCALLEN, Texas - The NBA G League Rio Grande Valley Vipers, proud affiliate of the Houston Rockets, defeated Salt Lake City Stars 132-131. Akeem Springs scored a buzzer-beater at the end of the game but was ruled a two-pointer.

RJ Hunter led the Rio Grande Valley in scoring with 36 points, and two Vipers collected double-doubles. Chinanu Onuaku scored 15 points and had 10 rebounds in the game. Tony Wroten dished out 11 assists and scored 13 points. Stars' Naz Mitrou-Long led both teams with 37 points.

The Stars shot the ball well from beyond the arc in the opening quarter, going 8-for-10. Naz Mitrou-Long played very single second of the first quarter and had perfect shooting percentage, three-for-three from beyond the three-point line. The Vipers headed into the second quarter trailing 34-36.

RJ Hunter scored ten points in the second quarter and helped shift momentum over to the Vipers. With three minutes left in the game, Hunter scored both of his free throws to give the Vipers the lead. Rio Grande Valley was able to extend their lead to double-digits before the first half ended.

Diamond Stone had a huge impact for the Stars in the third quarter. With his 15 points, the Stars were able to outscore the Vipers in the third quarter as both teams entered the final quarter of play tied at 102.

The game came down to the wire. With only 17 seconds left in the game and the Vipers holding on to a three-point lead, Salt Lake City's Naz Mitrou-Long was fouled outside the three-point line sending him to the foul line for three shots. After scoring his first two, Mitrou-Long missed his third. Chris Walker was fouled after collecting the rebound.

Chris Walker scored his first free-throw but missed his second. RJ Hunter blocked Mitrou-Long's attempt and RGV's Kyle Davis was fouled after hauling in the rebound. Davis scored the first but missed his second shot from the foul line. In the last play of the night, Akeem Springs beat the buzzer, but the Stars fell short since his shot was ruled a two-pointer.

The Vipers and the Stars will meet once again on Wednesday, March 19.

Check out the Rio Grande Valley Vipers Statistics



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