Shock beat Fever 79-74 for first home win
The Tulsa Shock squeaked past the Indiana Fever on Saturday night to claim their first home win of the WNBA season. Amber Holt was once again money off the bench, leading all scorers and four double-digit scorers for the Shock with 16 points before an announced crowd of 4,005 at the BOK Center. Kara Braxton also turned in a solid effort, contributing 11 points and 8 rebounds for Tulsa.
"We've been close, but tonight we were able to finish," said Shock head coach Nolan Richardson. "Tonight our kids made some plays that helped us win the basketball game," he said.
The coach was also pleased, but not surprised with the play of Holt. "I call her the silent killer, you never know what she's doing until you look at the stat sheet. Amber is a delightful person to coach also, she never says much and she works hard."
Tulsa struck first when Chante Black pulled down a rebound and scored on a layup just over a minute into the game, before both teams traded the lead a total of four times. The Shock committed nine turnovers, but went on to lead 21-18 thanks to an 11-2 run to end the first quarter. With two minutes remaining and Indiana holding a six point lead, the Shock got a pair of free throws and a three-pointer from Holt to pull within one.
Marion Jones reeled in a pass with her back turned to the basket then dished to Plenette Pierson who regained the lead for the Shock. On the ensuing inbound play, Natasha Lacy stole the ball and hit a quick layup to give Tulsa a 19-16 lead. Holt led all scorers in the opening quarter with seven points, while Tulsa was 69.2 percent from the field in contrast to Indiana who hit just five of 17 shots for 29.4 percent.
The two teams again traded the lead four times through a back and forth second quarter. Pierson led the Shock with six points, while Tamika Catchings and Shay Murphy each scored four for the Fever. Tulsa broke a 30-30 tie when Alexis Hornbukle hit one of two free throws with just under three minutes left.
The Shock then jumped out to a six point lead before the Fever pulled back within five at the end of the frame. Out-scoring Indiana 19-17, Tulsa connected on just eight of 20 shots from the field while Indiana was seven of 16. The Shock outscored the Fever 14-12 in the paint while only committing two turnovers in the period as they took a 40-35 lead into the break.
Former Shock player Shavonte Zellous saw her first action as a member of the Fever at the 5:38 mark of the period. The Shock traded Zellous to the Fever on Thursday for a 2011 second-round draft pick. Zellous went on to score two points in just under five minutes of playing time.
Indiana opened the second half with a 6-0 run to take a one-point lead before Braxton scored two of her ten points with 7:48 left to recapture the lead for Tulsa. The Fever tied the game again at the 5:18 mark on a three-pointer by Katie Douglas. Indiana would stretch their lead to six points, only to see Lacy cut it in half with a buzzer beater from mid-court as time expired in the period.
At the end of three the score was Indiana 59, Tulsa 56. Lacy led the Shock in the third quarter, scoring seven points as the team connected on six of 16 attempts from the field. At that point of the night Tulsa was a perfect seven for seven on the fastbreak, outscoring Indiana 14-8.
Tulsa opened the fourth quarter, using a 5-2 run to tie the game at 61-61 on a Lacy layup with 8:15 remaining. Douglas responded with a trey to give the Fever a three point lead with six and a half minutes left. Over the next two minutes Tulsa used a 7-0 run to regain the lead on a three-pointer by Holt.
Indiana tied the game at 72-72 on a layup by Catchings with just over a minute remaining, but Tulsa would answer right back to take a two-point lead on a basket by Black. Lacy nailed a big jump shot from just inside the top of the key with 16.6 seconds left to give the Shock a four-point advantage.
After a free throw by Black, Indiana pulled within three on a layup by Murphy. Hornbuckle would ice the victory with a pair of charity shots with just 1.6 seconds left and Tulsa escaped with the win.
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Photos by: Kevin Pyle
Next up for the Shock (2-3) is a home game with the Minnesota Lynx (1-5) at 7 p.m. Friday at the BOK Center. The Shock has met the Lynx twice this season, with the road team winning each time. Tickets for all remaining Shock home games are available at the BOK Center box office, online or by calling 1-877-90-HOOPS.
1
2
3
4
F
Indiana (2-3)
18
17
24
15
74
Tulsa (2-3)
21
19
16
23
79
Indiana - Catchings 15, Hoffman 14, Douglas 13, Murphy 12, Bevilaqua 9, Sutton-Brown 4, Morris 3, Moore 2, Zellous 2.
Tulsa - Holt 16, Lacy 15, Pierson 12, Braxton 11, Black 7, Crossley 7, Robinson 6, Hornbuckle 5