Albuquerque, N.M., March 16, 2008 – Alando Tucker scored an Albuquerque Thunderbirds season high 42 points as the Thunderbirds defeated the Los Angeles D-Fenders 116-100 Sunday afternoon. The win was Albuquerque’s fourth straight and snapped the D-Fenders six game winning streak.

“We executed very well tonight,” Thunderbirds Head Coach Jeff Ruland said. “We just beat a good team; we have to continue to win one at a time.”

Aside from Tuckers game high 42 points three other Thunderbirds scored double digits including Will Conroy and Julius Hodge who each registered double-doubles. Conroy registered his fourth straight double-double; 16 points, 13 assists. Hodge added 22 points to go along with 11 rebounds.

L.A. was led in scoring by Sean Banks with 22 points; Jelani McCoy registered a double-double, 18 points and 12 rebounds. The D-Fenders blocked 12 shots in the game, six of which came from Brandon Wallace.

Tucker had nine points in the fourth quarter, none bigger than his reverse dunk at the 9:45 mark of the fourth quarter. Tucker took a pass from Conroy on a baseline cut and slammed it home, giving the Thunderbirds a 96-85 lead.

“Tucker comes to play every night,” Ruland said. “He is a great addition to this team and we are happy to have him.”

Banks led all scorers in the third quarter with 12 points helping keep the D-Fenders close. Albuquerque maintained an 88-81 lead after three quarters.

L.A. shot a stellar 60% from the field in the first half and outscored the Thunderbirds 27-20 in the second quarter. Albuquerque held a 58-52 lead thanks to 26 first half points by Tucker. Tucker led all scored 17 of Albuquerque’s 39 first quarter points, pushing Albuquerque’s lead to 39-25 after one.

Albuquerque gets back to action Thursday, March 20th and Friday, March 21st against the Tulsa 66ers. Both game times are set for 7:00 pm, from Tingley Coliseum. Friday’s game will be “Take Over Tingley”, $2 tickets will be available for purchase prior to the game.

Thunderbirds 2007–08 single game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at abqtbirds.com, any Ticketmaster location or at the Thunderbirds front office at 111 Lomas Blvd. NE, Suite 240, Albuquerque, NM 87102. For premium or group seating call the Thunderbirds office at (505) 265-DUNK.

The Thunderbirds stay focused on the community by participating in community events such as the Read to Achieve Program as well as D-League Cares. In the past two seasons the Thunderbirds have worked over 3,000 hours in the community, staying dedicated to Albuquerque and New Mexico.

The NBA Development League is the NBA's official minor league, and the first-ever basketball league with direct affiliations to NBA teams. Now in its seventh season the D-League’s goals are to provide affordable, NBA-caliber entertainment to fans of its 14 teams, as well as continue to develop players, coaches, referees and front-office personnel for the NBA. As the single source for in-season player "call-ups" to the NBA, fans of the D-League enjoy the highest caliber of basketball played outside the NBA. In fact, former D-League players represented 10 percent of NBA players on 2007-08 opening day rosters, numbering 44 in total. In addition, the D-League has produced 25 percent of current NBA referees and 16 current NBA coaches, including head coach Sam Vincent with the Charlotte Bobcats. The D-League is an innovative and rapidly growing sports property that also serves as an experimental testing ground for new initiatives like the live web-streaming of all games available free to fans at d-league.com. The League also provides continuing education and professional development resources for its players, and is committed to serving its local communities through D-LEAGUE CARES and grassroots efforts.

Individually, the Thunderbirds have had two player call-ups, two front office call-ups, two training staff call-ups and three call-ups from the Storm Chasers Dance and Cheer squad.

Designed to help grow the sport of basketball both domestically and internationally, the D-League offers NBA-quality basketball and fun, family entertainment at affordable prices. For additional information on the NBA Development League, visit NBADLEAGUE.com