Thomas’s double-double carries 7 CMS past 7 OG, 77-44

  • Published
  • By Bill Lincicome
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Anyone watching Keith Thomas weave effortlessly through defenders and fire in basket after basket during Thursday's Over-30 basketball game against 7th Operations Group might ask himself a question: "Is this guy an NBA player held back by a military commitment?"

"I wish it were true," Thomas said laughing, after he tallied 22 points and 13 rebounds to lead 7th Component Maintenance Squadron to a 77-44 victory during a lunchtime game at the base fitness center. "I've been playing since I was 10. It's just fun."

Thomas and his teammates enjoyed a runaway second half and turned a slim 31-27 halftime lead to a 16-point advantage in less than three minutes.

After a cold-shooting first half that saw the 7 CMS connect on just 12 of 31 attempts from the field, Thomas's teammates employed a stifling defense early in the second half to kick start their offense. Thomas, Steve Garrison and Gabriel Deluna took turns stripping the ball from 7 OG on five consecutive possessions, turning the five picks into 10 points and a 43-27 lead with 16:50 remaining in the game. Thomas scored six points off turnovers, fed by NBA-caliber assists from Deluna and Saunders.

Steve Risinger's jumper at the 16:35 mark finally ended 7 OG's scoring drought and Chris Dyer banged in a long three-pointer a minute later, but three-pointers by 7 CMS's Robert Russ and William Saunders ended any threat of a comeback.

7 OG shot well as a team in the first half, hitting 10 of 20 from the field, including three of six from three-point range. Trailing 25-19 with 6:35 to go in the first half, David Heely knocked down a three-pointer and Anthony Mercer dropped in a pair of short jumpers for a 7-0 run that gave 7 OG a 26-25 advantage. But Ross's jumper 20 seconds later gave 7 CMS the lead for good, and Thomas added four more points to close the half.

Ross also scored 22 points while Saunders and Garrison finished the game with 19 and 12 points respectively for 7 CMS, which stayed unbeaten after five games. Dyer, Risinger and Mercer each had 10 points for 7 AMXS.

In Thursday's other Over-30 game:

Mike McKinney poured in 24 points and Nicholas Redenius banged in 14 more to help the 39th Airlift Squadron beat 7th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron 55-45.

The Trailblazers' victory overshadowed a strong performance by 7 AMXS' Phillip Boyes, who scored 11 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and recorded six steals.

Boyes and Kevin Jones had the hot hands early, helping the aircraft maintainers, who started the game one player short, build a four-point lead midway through the first half. But the 39th AS answered with a barrage of three-pointers, including one by Redenius that tied the game at 20 at the 6:53 mark and another a minute later that gave them the lead for good.

Jones finished with 16 points and Stephen Lambert added 12 more for 7th AMXS. Redenius scored 14 points for 39th AS, and Pete Nordquest and Mike Bradberry combined for 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Jones, who is also one of 7 AMXS's player-coaches, said the combination of McKinney's performance and 39 AS's fast-paced offense was just too much for his undermanned squad.

"We played as hard as we could, but they just weren't missing any shots and we started with four guys," said Jones, who also had eight rebounds. "McKinney was outstanding," he added. "He has good range. That and the fatigue in the second half played into us not winning this time."

Over-30 games are played at 11 a.m. and noon Tuesdays and Thursdays at the base fitness center. The fitness center staff schedules make-up games for those contests postponed due to winter weather earlier this month.