"Thurston County Connection" leads Slam to 121-99 win over Royals
December 4, 2006 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Bellingham Slam News Release
SEATTLE - The "Thurston County Connection" of Brandon Hartley and Michael Parker scored 30 and 26 points, respectively, as the Bellingham Slam continued to hold King County winless with a 121-99 victory in an American Basketball Association game Sunday night at the Wellness Center at North Seattle Community College. Both Hartley and Parker played collegiately at universities in Thurston County, with Hartley starring for Saint Martin's and Parker a standout at Evergreen State.
King County (0-3), playing for the first time in nearly two weeks, hung tough with Bellingham (4-2) through most of the first half, drawing even at 31-31 with 1:24 left in the first quarter and trailing by six with 3:46 remaining in the second, before the Slam ended the first half with a 14-3 run for a 71-54 halftime lead. The Slam shot 64 percent from the floor in the first half, their most productive stretch thus far this season.
Bellingham carried their double-digit lead through the third quarter and into the fourth, before a Kyle Keyes jumper with 7:04 remaining capped a Royals run to pull King County within five points, at 96-91. But King County would get no closer, as they were held to just two field goals the rest of the way by Bellingham. The Slam's Matt Short completed the scoring with a thunderous put-back dunk with five seconds remaining.
Hartley and Parker were two parts of a trio of Slam players that reached the 20-point plateau for the game, with Jacob Stevenson contributing 22 points. Stevenson continued his streak of scoring at least 20 points in every Slam game thus far this season. Brian Dennis played superbly in the post for Bellingham, notching nine points and pulling down 12 rebounds.
Keyes led four King County players in double figures with 22 points, while Randy Green chipped in 21 points and collected ten boards.
The Slam next travel to Tijuana, Mexico on Thursday to continue their four-game road trip, before returning home to take on the Fresno Heatwave on Tuesday, Dec. 12. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at Whatcom Pavilion.
For more information, please call the Slam at (360) 734-SLAM or visit their website at www.bellinghamslam.com.
Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.
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