RGV Capsules: Scott's grit impacts Killer Bees
HIDALGO — Getting hit in the ankle with a slap shot hurts. Seeing the puck float into your own net makes it even worse, which Topher Scott found out Sunday.
"Oh, it was the worst. It was absolutely the worst," Scott said. "I couldn’t believe it. But it’s part of the game, it happens. So it’s just one of those unfortunate things."
Scott, who didn’t skate in either Tuesday or Wednesday’s practices, tried to block a shot just below the blue line during the first period of Sunday’s 6-5 win at Laredo but accidentally deflected the puck past goalie Andy Franck for a Bucks power play goal. The shot was the second that Scott blocked on the shift, with that one knocking him out of the game.
Nobody around the Bees, though, was holding the goal against Scott. If anything, they said his attempt to stay on the ice during the penalty kill gave them a spark that led to only their seventh win all-time at Laredo.
"That’s why Toph’s here," Bees coach Chris Brooks said. "You know exactly what you’re going to get. He’s a competitor and has great character."
Scott’s status for this weekend’s games against Missouri is unclear, but he does have some extra inspiration to suit up. His fianceé who works in New York will be in the Valley this weekend.
MUNCY’S DAY
After Scott left Sunday’s game, rookie forward Sean Muncy stepped into his place. Playing center on a line with forwards Aaron Lee and Zak McClellan, Muncy picked up three assists in only his third game of the year after starting on injured reserve.
Ironically, when he was hit, Scott was trying to kill a Muncy hooking penalty.
"It’s unfortunate for Toph, especially since he was killing a penalty that I took, so I think he’s on to me," Muncy said. "I think Toph can do the same. He can step right back in and make that line just as good. That line is defined by hard work and those guys do a great job."
Muncy’s weekend didn’t start as well as it ended, however. In his season debut against Arizona, Muncy was a minus-2 and didn’t register a shot.
"Friday was a little rough. It was kind of a wake-up call in my first pro game," Muncy said. "I think I was minus-2 after my first two shifts. So I was kind of like a deer in the headlights, like ‘What’s going on?’ But I know my role and try to work for my chances and as the weekend went on I was fortunate enough to play more and the team played better and we got two wins."
WHO NEEDS OPEN ICE?
McClellan scored his first two goals of the season Sunday. Admittedly, he had two easier chances to do that Saturday against Amarillo, but didn’t score on either of his two breakaways.
"I guess maybe a little redemption (Sunday). I was joking with the guys if you see me breaking, dump it in the corner for me," McClellan said. "But, I don’t know. I’m usually really confident when it comes to breakaways. For some reason, it was one of those days Saturday. Things weren’t going in for me. But Sunday turned out to be a really good day."
UP NEXT
The Bees play host to Missouri on Friday and Saturday. Missouri, in its first year, is tied with Wichita for the fewest points in the league at four.
Brian Sandalow covers the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4436 or via e-mail at bsandalow@themonitor.com.
Basketball
Vipers ready for tonight's NBA D-League draft
With the Houston Rockets throwing in their considerable resources, Rio Grande Valley Vipers coach Chris Finch declared his team ready to go for tonight’s D-League draft that is being held in Atlanta.
Finch and assistant Paul Mokeski will be huddling with the Rockets’ brass in Houston for tonight’s draft. The Rockets own the basketball operating rights for the Vipers and have been taking charge of the draft preparation. From what Finch has seen, there are plenty of good players to go around.
"We’re not short on preparation, that’s for sure," Finch said. "There’s certainly enough talent in there to put together a good team, especially when you mix in the guys we have on the docket."
The eight-round draft begins at 6 p.m. and will be televised on NBA TV. The Vipers draft in the 12th spot in the 16-team league. Albuquerque has the first pick.
The Vipers are looking at players who can fit into the Rockets’ basic philosophy of playing up-tempo basketball couple with tough defense.
The draft pool includes former NBA draftees JamesOn Curry (2007, Chicago), Orien Greene (2005, Boston) and Deron Washington (2008, Detriot).
The eight Rio Grande Valley draftees will join six former Vipers in training camp. The team announced Wednesday that several members from last year’s Vipers team including forward Stanley Asumnu, center Kurt Looby, forward Ernest Scott, forward Marcus Hubbard, forward Julian Sensley and guard Cliff Clinkscales will participate in training camp.
Asumnu has played for the Vipers the last two seasons, including 47 games last season. Looby, one of two Vipers to play in all 50 games last season, was in the Denver Nuggets’ training camp this season before getting released.
The camp will also include former Baylor standout Henry Dugat, who was invited following a local tryout. Dugat was an honorable mention All-Big 12 pick two years ago.
The D-League allocated two former Rockets forward Mike Harris and guard Garrett Temple to the Vipers on Wednesday. Harris played with the Rockets during the 2007-08 season. Temple was in the Rockets’ training camp this year.
There will be a local draft watching party at Jackson’s All-American Sports Grill in McAllen.
David Hinojosa covers the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4442 or via e-mail at dhinojosa@themonitor.com.
Former Houston Rockets Mike Harris and Garrett Temple allocated
The NBA Development League’s Rio Grande Valley Vipers announced today Stanley Asumnu, Kurt Looby, Ernest Scott, Marcus Hubbard, Julian Sensley and Cliff Clinkscales are returning to Vipers training camp after playing for the team last season.
Additionally, the NBA Development League has allocated Mike Harris, who played for the Houston Rockets during the 2007-08 season, and Garrett Temple, who was in training camp with the Rockets during the preseason, to the Vipers.
Henry Dugat, a 2008 All-Big 12 honorable mention while playing for Baylor University, has also been invited to camp out of the local tryout.
The Vipers will invite eight additional players to training camp following tomorrow’s eight-round NBA Development League Draft. The first round of the draft can be seen live on NBA TV. The Vipers are holding a watching party at 6 p.m. at Jackson’s All American Sports Grill in McAllen.
Asumnu will be on hand to model the new Vipers jerseys and fans will be given the opportunity to try them on and take pictures in them if they become season ticket holders or refer their friends to become season ticket holders during the party. Fans will receive live analysis of the draft from the Vipers broadcast team, Alex Del Barrio and Jonah Goldberg. This will include a live interview with Vipers oach Chris Finch following the Vipers’ first pick. Fans will be able to watch the draft unfold on multiple screens through a web cam situated in the war room at Toyota Center in Houston.
Asumnu has played for the Vipers for the last two seasons. He spent the offseason as a member of the community and an ambassador for the Vipers in the Rio Grande Valley. The 6-5 small forward out of Tennessee averaged 10.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in 47 contests for the Vipers last season.
Looby was in Denver Nuggets training camp after playing for the NBA D-League Select Team during the 2009 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 4.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game in five contests. Looby’s best game came in a 94-90 loss to the Nuggets on July 18, when he recorded a double-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds (four offensive) and three blocks in 23 minutes of action.
One of only two Vipers to play in all 50 games last season, Looby averaged 6.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. In Looby’s most impressive outing of the season, during a 113-101 win over the Iowa Energy on April 5, he recorded a triple-double with 14 points, 22 rebounds, the most by any Viper during the season, and a franchise-record 11 blocked shots. On January 16, Looby moved into the starting lineup for the final 29 games of the season, averaging 8.6 points, 11.1 rebounds (4.7 offensive) and 3.3 blocks per game.
He reached double-figures in scoring 13 times and double-digits in rebounds 17 times, while recording ten double-doubles and one triple-double. He shot 58.4% (101-173) from the field and 64.8% (35-54) from the foul line. He led the league in every blocking category, including total blocks (127), blocks per game (2.54), blocks per 48 minutes (4.78) and blocks per personal foul (0.96).
Scott gave the Vipers their first representation during All-Star weekend, as he was the runner up in the Dream Factory Friday night Three-Point Shootout. Scott had 20 points in the first round and 19 in the second round, which would have been enough to win the NBA competition the next night, but was not enough to defeat Dakota’s Blake Ahearn that night. The Vipers were supposed to have a player in the All-Star game during their first season, but C.J. Watson received a call-up to the Golden State Warriors and was therefore ineligible to participate. Scott averaged 8.0 points per game wile shooting 39.8% from behind the arc.
Hubbard averaged 8.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, including 9.0 points and 4.7 rebounds in 27 contests (eight starts) with the Vipers, after being traded from the Wizards on January 7. He scored a season- high 20 points against the Colorado 14ers on January 14 and recorded two double-doubles, including an 11-point, 17-rebound performance against the Tulsa 66ers on January 21. Both games were at Dodge Arena.
Sensley played in seven games for the Colorado 14ers before moving over to the Vipers for the final ten games (three starts). Overall, he averaged 10.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.
Clinkscales played for the Vipers during the final six games of the season. Clinkscales was first in the league in assist to turnover ratio (3.85), sixth in assists per 48 minutes (9.2) and 11th in assists per game (5.3).
Harris played in 17 regular season and three playoff games for the Rockets. He averaged 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds in 9.4 minutes of work during the regular season. The 6-6, 240 pound small forward graduated from Rice University in 2005 as the leading scorer (2,014 points) and leading rebounder (1,111 rebounds) in school history.
He played for BC Kyiv of the Ukranian Super League during the 2005-06 season before moving on to the NBA Development League’s Colorado 14ers for the 2006-07 season. He spent that pre-season in camp with the Milwaukee Bucks before averaging 11.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.54 blocks for the 14ers. Harris played for the Dongguan New Century Leopard of the Chinese Basketball Association during the 2007-08 season, averaging 24.3 points and 11.6 rebounds per game in 25 contests. After that season ended, he signed a 10-day contract with the Houston Rockets before earning a contract for the remainder of the season. Harris spent the 2008 pre-season with the Rockets as well.
Temple averaged 2.5 points per game in four contests for the Rockets during the preseason, including seven points against the Indiana Pacers on October 16 in 18 minutes of action. He scored his first point of the preseason against the Boston Cetlics at Dodge Arena on Oct. 7, when the Vipers hosted a Rockets pre-season game. Temple also picked up a steal in the game.
A native of Dayton, Dugat ranks 12th all-time at Baylor with 1,229 career points and tied a school record with 64 career victories. He graduated in 2009 seventh all-time with 158 career three-point field goals made and fourth all-time with 152 career steals. He averaged 10.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game in 117 contests.
-- Vipers Services
