Albuquerque, N.M., February 5, 2008 – The Albuquerque Thunderbirds defeated the Bakersfield Jam 98 - 84 Tuesday morning in front of a record crowd of 4,916 setting a new franchise single game attendance record. Daniel Horton led all scorers with 24 points for the Thunderbirds in the win.

James Peters and Andre Barrett led the Jam with 20 and 19 points respectively. Bakersfield’s Nick Lewis led all rebounders with 16 boards and Trey Johnson pitched in 17 points off the bench.

The Thunderbirds had three other players pitch in double – digit point totals, besides Horton, Ali Berdiel had 13 points to go along with a game high 6 assists. Jamaal Thomas had 21 points off the bench for the Thunderbirds and Josh Gross pitched in an additional 17 points.

“This was a good win, we played great defense.” Thunderbirds Head Coach Jeff Ruland Said. “That is the kind of defense we have played in our eleven victories this season. Having such an energetic crowd was great too, we need more of that!”

Both teams struggled to gain an advantage throughout the first half. Horton led all scorers with 17 points on 6 of 8 shooting for Albuquerque in the first half. Barrett led the Jam with 15 first half points, helping to keep Bakersfield close. At the half the Thunderbirds led a tight contest 55 – 52.

Thomas led all scorers in the third quarter with 10 points for the Thunderbirds. Albuquerque outscored Bakersfield 23 to 10 in the quarter, including an 18 – 4 run to close the quarter, helping them extend their lead, 78 – 62 after three quarters.

Bakersfield next travels to Anaheim to take on the Arsenal, Thursday, February 14th for their final game before the NBA All – Star break.

The Thunderbirds hit the road Friday, February 8th to take on the Tulsa 66ers. The game will be the first of a four game road trip leading up to the NBA All – Star break. The Thunderbirds will return home February 22nd to take on the Rio Grande Valley Vipers at Tingley Coliseum, game time is set for 7:00 pm.

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