The Texas Legends finished off a three-game road trip in Delaware for their second matchup of the season against the 87ers. After trailing by 13 in the second half, the Legends rallied in the final minutes to claim a 115-111 victory and a 2-0 lead on the season series. The Legends took the lead early and held on for the first 11 minutes of play behind a combined 21 points from Eric Griffin and Ricky Ledo. A pair of free throws from Sean Kilpatrick gave Delaware their first lead of the game that they would carry into the final seconds of the third. The 87ers went into halftime with a 65-61 lead and continued to build the gap up to 13 points behind a balanced shooting attack. With just under seven minutes in the third, the Legends went on a 9-0 run that would turn the momentum of the game. With 21.7 seconds left in the third, Renaldo Balkman added two to his seven third-quarter points, re-gaining the advantage 91-89. The final 12 minutes saw four ties, but the Legends found an answer to each of them. With 3:28 on the clock, former Legend Jared Cunningham sunk both free throws to even the match at 107. Seconds later, Damion James responded with a long three. Delaware's Victor Rudd found an outside shot to even it again, but Booker Woodfox would answer equivocally to seal the deal. Cunningham and Woodfox each hit the free throw line for the final points of the game, ultimately ending up at 115-111 with the Legends winning their third straight on the road. The Legends shot 50% from outside, hitting 16-of-32. Damion James led the game in scoring and rebounds with 26 points, 13 boards. Mike James added the team's first triple-double of the season with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. Griffin added 20 points and five blocked shots while Balkman came off the bench for 12 points and eight rebounds. Cunningham led the 87ers with 20 points, shooting 11-of-12 foul shots. Rudd and Malcolm Lee added 19 points each and Rudd led the team with nine rebounds. The Legends will finish their road streak at Rio Grande Valley this Friday, taking on the Vipers at 7pm. Fans can catch all the action live on the NBA Development League's YouTube channel. Press release from the Texas Legends
The Iowa Energy (12-12) won 115-100 over the Grand Rapids Drive (13-12) Sunday evening at Wells Fargo Arena. Iowa was led by Memphis Grizzlies assignee Jordan Adams with a game-high 26 points and 6 rebounds. Russ Smith added 19 points and 4 rebounds while Jarnell Stokes added a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Fields led the Grand Rapids Drive with 21 points and 5 rebounds. It was a close first quarter with the teams exchanging the lead nine times throughout the quarter along with five ties. Towards the end of the quarter, the Energy were able to pull away leading 40-28 heading into the second quarter. Adams had 12 first quarter points for the Energy. The Energy were able to extend their lead over the Drive in the second quarter, outscoring the Drive 34-27 to hold a 74-55 lead at halftime. Adams added eight more points for the Energy for 20 first half points. The Drive were able to put a small comeback together in the third quarter, outscoring the Energy 30-22 to pull within 11 points of the Energy. Fields and Adonis Thomas led the way for the Drive with seven points each. Iowa would take a 96-85 advantage heading into the fourth. The Drive's attempt at a comeback fell short in the fourth as Iowa extended the lead and would go on to win 115-100. The Energy are back home at 7 p.m. on Tuesday against Rio Grande Valley. It's two-for-one sideline ticket Tuesday Press release from the Iowa Energy
