Santa Cruz Warriors look to end losing streak vs. Iowa Wolves
The Santa Cruz Warriors will take on the Iowa Wolves at Kaiser Permanente Arena on Friday. Find out everything else you need to know in our game preview.
The Santa Cruz Warriors — G League affiliate of the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors — will continue their 7-game homestand on Friday, hosting the Iowa Wolves at Kaiser Permanente Arena.
The Sea Dubs just haven’t looked the same since Georges Niang received a well-deserved call-up to the Utah Jazz, losing two consecutive games. As it stands right now, Surf City holds a regular season win/loss record of 16-12.
The biggest change to their place in the standings happened after their recent 117-112 loss to the Reno Bighorns on Wednesday, which caused Santa Cruz to drop from being the best team in the Pacific Division to the third.
In addition, the Warriors are no longer in playoff contention for the time being, moving from the second seed in the West to just the sixth-best record in the conference. Hopefully, the Sea Dubs will be able to regain their composure and get back into the top four seeds.
Game Details
Santa Cruz Warriors vs. Iowa Wolves
Tip-Off: Friday, January 11, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. PST
Location: Kaiser Permanente Arena, Santa Cruz, CA
TV: Eleven Sports
Radio: N/A
Projected Starting Lineups
Iowa Wolves
PG: Melo Trimble
SG: Michael Bryson
SF: Anthony Brown
PF: Amile Jefferson
Head Coach: Scott Roth
Santa Cruz Warriors
PG: Quinn Cook
SG: Alex Hamilton
SF: Damion Lee
C: Damian Jones
Head Coach: Aaron Miles
Injury Report
SCW: Michael Gbinije was listed as “available to play” last game despite still suffering from a right calf sprain. Chris Boucher (ACL rehab) and Terrence Jones (right shoulder) both played last game after being considered “questionable” prior. C.J. Wilcox (right knee surgery) was listed inactive.
IOW: Perry Jones III (ankle sprain) was the only inactive player for the Wolves last game.
Next: Chris Boucher posts 11pts, 3blks in NBA debut
Key(s) to the Game
The Wolves will be coming into KP Arena holding a 14-11 win/loss record. They’re fresh off a 123-89 win over the South Bay Lakers, and the Lakers currently hold a 2-0 regular season record over the Sea Dubs this year.
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Former Stanford wingman Anthony Brown leads Iowa in scoring with 20.5 points per game, while power forward Amile Jefferson averages a team-high 13.2 rebounds. Point guard Melo Trimble expectedly leads the team in assists with 5.7 per game, and sixth man Elijah Millsap has been absolutely excellent off the bench.
The Santa Cruz Warriors keys to the game come two-fold: find a way to limit Iowa’s perimeter shooting, and keep Amile Jefferson off the glass.
The Wolves are one of the best shooting teams in the G League, ranking ninth in field goal percentage (46.5) and sixth in 3-point percentage (37.6).
Against the Lakers, the Wolves shot 51.6 percent from the field and an impressive 48.3 percent from behind the arc, so it’s definitely in Santa Cruz’s best interest that they do everything they can to stop the Wolves from getting easy 3-point opportunities — both outside the arc AND inside the paint.
(All game information provided via Santa Cruz Warriors PR)