Vipers outlast 66ers in home debut

HIDALGO — The trend in the Rio Grande Valley Vipers’ home-opener against Tulsa had been this:
The Vipers build a nice lead and Tulsa’s 66ers chip away at it. The Vipers build another lead and the 66ers answer.

The trend nearly caught up with the Vipers, but thanks to some clutch plays down the stretch they held off Tulsa in a 104-100 victory on Friday at Dodge Arena. The same teams tangle again tonight in Tulsa, Okla.

“When we stopped pushing the ball, things stopped coming easy for us,” Vipers coach Chris Finch said. “They got a couple of three pointers and some free throws and that always gives a team the impetus to get back in the game.”

The Vipers (2-1) led 80-65 in the final minute of the third quarter when Jonathan Wallace knocked in a free throw when Tulsa’s Keith Clark was called for a technical foul.

The 66ers (2-2) turned on the aggressiveness at that point by going hard to the basket and drawing plenty of fouls.

Tulsa crawled back into the game thanks to its prowess at the free throw line, hitting 9 of 11 in the fourth quarter and a couple of 3-pointers from Moses Ehambe. Tulsa tied the score at 94 when Byron Mullens made one of two free throws at the 2:09 mark.

“We had a run, but we couldn’t sustain it,” Vipers guard Antonio Anderson said. “We can’t do that with a team like that or anybody else because you can lose a game. We just have to stay on team, step on it and keep it up.”

The Vipers responded with some aggressive play of its own. Mike Harris sank a free throw to complete a 3-point play at the 1:11 mark to put the Vipers in the lead, 99-94. Harris was fouled on a layup off a nice pass from Anderson.

Harris play down the stretch was particularly key. He scored seven points after he picked up his fifth foul at the 5:41 mark of the fourth quarter.

Larry Owens cut the lead to two points with a 3-pointer. The Vipers secure the game by making 5 of 6 free throws in the final 17 seconds.

“We shouldn’t have let them come back,” Harris said. “We have to get that killer instinct, and that’s going to take a little more time. We’re still jelling. After they made their run, we should a sign of a team that’s headed in a good direction.”

Harris led the Vipers with a game-high 30 points. Anderson had 16 points. Wallace and Garrett Temple scored 14 points apiece. Joey Dorsey had a team-high 12 rebounds to go with his nine points.

Two 66ers had double-doubles led by point guard Mustafa Shakur’s 24 points and 10 assists. Byron Mullens, an Oklahoma City Thunder assignee, had 23 points and 10 rebounds.

“We’re showing maturity,” Harris said. “But we need to learn how to sustain leads.”

Tulsa had the early advantage, jumping to an 18-15 lead through the first seven minutes of the first quarter.

Shakur had eight points for Tulsa in that span. The Vipers responded with a 13-4 run included back-to-back baskets by Harris and 3-pointers from Ernest Scott and Wallace.

The Vipers took a 29-25 lead into the second quarter when the Valley’s high-energy man off the bench, Stanley Asumnu, scored the team’s first five points to put the Vipers on top, 34-29, at the 8:53 mark.

The 66ers cut took a 37-36 lead on Larry Owens’ 3-pointer with 5:51 remaining in the second quarter, but the Vipers answered with an 11-3 run that was sparked by Anderson’s seven points to lead at the 1:55 mark. But all that good work disintegrated quickly as Tulsa closed the first half by outscoring the Vipers, 9-3, to cut the Valley’s lead to 52-49.

David Hinojosa covers the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can also reach him at (956) 683-4442.