Game Preview - Maine vs. Sioux Falls - Jan. 19, 2024

Game details:    

Matchup: Maine Celtics (4-4) vs. Sioux Falls Skyforce (9-1) 

Location: Portland Expo; Portland, Maine   

Tip-off: 7:00 PM EST    

Streaming: Tubi, NBC Sports Boston (tape delay) 

With a week of practice between a two-game sweep of the Indiana Mad Ants and now, the Maine Celtics have geared up for another two-game set as they welcome the G League-best Sioux Falls Skyforce to the Portland Expo for the first time since February of 2016. 

Tonight marks the first matchup between Maine and Sioux Falls since Dec. 21, 2018, a 114-94 win for the Skyforce at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas. Justin Bibbs led Maine with 24 points while current Miami Heat guard Duncan Robinson posted 15 points and six rebounds for Sioux Falls. 

Breaking down the Skyforce: 

Coming into tonight at 9-1, the Skyforce hold the best winning percentage in the league and are one of two teams with only a single loss. The #3 offense and #8 defense have carried Sioux Falls through its hot start, which included a 9-0 start to the season prior to a loss at the hands of the Texas Legends two nights ago. Along with the Stockton Kings, the Skyforce are one of two teams to rank inside the top-8 in offense and defense to this point in the regular season. 

The Miami Heat G League affiliate squad is led by reigning back-to-back Player of the Week, Alondes Williams. One of three Skyforce to play in all 10 regular season games, Williams averages 23.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.7 assists on a highly efficient 57.7% from the field and 41.8% from beyond the arc. During his most recent Player of the Week run, the Wake Forest product averaged 25.3 points, 8 assists and 2.7 steals. Over the last two weeks, few players in the league have produced at Williams’ level. 

The Skyforce have numerous contributors beyond Williams, as its 9-1 record suggests, even though none of its Two-Way players are with the team this weekend. Sioux Falls’ second-leading scorer is former Boston Celtic Justin Champagnie, now an affiliate player in the Miami organization. The Pittsburgh alum averages 22.8 points, a team-high 9.1 rebounds and 3.6 stocks, shooting just over 50% from the field. Jamaree Bouyea, an All-NBA G League second-team selection as a rookie last season, puts up 15.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 2.3 steals per contest. Malik Williams, who has also played in all 10 games, adds 9.1 points and 7.8 rebounds. 

Keys to the game: 

Enforcers: The Celtics have the advantage on the interior tonight. James Banks III and Kylor Kelley are both top-5 in the league in blocks per game, are marginally taller than any player Sioux Falls can put at the five, and Maine’s offensive rebounding numbers are markedly better than the Skyforce’s. If the Celtics can control the glass, impose their will inside and be the tougher, stronger team all night long, that advantage will grow even larger. 

Help Drew Peterson have a successful reunion: Maine’s Two-Way guard was originally a part of the Miami organization coming out of the draft, playing in the 2023 Summer League with the Heat, and then spending the early portion of the Showcase with Sioux Falls before signing with Boston. I bet it’d be nice for Peterson to have the upper hand on his old teammates with a pair of wins this weekend.