The Delaware Blue Coats finally scored their first victory at their new home the 76ers Fieldhouse on Tuesday, as the team beat the Grand Rapids Drive 108-100.

The leading scorer for the Blue Coats in the game was guard Shake Milton who scored 27 points.

Forward  Jarred Vanderbilt recorded a double-double in the Blue Coats win as he scored 11 points and collected 12 rebounds.

Vanderbilt’s teammate, forward Ryan Anderson also recorded a double-double in Delaware’s win as he scored 10 points and collected 10 rebounds.

Three other Blue Coats scored in double-digits in the game and they were  center Cameron Oliver (10), power forward  D.J. Hogg (14) and small forward Haywood
Highsmith (14).

Delaware had the advantage in multiple categories in the game which included Assists ( 27-16) and Steals ( 18-9).

Blue Coats also won the turnover battle 21-26 over the Grand Rapids Drive.

 

Delaware’s Milton Scores 10 In First Quarter

The leading scorer for the Blue Coats in the first quarter was Shake Milton with 10 points. As a team, the Blue Coats shot 45.8% (11-24) and the Drive shot 50% ( 11-22).

The Drive also shot 75% ( 3-4) from the three point line and the Blue Coats shot 40% (4-10).

Grands Rapids also out rebounded Delaware by 13-9.

The first quarter started with the two teams battling it out with the lead constantly going back and forth.  It was like that for majority of the quarter, but the Drive’s Isaiah Whitehead would hit back to back shots at the end of the first to give his team a 27-26 lead.

 

The Drive Struggle With Shooting In 2nd Quarter 

The Blue Coats slightly improved their shooting in the second quarter as the team shot 47.6% ( 10-21).

The Blue Coats also did a good job at keeping Grands Rapids from not getting too many good looks at the basket as the team shot 29.2% (7-24) in the second quarter.

The Drive did do well in other shooting categories though, as the team shot 50% (3-6) at the three point line and 75%(3-4) at the free throw line in the quarter.

Grands Rapids out rebounded the Blue Coats by 16-10 in the second quarter.

The second quarter started with the Blue Coats going on a 6-0 run to give the team a 32-27 lead with 9:49 left in the half.

Delaware went on an another run at 5:59 minute mark where the team scored eight straight points to increase their lead to 45-36 with 5:17 left in the half.

Shake Milton would score five points near the end of the half to give the Blue Coats a 50-47 lead at the half.

 

First Half Stats

Blue Coats shot 46.7% (21-45) in the first half and the Drive  shot 39.1% (18-46).

Blue Coats shot 42.1% (8-19) at the three point line and Grand Rapids 60% (6-10).

Delaware’s leading scorer in the first half was Shake Milton with 15 points.

Drive’s leading scorer in the first half was Marcus Thornton with 12 points.

 

Johnny Hamilton Scores 10 To Help Drive To Tie the Game After Three Qtrs

In the third quarter, it was the Drive’s Johnny Hamilton who had the hot touch as he scored 10 points. The Drive dramatically improved their shooting in the third quarter with the team shooting 45.8% (11-24) overall and 77.8% (7-9) at the free throw line.

The Blue Coats struggled with shooting at times in the third quarter as the team shot 40.7% (11-27) in the quarter.

The third quarter started with Grand Rapids going on 10-2 run which gave the team a 57-52 lead with 9:33 left in the quarter.

The Blue Coats would go on their own 10-2 run around the 8:05 minute mark which gave them a 64-61 lead with 6:35 left in third quarter.  D.J. Hogg led the charge on the run for the Blue Coats with scoring five out of the ten points on the run.

The Drive would outscore the Blue Coats 16-13 for the rest of the quarter to end the quarter with both team’s tied at 77.

 

 Highsmith Scores 10 In Fourth Qtr As Blue Coats Hang On To Win

The leading scorer for the Blue Coats in the fourth quarter was Haywood Highsmith who scored 10 points. As a team, the Blue Coats shot their worst percentage of the game as the team shot 36.4% (8-22). Delaware did shoot well at the free throw line in the fourth quarter as the team shot 80% ( 12-15).

The Drive shot 45% (9-20) in the fourth quarter and shot 60%  (3-5) at the foul line.

The Blue Coats out rebounded Grands Rapids for the first time in the game by 15-11.

The fourth quarter started with Delaware going on a 7-2 run which gave them a 84-79 lead with 9:50 left in the game.

The Blue Coats went on a 11-0 run at the 6:53 minute mark which increased their lead to 98-85 with 5:17 left in the game.

The Blue Coats would hit seven free throw shots in the late minutes of the game to seal a 108-100 home win.

Delaware takes on the Windy City Bulls on January 30th at 7:00pm ET at the 76ers Field House.

 

Team Stats:
FG%: DE43% & GRD 42%
3P%: DE 40%&GRD 39%
FT%: DE 78% & GRD 75%
Rebs: DE47 & GRD 54
Ast: DE 27& GRD 16
Stl: DE 18 & GRD 9
TO: DE 21  & GRD 26
Blks: DE 6&GRD 10

 

Officially home.

A 108-100 win over Grand Rapids marks the first-ever Blue Coats victory at @76ersFieldhouse.@nbagleague | #JoinTheRevolution pic.twitter.com/aneX0xl50M

— Delaware Blue Coats (@blue_coats) January 30, 2019