TAANE Samuel got himself going late as the Wellington Saints turned back the Nelson Giants, 86-74, in the 2021 NZ NBL season Wednesday at Trafalgar Centre.
The former La Salle forward dropped 14 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, where the visitors used a 14-2 run that turned the game from a close 62-60 affair with 8:22 left to a commanding 76-62 edge in the final 4:32.
Samuel also hauled in three rebounds as the Saints won their third straight game.
Tuffin goes scoreless
Dion Prewster also did his fair share of damage for Wellington with 20 points, six assists, and three boards, Tohi Smith-Milner chimed in 14 points and seven rebounds, and Kerwin Roach Jr. also collated 14 points, five boards, and two assists.
Fil-Kiwi gunner Ken Tuffin went scoreless after missing his pair of threes, but grabbed six rebounds in the victory to push the Saints up to 11-2 and back at the top of the standings.
Wellington continues its roadtrip on Friday against the cellar-dwelling Taranaki Mountainairs (2-11) at TSB Stadium.
Top gun Hunter Hale powered Nelson with 25 points on 5-of-11 clip from rainbow country, to go with three assists, three steals, and two rebounds.
Donte Ingram also unloaded 17 points and eight boards, while Thomas Ingham had 13 points, three rebounds, and two assists in the loss, which dropped the Giants to a 5-8 slate.
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