Enid, OK – 5/16/2021:
The Enid Outlaws (10-2) ended a two-game skid today with a 126-116 win over the Omaha Finest (6-6). The Finest, winners in three of their four last games, came ready to Enid ready to play.
The Finest led after the first quarter, 34-31. Devonte Patterson (10) and Craig Sword (9) helped get the Finest started. Charlie Marquardt (9) and Tavares Sledge (7) led the Outlaws in the early going. The Outlaws outscored Omaha 34-20 during the second stanza to take a 65-54 lead into halftime.
The second half was almost a carbon copy of the first half. Omaha outscored the Outlaws 32-23 during the third period of play, closing the score to 88-86. The Outlaws responded, outscoring the Finest 38-30 during the fourth quarter. Final score Enid 126-116.
The final 2:44 of the game got interesting. Lindy Waters III put Enid up 119-110. Craig Sword and Malik Amos scored two-point baskets, cutting the lead to five with 1:57 remaining. Waters was again fouled in the act of shooting and made another pair of free throws. Tavares Sledge made 1-2 free throws followed by a driving lay-up putting Enid back on top by ten in the closing minute of play. Chance Comanche put an exclamation mark on the win finishing Enid’s scoring with a dunk.
Leading the way for Enid was the inside combination of Chance Comanche and Tavares Sledge. Both finished with a double-double. Comanche finished with a game high 33 points and 17 rebounds. Sledge finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds. Charlie Marquardt had 18, Lindy Waters 15, and Wayne Runnels 15. Waters also had 9 rebounds and 8 assists in the contest.
Craig Sword (29) and Malik Amos (21) led Omaha. JC Show (18), Devonte Patterson (17), and KJ Scott (14) rounded out the scoring leaders for Omaha.
After the contest Ed Corporal, Outlaws Head Coach, stated – “We had a couple of tough games. We lost to Houston last weekend at home and then traveled to Dallas yesterday and lost another tough game. We challenged our guys prior to today’s game. They responded, leading all but five minutes and twenty five seconds of the game. Tavares Sledge and Chance Comanche stepped it up for us today, as did a number of our guys. It was a good win for us.”
