Bayhawks soar over 66ers 102-97

Twenty-five points from ORU product Moses Ehambe and Mustafa Shakur’s third double-double of the year were not enough to help the Tulsa 66ers take down the Erie Bayhawks in NBA D-League action on Sunday afternoon at the Tulsa Convention Center.

The 66ers were eager to win the second of two meetings at home with Erie, with last night seeing the Bayhawks squeak by with a 97-91 victory.  This afternoon's game was almost identical to last night, with the two teams trading baskets back and forth in the early stages.  Knotted at 14 the Bayhawks started what would turn out to be a 6-0 run that was capped off by an Alande Aminu layup.  An additiona 5-0 run gave Erie a 29-20 edge as the 1st quarter came to its end.

After trailing 56-45 at the half, Tulsa played their best quarter of the game in the 3rd.  They went on a 20-6 run that saw the 66ers shoot 70 percent from the floor.  Moses Ehambe scored 12 of his 25 points in the 3rd quarter, and by the end of the period they trailed by only two at 76-74.

Tulsa continued to stay with Erie until just less than 9 minutes remained in the game, when three costly turnovers sparked a 12-3 run by the Bayhawks that was capped off by an alley-oop dunk by Aminu, putting Erie ahead 94-85 with 3:42 reminaing in the game.  Ehambe drained a three-pointer and foul shots by Deron Washington and Larry Owens  brought the Sixers to within one with 1:34 reminaing in the ballgame, but did not match the 8 of 10 free throw shooting for Erie down the stretch that sealed the victory.

Leading the points for the Bayhawks was Frank Tolbert with 25 points, and Alnde Aminu with a double-double of 22 points and 10 boards.  Cedric Jackson had 20 points and 8 assists while Jackie Manuel contributed 17 points to Erie’s winning effort.

The 66ers go on the road to face the Sioux Falls Skyforce next Friday night at 7pm and then they travel to Dakota to take on the Wizards on January 24th.  The next home game for the 66ers will be on January 28th when they take on Iowa at 7pm in the Convention Center.  Tickets can be purchased at tulsa66ers.com or at the Tulsa Convention Center Box Office.

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Photos: Kevin Pyle