Idaho Stampede fans usually get their money's worth when the Colorado 14ers come to town.
It was no different Friday night at Qwest Arena, as the Stampede defeated the 14ers 97-94 with some late-game heroics from guard Mike Taylor.
Trailing 94-93 with 11 seconds remaining, Taylor ran the length of the floor and hit a driving layup to give the Stampede a 95-94 lead. Two free throws by Idaho center Lance Allred nailed down the victory.
"You knew this one was going to come down to the end," said Stampede coach Bryan Gates, whose team won the previous meeting against Colorado this season by one point.
This back-and-forth rivalry can be summed up with this fact: Idaho edged Colorado for the regular-season division title last season, and then Colorado knocked Idaho out of the playoffs.
Idaho (13-5) extended its winning streak to eight games, the longest in the NBA Development League. The Stampede also improved to 9-0 at home.
The game was the first chance for fans to see Josh McRoberts in a Stampede uniform. McRoberts, a 6-foot-10, 240-pound forward, was assigned to Idaho by the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.
McRoberts, who left Duke after his sophomore season, was the 37th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.
Players are typically sent from the NBA to the D-League to get additional playing time, and McRoberts is no exception. He has played in only three games with Portland, averaging 1.3 points and 0.7 rebounds for the red-hot Blazers, who have won 17-of-18 games.
"Obviously, there was some rust," Gates said. "But he definitely showed he knows how to play."
McRoberts, 20, is a young, developing talent, but certainly not without some pedigree. In high school, he was the MVP of the 2005 McDonald's All-America Game and was also named to the 2005 Parade All-America Basketball Team.
He entered Friday's game with 1 minute, 43 seconds remaining in the first period and made an immediate impact. The first time he touched the ball, he scored after driving the baseline. The second time, he put up a soft 20-foot jump shot that was all net.
The third time he dished off to Mouhamed Sene, who slammed home a dunk. He and Sene, also on assignment from an NBA team (Seattle), seemed to develop a little on-court chemistry after that.
By the end of the first half, Sene led Idaho in scoring with 10 points and McRoberts led the team in assists with five, including a no-look pass or two along the way. Not bad, considering he was playing with Randy Livingston, the D-League assists leader.
McRoberts finished with 11 points, six assists and four rebounds in a little more than 23 minutes. Taylor finished with a game-high 22 points, and Lance Allred had his fourth consecutive double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds).
"It felt good to be out there," McRoberts said.
McRoberts is in the tough situation of leaving the team he wants to be with, and he didn't shy away from that after Friday's game.
"No one wants to be here," he said. "Everybody in that locker room wants to be somewhere else. But you have to be a professional about it and do the job you have to do."
But he also made a case for why it makes sense for him to spend some time with the Stampede.
"I think I'll improve every game," he said. "... As long as I'm here, I might as well be playing. I can sit on the bench in Portland."
Chris Langrill: 377-6424
