After a stunning overtime victory on Saturday, the Austin Toros failed to impress during Sunday’s matchup with the Utah Flash. The visitors came in and dominated the Toros, finishing the game with a 103-82 victory. While the crowd of 2,605 was raucous and cheered their team to the final buzzer, it was the Flash that went home with the win on Sunday.
The Flash relied on a balanced offense to keep the score close in the first quarter, with six different players contributing to the scoreboard with 4-5 points. For the Toros, it was Leo Lyons who came up big with ten points in the first to keep his team ahead for most of the frame. The lead only changed twice during the first and it was not until the final minutes of the first that the Flash went on a tear and scored on three consecutive possessions to put them up by six points, their biggest lead of the quarter.
The Flash built on this momentum and never looked back. Utah held the lead throughout the second, with the Toros’ Marcus Cousin committing some costly turnovers that led to points for the visitors. However, his errors were offset by his offensive production, as Cousin put up 11 points to lead the Toros in the quarter. Unfortunately for the home team though, the Toros’ defense also failed to keep pressure on the Flash, allowing ten points from Brandon Costner.
After the half, the Toros really struggled offensively, missing shot after shot from the field. The home team only managed 13 points in the third quarter to Utah’s 23. Again the Flash saw their production spread across the board with contributions from six different players. Carldell “Squeaky” Johnson could only muster four points for the Toros.
The final quarter was much of the same from the Toros – turnovers, poor shooting and lack of defensive pressure on the Flash. The Flash also played a sloppy game however, committing five turnovers of their own in the fourth. In addition, the visitors only sunk 21.4% of their three-point attempts (3 of 14). However, Utah’s percentage from the line was 81.3% (26 of 32) and their field goal percentage slightly edged the home team’s statistics. At the final buzzer, it was a familiar score in the visitors’ column, 103. But unlike Saturday’s contest, the Toros had a dismal 82 points to their name. Fans after the game commented that it seemed as though the team came out “flat” in the second quarter and could never put their game together.
The Toros will travel to Sioux Falls for a road game on Thursday and will be at home again on Saturday for a noon matinée.
