Henderson, NV – The G League Ignite took on the Austin Spurs Tuesday night at the Dollar Loan Center. The Ignite were without two of their top players – Izan Almansa was out with an illness and Ron Holland was rested – as the Ignite lost a heartbreaking 105-104 contest. The Spurs were without Dominick Barlow and Mamadi Diakite, who are with Austin’s parent club, the San Antonio Spurs.
The Ignite missed Holland and Almansa’s presence in the paint, as the Spurs nearly doubled the home team in points in the paint (30-16) and were dominant on the boards (28-17 edge, 11 offensive). The Ignite were able to counteract that with some hot shooting from beyond the arc (8-18, 44.4%) and solid shooting from the floor (21-41, 51.2%). The Spurs could not get out of their own way, turning the ball over 10 times and committing 12 fouls compared to the Ignite’s six in each category. Austin would pull down two offensive rebounds and former West Virginia guard Erik Stevenson would hit a three to cut the Ignite’s lead to just five with 3:06 remaining in the first half, but the home team would have a 56-49 lead at half.
The second half was a different story for the Spurs, who would cut the deficit to four points with 6:24 to go in the third quarter. Stevenson would score 10 of his 24 points in the quarter, including multiple three-pointers to keep Austin in it. Austin would never have a lead bigger than four points, but all they needed was one more point at the end.
However, two technical fouls – one on Spurs’ head coach Will Voigt and the other on former Fresno State guard Paul Watson Jr. – would halt the Spurs’ momentum. The Ignite would convert both of the free throws for four points and hold onto their decreasing lead each time.
Stevenson kept Austin in it, but it was former Florida State forward RaiQuan Gray who was consistent all game for the Spurs, including the go-ahead basket with six seconds left. Gray would finish with a team-high 28 points and nine rebounds to go along with five steals and four blocks. Julian Washburn (12 points) and Yauhen Massalski (10 points) were the other Spurs players to finish in double figures.
Gray in particular was very impressive, providing timely bucket after timely bucket and scoring from all over the floor. At 6’7” and 269 lbs., he used every bit of his size to bully his way into the paint, making whoever the Ignite threw at him look small.
For the Ignite, five players finished in double figures – projected first round picks Matas Buzelis and Tyler Smith, former Washington State forward Will Davis, former NBA veteran John Jenkins and former Gonzaga guard Admon Gilder. Jenkins was tied for the team lead in points with 19, but it was Buzelis who really shone. Buzelis would finish with a game-high 15 rebounds to go along with two blocks, constantly rotating to provide help-side defense along with looking to push the ball in transition. Buzelis was also tied for the most made free throws in the game with Austin’s Stevenson with four.
Former NBA champion Norris Cole was a steadying presence for the Ignite, finishing with eight assists when the Ignite needed them most.
The Ignite are right back at it at home tomorrow, same start time – 7 p.m. PST – this time against the Iowa Wolves. The Spurs don’t play again until Friday and will take on the Sioux Falls Skyforce at the Sanford Pentagon at 8 p.m. EST.
This article was written by Mason McFee, a correspondent and scout for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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