The defending NBA Development League champion Rio Grande Valley Vipers extended their franchise-record winning streak to nine in a row by coming back from down 15 in the first half and getting a lay-up from Jerel McNeal with 7.6 seconds remaining to defeat the Dakota Wizards 102-100 on Friday at the Bismarck Civic Center. The game turned into a back-and-forth affair after the Vipers took a 69-67 lead midway through the third quarter. The Vipers (16-7) took a 100-98 lead after Stanley Asumnu connected on a lay-up with 4:14 remaining. Mike Anderson hit one of his two free throw attempts to bring the Wizards within one point with 2:57 remaining. Darren Cooper hit one of his two free throw attempts with 21.3 seconds left to tie the game. After McNeal banked in his shot to give the Vipers the lead, the Wizards called timeout to advance the ball. Anthony Goods missed a three-pointer and Mike Hall missed a put-back attempt to end the game. McNeal finished with 17 points. The Vipers were led in scoring by Jeff Adrien who finished 23 points and 14 rebounds for his 10th double-double in 14 games. The Vipers jumped out to a 10-6 lead in the opening minutes after a pair of baskets by McNeal, but Hall scored seven early points as the Wizards (7-19) scored the next 11 points as part of an 18-4 run to take a 24-14 lead. Mustafa Shakur hit a three-pointer with 32.2 seconds remaining in the 1st quarter, but Maurice Baker scored seven-straight points and Cooper hit a jumper to give the Wizards their largest lead of the night at 39-24 in the opening minute of the second quarter. Hall hit a lay-up to give the Wizards a 67-61 lead with 8:09 remaining in the third, but the Vipers went on an 8-0 run, capped by a pair of free throws from McNeal to take the lead back at 69-67 with 5:52 remaining. The Wizards were led in scoring by Hall, who scored 27 points with 13 rebounds, and Goods, who also scored 27 points. The Vipers and Wizards return to action on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. when they face-off for the final time this season at the Bismarck Civic Center.
