Tulsa Falls To Fort Wayne In Heartbreaker

Published on February 27, 2009 under NBA G League (G League)
Tulsa 66ers News Release


Tulsa, Okla., Feb. 27, 2009 - The Tulsa 66ers finished with four players scoring 20 or more points, but could not overcome the Fort Wayne Mad Ants 116-123 on Friday at the SpiritBank Event Center in South Tulsa.

"We really had a heck of an effort tonight, with us being extraordinarily small due to injuries," 66ers Head Coach Paul Woolpert said. "Offensively, we were able to exploit some things. But we just have to come back here tomorrow, lace 'em up and come ready to play."

The back-and-forth game continued throughout, as there were 24 lead changes and 26 times in which the game was tied during the contest.

The Mad Ants began the game on a tear, shooting 63 percent (12-19) from the field in the first quarter. They turned the ball over six times in the period, which kept the 66ers close at 26-30 at the break. Ron Howard shot 4-for-6 in the quarter, leading to 14 points.

A Jarred Axon layup for the Mad Ants put them up 28-33 a minute into the second quarter, but Tulsa bounced back with an 8-3 run that tied the game at 36 off a Moses Ehambe jumper and a Yemi Ogunoye put back dunk. Derrick Dial scored 13 in the quarter as Tulsa did not commit a turnover, but trailed 55-56 at halftime.

Jump started by a Keith Clark coast-to-coast dunk, the 66ers went on an 11-4 run during a three minute stretch in the third quarter, garnering their largest lead of the game at 73-66 with 5:35 remaining in the period. Fort Wayne's big men asserted themselves in the post, and they went on a 10-3 run of their own to tie the game at 76 with 2:22 remaining. Clark scored 10 points in the period but the 66ers trailed after three quarters, 83-84.

In the fourth quarter, both teams went toe-to-toe until Carl Elliott hit a long three-pointer from the top of the circle with under a minute remaining, putting the Mad Ants ahead 115-119.

Tulsa finished with a season-high 100 field goal attempts, shooting 44 percent from the field, and committed a season-low seven turnovers.

Howard led the Mad Ants, tying his season-high with 31 points and grabbing a season-high 15 rebounds. Elliott scored 20 and grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds, while Chris Hunter tallied 23 points. Walker Russell added 19 points and Sean Sonderleiter finished with nine points and nine rebounds off the bench for Fort Wayne.

Clark and Ehambe each finished with team-highs of 21 points, while Clark grabbed nine rebounds. Dial scored all 20 of his points in the first half, and added nine rebounds, while Jeremy Kelly put up 20 points. Gary Forbes added 16 points, seven rebounds, and six assists for the 66ers.

Tulsa (7-25) stays home to face the Austin Toros tomorrow night, then travels to play the Erie BayHawks on Thursday, March 5.

Fort Wayne (13-22) returns home to play the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on Sunday, March 1 prior to starting a five-game road trip at Los Angeles on Tuesday, March 3.

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NBA G League Stories from February 27, 2009


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