NBA G League Ignite’s rookies combined for 83 points to propel the squad to a 113-105 victory over Raptors 905 Saturday night at AdventHealth Arena. With the win, Ignite improves to 3-0 and the Raptors fall to 1-2.
Daishen Nix celebrated his 19th birthday with style, pouring in 25 points plus eight rebounds and six assists. Jonathan Kuminga earned his first career double-double on 23 points and 13 rebounds, and Jalen Green tallied his second consecutive 20-point outing with 21 points, three steals, three rebounds and one assist. Isaiah Todd’s emergence continued with a near-perfect 4-5 performance from 3-point range as Todd went 5-8 overall to contribute 14 points and six rebounds.
Nik Stauskas led five Raptors in double figures with 23 points, along with Gary Payton II (15), Breein Tyree (14), Henry Ellenson (14) and Malachi Flynn (11). Payton also notched seven steals and 13 rebounds on the day for a double-double, while Ellenson added 10 rebounds for his own double-double.
Stauskas poured in 13 to help the Raptors lead by as many as six points in the first quarter, but Nix chucked in a half-court shot at the buzzer to equalize, 31-31.
The Raptors opened the second quarter by building a nine-point lead at 9:25 until Ignite chipped away to shift the game into a back-and-forth shootout in the final two minutes. Nix scored eight of his 16 first-half points in the last 2:35 to help Ignite take the lead, while Stauskas finished the half with 18 points.
Despite 18 first-half turnovers, Ignite led the Raptors 63-59, limiting 905 to 36.2 percent (21-58) from the floor.
At the end of the third quarter, each of Ignite’s rookies had reached double figures, led by Nix’s 19 points. Green, who scored just three points by halftime, went 4-6 in the quarter to bring his total to 15 points.
The Raptors got within three points in the fourth quarter, but Kuminga powered his way to a 10-point, four-rebound stretch while Green and Nix added six points apiece to help Ignite pull away.
Both teams return to action Monday. Ignite faces Iowa at 3 p.m. ET on ESPNU, while the Raptors are set for Santa Cruz at 7 p.m.
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