Davison, Peterson Each Top 30 Points In Win

PORTLAND, ME – A career-high in scoring from Drew Peterson against his old squad combined with a near-triple-double from JD Davison lifted the Maine Celtics to a narrow victory over the Sioux Falls Skyforce. 

Davison totaled 36 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists, his 15^th double-double and third 30-point outing of the season for Maine (5-5). Drew Peterson poured in a career-high 30 points, adding eight rebounds, three assists, a steal and two blocks. Jordan Schakel scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds. DJ Steward turned in 16 points, four rebounds and five assists and Brandon Slater added 12 points. James Banks III had eight points and nine rebounds. 

Jamal Cain put up 33 points, nine rebounds and three steals for Sioux Falls (10-2). Alondes Williams logged 23 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists and Justin Champagnie recorded 19 points and five rebounds. Malik Williams had 18 and eight, Josh Christopher scored 14 points and R.J. Hampton contributed 11 points, five rebounds and five assists. 

Jamaree Bouyea drove across the lane for a right-handed finish to open the scoring shortly before Peterson dropped in a floater to get Maine started. Sioux Falls got out to a 10-4 lead early, but it wasn’t long before the Celtics settled in, tying the game at 12 by the first timeout break. A putback from Schakel, a Steward driving layup and a Slater three in succession helped Maine build a 10-3 run to take its first lead of the day. The Celtics strong start continued as the first quarter came to a close, with Davison and Peterson combining for 19 to put Maine up 33-25 through 12 minutes. 

After an evenly played open to the second quarter, the Celtics began to extend the lead. Davison generated paint touches at will all night long, and he got himself going from beyond the arc early in the frame with his second three of the afternoon, already sitting at 18 points. Maine’s lead hovered just below double digits for a short while before Peterson nailed a triple to get it over the hump, 51-39. The Skyforce ripped off a 10-3 run of their own to pull within five, 54-49 as Cain’s relentless interior finishing provided a security blanket for their offense. Davison finished through contact with just over seven seconds left, and then Peterson drew a foul with less than a second to go and hit the 1-for-2, resulting in a four-point swing for the Celtics. Maine went into the intermission with a 65-57 lead. 

A 9-5 run to kick off the second half pushed Maine’s lead to a dozen, with Banks making his presence felt on the interior on both ends of the floor. Davison continued to fill it up for the Celtics, who ran everything through him when he was on the court. Peterson filled the secondary scorer role efficiently, reaching 24 points on his third triple of the night midway through the third. Maine led 98-89 late in the quarter before Sioux Falls went on a 7-2 run to cut the deficit to four, 100-96. 

The Celtics scored six straight before Christopher broke the ice for the Skyforce in the fourth. Maine’s run built to 11-2 before Sioux Falls signaled for a timeout, and the Celtics steadily took control of the game as time ticked down, limiting the coverage miscues that dashed their chances last time out. Davison led the charge with Peterson right behind, and along with a couple of heads-up plays from Steward to create extra possessions, the Celtics remained in the driver’s seat in crunch time.  

The Skyforce put together a 9-0 run to make things interesting, and Bouyea and Williams brought them within three in the final minute of the game. Steward knocked down a contested pull-up jumper as the shot clock expired to extend the lead to five with 16 seconds to go, and that was all the Celtics needed to close it out. 

The Celtics are back in action on Wednesday, Jan. 24 against the Windy City Bulls. Maine then hosts the Cleveland Charge for a back-to-back on Jan. 26 and 27.