Dec 17, 2007 - 04:08:58 CST
The Dakota Wizards badly wanted to bring Kasib Powell back to Bismarck, and they got a good look at what might have been on Sunday night.Powell - who had a brilliant season for the Wizards two years ago - killed his former team Sunday. Powell scored 29 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as Sioux Falls scored a 96-90 win.
Powell was the bright spot in Dakota's dismal 2005-06 campaign, earning first-team All-CBA honors. Although that was a rough season for the Wizards, Powell said he enjoyed it.
"I loved playing here in Bismarck,"he said. "Just to come in here, Iwas so excited. I've been excited since I got here off the plane (Saturday).
"I had a great experience in Bismarck," he added. "It wasn't one of the best years that we had, but the fans were still with us. We had a great team. I had a lot of fun, a lot of memories in Bismarck."
Because of his history with the team, and because he was with the Memphis Grizzlies - one of Dakota's NBAaffiliates - the Wizards tried to land Powell as an allocated player in the preseason.
But Powell didn't make up his mind about playing in the D-League until after the allocation process was over, and into the general player pool he went.
"He called me about three weeks ago and said he was ready to come in, but there was nothing we could do about it," Wizards coach Duane Ticknor said.
Powell said that the Wizards would have been his first choice, but he's happy with Sioux Falls. In three games, he's averaging 23.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.
Despite that, Powell said his focus is on the D-League, because getting a shot at the NBA is out of his control.
"To be honest with you, it's something Ireally don't think about,"Powell said. "The years I've played (in the States), I've put up good numbers, and I haven't got a call-up. So right now I'm just focused on playing the best I can play and trying to get better."
Powell's play was the difference on a night when neither team played particularly well.
In fact, the Wizards - who came into the game riding a four-game win streak - were downright awful in the first half.
Normally Wizards fans stand until the home team scores its first point of the night. On Sunday, tired of waiting, most never got up after Ticknor grabbed a 20-second timeout with 8:49 left in the first quarter and Dakota still scoreless. It wasn't until Rod Benson's three-point play at the 8:07 mark that the Wizards finally got on the board.
In the first half Dakota had more turnovers (15) than field goals (13).
"I don't understand why we battled our way back from a bad start of the season to take the division lead and then lay an egg like that," Ticknor said. "It's frustrating."
But despite blowing out to a 31-14 lead early in the second quarter, the Skyforce (2-6) had trouble pulling away.
Blake Ahearn came off the bench and jump-started the Wizards with his outside shooting. The rookie guard scored a career-high 24 points, and went 5-for-10 on 3-pointers. The Wizards gained their first lead of the night when David Palmer drained an 18-foot baseline jumper with 10:35 remaining, making it 72-71.
Dakota was up 83-81 with 6:07 to go, but Sioux Falls took control with a 10-1 run. Powell was critical during that stretch, setting up Damone Brown (28 points) for a dunk, then contributing a putback.
The Wizards thwarted their own comeback efforts with shaky free-throw shooting. Dakota was just 17-for-28 at the line (60.7 percent). In the last 17 minutes DontellJefferson got to the line five times, missing one of two each time.
"A team like Sioux Falls, that has been in a lot of close games, they're like a shark that smelled the blood," Ticknor said. "They went right after it and made plays when they needed to down the stretch."
Powell said the Skyforce was hungry for any kind of win it could get.
"It was a ragged game, but we were 1-6," Powell said. "For us to play a game like that and win - we'll take it."
3 NOTES:Rod Benson had 13 points, 17 rebounds, six assists, three steals and three blocks. ... Wizards center Kevin Lyde did not play because of a nagging hamstring injury. ... Ahearn missed from the free-throw line as a pro. The NCAA's all-time leader in career free-throw percentage had made his first 31 attempts.
Sioux Falls 26 45 71 96
Wizards 14 35 66 90
SIOUXFALLS(96):Kasib Powell 12-20 4-5 29, Damone Brown 10-21 5-8 28, Jason Klotz 1-4 0-0 2, Carl Elliott 0-7 1-2 1, David Bailey 5-12 5-6 15, Ronald Allen 2-2 0-0 4, Michael Joiner 6-8 0-0 12, Elton Nesbitt 06- 3-4 3, J.C. Mathis 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 37-81 18-25 96.
WIZARDS(90):Carlos Powell 4-12 1-3 9, Rod Benson 5-12 3-4 13, Wil Frisby 0-0 0-0 0, Dontell Jefferson 5-9 10-15 22, Maurice Baker 4-11 2-2 11, David Palmer 3-8 0-0 7, Blake Ahearn 9-16 1-2 24, Perrin Johnson 2-4 0-2 4, Kibwe Trim 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 32-72 17-28 90.
3-pointers:SF 4-15 (Brown 3-7, K. Powell 1-4, Bailey 0-1, Nesbitt 0-1, Elliott 0-2), W 9-19 (Ahearn 5-10, Jefferson 2-4, Palmer 1-1, Baker 1-3, Johnson 0-1). Rebounds:SF 32 (K.Powell 11), W 47 (Benson 17). Assists:SF21 (Brown 6, Bailey 6), W 18 (Benson 6). Fouls:SF 24, W 21. Technical fouls:SF- delay of game. Steals:SF 15 (Bailey 4), W 6 (Benson 3). Turnovers: SF11, W 23. Blocked shots:SF 3 (K. Powell 3), W 4 (Benson 3).
A:2,527.
Records:SF2-6, W 5-4.
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