Trying to sleep on a bus ride can be a difficult task.

But when the Dakota Wizards got on a bus bound for Sioux Falls, S.D., shortly after Friday's season opener at the Civic Center, one can bet those players had no trouble sleeping during much of the 432-mile trip.

Thanks to an all-out effort on both ends of the floor, Dakota opened the 2003-04 campaign with a 104-90 victory over the Sioux Falls Skyforce, taking six of seven quarter points.

"That's a very tired group we have," Wizards head coach Dave Joerger said. "We played very, very hard for 48 minutes (Friday), and it's good to get this team's feet wet by getting that first win under out belt."

Ray Weathers led the offensive attack, scoring 26 points -- including 12 in the first quarter and 10 in the fourth. Kaniel Dickens added 16 points while hauling in 13 rebounds. Oliver Miller also had 15 points and 11 boards in the win.

In the first half, Dakota led by as many as 14 points, thanks to a 17-5 run that gave the Wizards a 53-39 edge with 4:23 to go in the second quarter. Sioux Falls was able to close the gap to 61-53 at the break.

But then the third quarter hit, and the Wizards defense put on the clamps.

Dakota allowed only 10 points and forced 13 turnovers in the frame. The Skyforce hit only 3 of 13 attempts from the field, and by the time the quarter was over, the Wizards' lead had ballooned to 84-63.

"That was a huge, huge quarter for this team," Weathers said. "We're going to be a good defensive team. We know we have guys that can score, so we have to get everything started with defense."

Sioux Falls actually cut the Wizards lead to three points at 62-59 just over three minutes into the third on a pair of free throws from Silas Mills. But then the Skyforce went cold.

Sioux Falls made only one field goal -- a 3-pointer by Willie Farley -- over the next 7:26.

The Wizards took advantage of the drought, going on a 19-3 run over that span.

"We didn't know how a younger team like ours was going to fare against a more experienced team, but we liked what we saw there," Joerger said. "They were chasing the ball all over the place, and that's something this group is going to give us."

Sioux Falls' lone quarter point came in the fourth quarter, when the Skyforce outscored the Wizards 27-20. Sioux Falls got as close as 10 points on a couple of occasions, but Dakota always had an answer.

"We've got a lot of guys that we can go to offensively," Weathers said. "We were able to hold them off to get a good win. Now we have to carry this over and keep building."

Joerger said he was pleased to get the win, but there were some mistakes, as Dakota had 24 turnovers.

The coach added that he knows that number will get smaller as the team gets used to each other.

"When we made mistakes, we were making them at full speed, and that's OK with me," Joerger said. "The more this team plays together, the better they'll be. They haven't been together that long, and when that chemistry builds, it'll get better."

Roy Tarpley led Sioux Falls with 21 points and 15 rebounds, while Mills tallied 20 and notched seven steals.

Dakota takes on the Skyforce in Sioux Falls at 7 p.m. tonight.

Sioux Falls 26 27 10 27 -- 90

Wizards 33 28 23 20 -- 104

SIOUX FALLS (90): Ricky Moore 4-6 0-0 8. David Jackson 6-13 2-2 17. Leonard White 3-13 0-0 6. Silas Mills 3-13 13-17 20. Roy Tarpley 10-17 1-1 21. Willie Farley 2-4 2-2 6. Johnny Tyson 2-5 1-3 5. Steve Hart 3-8 1-2 7. Totals 33-81 20-27 90.

WIZARDS (104): John Linehan 3-8 3-3 10. Ray Weathers 10-19 5-6 26. Kaniel Dickens 6-13 2-2 16. Ben Ebong 3-6 3-4 9. Oliver Miller 2-6 11-16 15. Melvin Sanders 1-5 0-0 2. Chad Prewitt 5-10 2-2 13. Junior Harrington 4-6 1-3 9. Nolan Johnson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 3-473 27-36 104.

3-pointers: Sioux Falls 4 (Jackson 3, Mills 1). Wizards 5 (Dickens 2, Weathers 1, Linehan 1, Prewitt 1). Rebounds: Sioux Falls 35 (Tarpley 15). Wizards 45 (Dickens 13, Miller 11). Assists: Sioux Falls 9 (Mills 5). Wizards 14 (Harrington 4). Steals: Sioux Falls 15 (Mills 7). Wizards 11 (Linehan 4). Blocks: Sioux Falls 5 (Mills 2). Wizards 4 (Dickens 2). Turnovers: Sioux Falls 22. Wizards 24. Total fouls: Sioux Falls 31. Wizards 24.

Records: Sioux Falls 0-1. Wizards 1-0.