GRAND RAPIDS – A balanced Austin Spurs attack helped lift the silver and black to victory over the Grand Rapids Drive, 119-106.
Seven Spurs would score in double figures, led by Cheick Diallo’s 20 points and six rebounds in 25 minutes. Jarell Eddie struggled with his shot slightly, but finished with 18 points. Charles Garcia came up huge off the bench with 17 points and six rebounds. Demetri McCamey put up 16 points, three rebounds and seven assists in 39 minutes. Cory Jefferson and Jeff Ledbetter also helped solidify the bench with 15 and 13 points, respectively. And Ryan Arcidiacono managed another solid outing with 11 points, five rebounds and six assists in 40 minutes.
For the Drive, Kevin Murphy led all scores with 33 points, 21 of which came in the first half. Former San Antonio and Austin Spurs guard Ray McCallum had 19 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Another former NBA player, Jordan Crawford, had 13 points off the bench, while Zeke Upshaw finished with 12 points and five rebounds in 32 minutes.
Both teams were deadlock early with the lead changing 13 times in the first quarter, before Grand Rapids escaped with a 27-25 lead to end the frame.
Eddie and Garcia would lead the Spurs on a 14-2 run to start the second quarter, as the Spurs would score 36 points in the period to take a 61-56 lead into halftime.
The Drive clawed their way back, eventually taking a 65-63 lead midway through the third quarter, but the Spurs would nail four 3-pointers to end the period, reclaiming the lead and controlling it throughout.
Austin would stretch their fourth quarter lead to as much as 21 points, before finishing with the 13-point victory, 119-106.
With six games under their belt, the Austin Spurs (4-2) will return home for nearly a full week off before their next contest.
The silver and black get their first look at new expansion franchise, the Greensboro Swarm (1-5), on Friday, December 2nd. Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m. CST from the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park with the game being broadcast on Facebook Live.
GAME NOTES
- The Austin Spurs are now 4-0 when New Orleans Pelicans assignee Cheick Diallo scores at least 10 or more points.
- The Grand Rapids Drive allowed 110+ points for the fourth time in five games this season. They are 2-2 in those four games.
- The Spurs had their best performance of the season in terms of taking care of the ball, committing only eight turnovers for the game. It’s the only time this season they’ve committed single-digit turnovers.
HIGHLIGHTS
