HIDALGO, Texas — Jason Calliste and Ralph Sampson III each scored 14 points as the Maine Red Claws had seven players in double digits but were only 6 of 33 from behind the arc Thursday night and fell to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, 110-95.
In a first quarter that saw five ties and five lead changes, the Red Claws led 16-14 with 7:10 left in the quarter, but Rio Grande Valley closed the period on a 23-12 run.
Leading 37-28 heading into the second quarter, the Vipers scored 10 unanswered points to take a 19-point lead before a Chris Babb layup stopped the run.
Maine continued to struggle from the floor, finishing the half shooting only 31.6 percent and trailing 65-47 heading to halftime.
Calliste had five assists to go with his 14 points, while Sampson grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds to go with his 14 points for Maine, which fell to 20-11.
Babb finished with 12 points, Romero Osby and Christian Watford each tossed in 11, and Omari Johnson and Rodney McGruder chipped in 10 points apiece.
Clint Capela scored a game-high 19 points for Rio Grande Valley, which improved its record to 17-15.
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