Game Preview: Celtics Clash with Cruise at Showcase

ORLANDO, Fla. - Maine wraps up the Winter Showcase on Sunday night when the Celtics battle the Motor City Cruise for the first time this season.

The Celtics are coming off an impressive 116-110 win over College Park on Friday. Two-Way Players JD Davison and Drew Peterson led the way with 21 and 20 points respectively. Trailing by as many as 12 early in the game, it was a total team effort for the Celtics as six players scored in double figures. Maine dominated the paint with 56 points in the paint compared to just 38 for College Park. It was the first time Maine has beaten the Skyhawks in three meetings this season.

This is the first time Maine has faced Motor City this season. The Celtics will see the Cruise again before the New Year when Maine travels to Wayne State Fieldhouse on December 29. That matchup will be just the second game of the upcoming regular season after the Showcase concludes on Sunday night in Orlando. Motor City finished 7-8 during pod play and was fourth in the Central division. The Cruise lost a heartbreaker, 111-110 to Texas on Friday to lose their fourth game in a row. However, Motor City has lost those four games by a combined 12 points, including two losses by just one point.

Maine has also lost two games in the month of December by just one point, and will look to go 2-0 down in Florida to build momentum for the regular season. The Celtics shot 51.9% from the floor in the win over the Skyhawks and received a boost off the bench from Ron Harper Jr., who has been working himself back into the rotation after missing time with injury. Harper Jr. converted on 7-12 shots for 16 points in the victory.

Motor City's Two-Way Players are Daniss Jenkins, Cole Swider, and Alondes Williams. Swider led the Cruise in scoring in Friday's loss to the Legends with 24 points and five assists. Cruise center Tolu Smith also notched a 23-point, 12-rebound double-double. Williams is second on the team in scoring at 20.3 ppg.

CRUISE CONTROL: Motor City is one of the top offenses in the G League, tied for fourth among all teams with 115.3 points per game. They're also fourth in field goal percentage, shooting 47.6% as a team throughout the Tip-Off Tournament. Maine is third in the G League in offensive rating (113.2)

THE 3-POINT GAME: The Cruise are tied for fourth in the G League with a three-point shooting percentage of 36.6%, but they're 14th in three-point shots made. Maine takes the seventh most three-point shots in the G League on average, but attempted just 34 against College Park, their fewest attempts in a single game this season. Swider is third in the league in three-pointers made (56).

WHERE TO WATCH: Maine will tip-off against the Motor City Cruise at 6 p.m. EST. The will broadcast live on the Roku Sports Channel.