Tyus Edney showed that Lightning can strike twice.
With the score tied and 6.4 seconds left in Sunday’s IBL game at SBCC’s Sports Pavilion, the former UCLA star drove the length-of-the-court and hit a 5-foot floater to lift the L.A. Lightning to a dramatic 119-117 pro basketball win over the Oregon Waves.
“With time running out, you have to get it down there,” said Edney, a 5-10 point guard who’s famously known for a similar coast-to-coast drive and layup that lifted UCLA over Missouri 75-74 in the second round of the 1995 NCAA Tournament. The Bruins went on to win the title. “It was a little floater. I had to put it up high to get it over the big man.
“This is a good win. They came to play today.”
The defending IBL champion Lightning (4-0) trailed by 12 at halftime (64-52) of the IBL Finals rematch that was televised live on FOX 11. L.A. got back in the game with a 30-19 third-quarter surge. They trailed by as many as 10 in the final period before storming back to take a 109-106 lead on a 3-pointer by Fred Vinson from the right corner.
Vinson scored 27 points for the second straight day and set a Lightning record by hitting 9-15 from 3-point land. He’s shooting 59.3 percent (16-27) from downtown in his last two games.
Trayvon Lathan, a 6-8 guard, added 23 points and 15 rebounds (7 offensive) while Edney, who played four years in the NBA, had 19 points and 11 assists.
Anthony Davis led all scorers with 39 points and 11 rebounds for the Waves (0-2). Amani Daanish had 16 points and Lorenzo Davis chipped in with 15 points and nine boards.
Lathan scored on a driving layup to put the Lightning up 117-115 with 11 seconds left. Anthony Davis was fouled on a 3-pointer and he hit the first two foul shots, making him 9-9 in the fourth quarter.
Following an L.A. timeout, Davis missed his third free throw, Lathan grabbed the rebound and got it to Edney for his dramatic game-winner.
“That play never gets old,” said Lightning coach Ron Quarterman when asked about Edney’s shot. “We didn’t want to call timeout. We were just going to go with it.
“Whenever you beat a team like that the first night (the Lightning won 136-110 on Saturday), it’s always going to be hard the next night.”
Bryon Russell had 14 points and grabbed nine of his 10 rebounds in the second half. Juaquin Hawkins contributed 11 points while Travis Pinick had 10 for L.A., which outshot the visitors in the second half 44.7 to 27.7 percent.
The Lightning continue a 13-game homestand on Friday and Saturday at Cal Lutheran against the Phoenix Red Rock Raptors. Tip time is 7:15 p.m. both nights.
