Monday sports: Spencer’s 51 leads Hustle past Birmingham

Photo: Cam Spencer aims for two of his game and season-high 51 points against the Birmingham Squadron Monday night at the Landers Center. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)

Dec 2, 2024-The Memphis Hustle defeated the Birmingham Squadron 109-102 before 716 fans at the Landers Center on Monday, Dec. 2. The Hustle were led by Cam Spencer’s 51 points, just seven points short of a team single-game record of 58 points scored by Tyler Harvey in 2019. Spencer scored his record-setting 58 points in a game against the Iowa Wolves. 

Spencer also hit 12 three-pointers in the win, the Hustle’s fourth of the year against six defeats in the league’s Tip Off Tournament. The 12 treys were one short of a record.  

Birmingham fell to 3-6, despite Izaiah Brockington scoring 29 points and Jalen Crutcher adding 26 more.  

Memphis went off to a 26-22 lead after one quarter, but the Squadron cut the lead to just one at halftime at 48-47.  The Hustle held as much as a 13-point lead in the second quarter and held a 77-66 edge with 2:22 left in the third. However, Birmingham went on a 10-2 stretch to get within 79-76 lead at the quarter’s end.  

Birmingham actually took their first lead since early in the game at 80-79 early in the fourth quarter, but the Hustle retook the edge at 82-80 on a corner three from Spencer.  

The Squadron would tie the contest at 99-99 with about two minutes remaining on a corner three from Crutcher, forcing the Hustle to call timeout. Memphis, and Spencer, answered, with Spencer’s layup giving him 51 points for the night as the Hustle held on for the win.  

Monday’s win came after the Squadron defeated the Hustle 115-102 in a Saturday morning game in Alabama.  David Johnson led Memphis in that one with 22 points and Spencer added 19.  

“We really challenged the guys over the last two days to come out and have some fight,” Hustle coach T.C. Swirsky said after Monday’s game.  “I think we did that tonight.”

Monday’s game was the last time the Hustle will see the Landers Center floor until mid-January. They’ll finish up the Tip Off Tournament portion with two games in Austin, Texas and a pair in Mexico City. The regular season then begins with two games at San Diego in late December.  

Monday, Dec. 2

Prep boys’ basketball 

• Lake Cormorant 54, Hernando 40
• Tunica Academy 50, Northpoint Christian 43

Prep girls’ basketball 

• Northpoint Christian 52, Tunica Academy 31
• Hernando 73, Lake Cormorant 41
  • Hernando: Fran Kelly-30 points, Kiersten Neville-15 points

JUCO men’s basketball

• Northwest at Mississippi Delta 93, Northwest 83
  • Northwest: Ja’Quise Richmond-26 points

JUCO women’s basketball

• Northwest at Mississippi Delta 68, Northwest 60
  • Northwest: Alorian Story and Layla Hampton-10 points each

NBA G League

• Memphis Hustle 109, Birmingham Squadron 102
  • Hustle: Cam Spencer-51 points