Wolves Advance to Showcase Cup Semifinals with 124-99 Win over Kings

ORLANDO – The Iowa Wolves defeated the Stockton Kings, 124-99, on Thursday afternoon to advance to the NBA G League Showcase Cup semifinals.

No. 2 Iowa (12-3) will make its first-ever Showcase Cup semifinals appearance on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. CT on NBA TV. The Wolves will play No. 3 Sioux Falls which rallied by No. 6 Capital City Thursday night. Saturday's game will be the third meeting with the Skyforce this season. Iowa won the first two games.

Iowa flipped a close game with No. 7 Stockton (10-5) behind a dominant start to the fourth quarter with a 16-2 scoring run. The Kings never recovered as the Wolves led by as many as 25 in the win. As a team, Iowa finished 17-of-41 (41.5%) from beyond the arc. The 17 makes tied a season-high for the Wolves (at Sioux Falls, Nov. 12). 

Iowa was led by the quartet of forward Leonard Miller with 28 points, guard Trevor Keels with 24 points, guard Daishen Nix with 23 points and center Jesse Edwards with 18 points. Miller and Nix each recorded double-doubles as Miller pulled down 10 rebounds and Nix handed out 11 assists. 

The Wolves also received a big lift from their bench with guard El Ellis and forward Nojel Eastern scoring 10 and seven points, respectively.

At the start of the game, Stockton raced out of the gates building a 12-point lead midway through the opening quarter. Iowa chipped away helped by Eastern and Ellis. Eastern’s three right before the end of the first quarter buzzer pulled Iowa to within one point at 30-29.

In the second quarter, Iowa led by five after Ellis’ second three-pointer. Stockton countered with a 5-0 run that tied it up. The teams traded baskets the next several minutes as they each could only build leads as big as two before the Kings went on a late 6-0 run helped by three Wolves’ turnovers. Nix got Iowa back to within three with a late and-one and Jaylen Clark’s heave at the buzzer hit back iron as Stockton went into halftime up 59-56. 

In the first half, Miller led all scorers with 15 points while Nix and Keels finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Stockton was paced by Mason Jones and Terry Taylor who each scored 12 points. Both teams struggled with turnovers as Iowa committed 11 and Stockton had 12. The Wolves knocked down eight team three-pointers while the Kings made seven.

Out of halftime it was Iowa’s turn to start quickly as the Wolves not only erased their deficit but at one point built a 12-point lead in the third after Miller’s layup at the 1:28 mark. But Stockton answered with a closing 7-0 run all by former Iowa Wolve Brian Bowen II to only trail 89-84 into the fourth. 

Iowa’s defense, the third best in the G coming into the game, fueled the deciding fourth quarter run to send the team on in the single elimination tournament. The Wolves held the Kings to just one three-pointer after halftime and forced 10 more turnovers for 22 total that led to 25 points. Iowa limited Taylor to just eight points after halftime as he led Stockton with 20 in the loss.