Kendrick Ray scores 37 pts as Igokea m:tel prevail over MZT Skopje Aerodrom
Igokea m:tel defeated MZT Skopje Aerodrom in a thrilling ending. Kendrick Ray scored 37 points for the winning side, but the hero of the game was his teammate Haris Delalić who made 8 points in a row late in the 4th quarter to push the Laktaši troops toward the win.
(Photo: Igokea m:tel/Marija Vuruna)
AdmiralBet ABA League Round 9, Sunday, 4 December 2022:
IGOKEA M:TEL - MZT Skopje Aerodrom 96:90 (26:21, 30:26, 16:23, 24:20)
Game recap: Igokea m:tel troops will celebrate the names of Kendrick Ray and Haris Delalić tonight as these two players led the Laktaši troops toward a very important home-court win against MZT Skopje Aerodrom.
Ray was most certainly the MVP of the game as he scored 37 points, while his overall index rating was 44. Yet, the hero of the day award goes to Haris Delalić who scored 8 points in a row in the final 3 minutes of the game to push Igokea m:tel toward the win in critical moments.
Igokea m:tel have therefore improved their season score to 5-4, while on the other side MZT Skopje Aerodrom dropped to 2-7.
Key moments: Igokea m:tel have been in front throughout most of the match, however MZT Skopje Aerodrom significantly improved their game in the 2nd half and the visitors reduced the gap to just 2 points ahead of the 4th quarter - 72:70.
In the final 10 minutes, MZT Skopje Aerodrom even managed to take over the lead in critical moment. With less than 3 minutes remaining on the game clock, Strahinja Mićović made a 2-pointer to put the visitors in front – 88:86.
But, then Haris Delalić stepped up for the home team. Delalić, who had scored just 2 points previously in the game, made 8 points in a row to put Igokea m:tel back in front – 94:88.
MZT Skopje Aerodrom tried to respond once again, but they just managed to reduce the gap to 4 points – 94:90 – as Strahinja Mićović missed a 3-point shot on 30 seconds before the end of the match that would have made the ending even more thrilling.
Man of the match: Kendrick Ray has set the new all-time Igokea m:tel's club record in AdmiralBet ABA League for the most points scored in a single game by one player. Ray scored 37 points tonight and therefore broke the record of Desmond Washington and Brady Heslip who scored 35 points in a single game while playing for Igokea m:tel. No doubt that Rey therefore deserves the MVP recognition tonight.
Can't trick the stats: At the end of the day, that 8:0 run that Haris Delalić made single-handedly for Igokea m:tel late in the 4th quarter decided the winner.
Stats
Players on court
| IGO | Min | PtsP | RebsR | AssA | StS | FoulF | ValV | |
| 0 | Ray K. | 36:11 | 37 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 44 |
| 9 | Delalić H. | 22:37 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| 10 | Tanasković N. | 30:30 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 23 |
| 13 | Crawford B. | 27:10 | 16 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 21 |
| 16 | Jošilo M. | 32:55 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| MZT | Min | PtsP | RebsR | AssA | StS | FoulF | ValV | |
| 2 | Bursać A. | 20:22 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| 4 | Micovic S. | 23:30 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 21 |
| 5 | Caffey M. | 30:42 | 21 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 20 |
| 11 | Ivey III B. | 20:03 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 17 |
| 20 | Stojanovski V. | 25:18 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | -3 |
Last 5 actions
| Min | Score | Action |
| game finished | ||
| end of 4. quarter | ||
| 00:00 (Q4) | 13 CRAWFORD B. rebound (defensive) | |
| 00:03 (Q4) | 5 CAFFEY M. missed 3 points (pullupjump shot) | |
| 00:10 (Q4) | 96 : 90 | 0 RAY K. made free throw (2 of 2) |
| 00:10 (Q4) | 95 : 90 | 0 RAY K. made free throw (1 of 2) |
Top players
| VALUE (INDEX) | ||||
| Ray K. | 44 | - | 21 | Micovic S. |
| POINTS | ||||
| Ray K. | 37 | - | 21 | Caffey M. |
| REBOUNDS | ||||
| Jošilo M. | 8 | - | 5 | Bursać A. |
| ASSISTS | ||||
| Crawford B. | 8 | - | 8 | Caffey M. |
