The West Runs Through Sioux Falls: Skyforce Set to Host Western Conference Finals with Trip to NBA G League Finals on the Line

The Sioux Falls Skyforce is set to square off against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the Western Conference Finals. Both teams piled up bracket busting upsets in the quarterfinals and semifinals giving the Force the opportunity to host the Vipers on Sunday, April 2 with a 9:00 PM CST. tipoff time at the Sanford Pentagon. It will mark the third meeting between the team’s this season. 

“A lot of credit is due to the staff we have for making it this far,” Head Coach Kasib Powell said. “We’re on top of film, scouting, everything we can. It’s a quick turn around from opponent to opponent and we only get one shot at playing them. You can’t really live in the moment too much. We have to move on to the next play and the next game. Just knowing that if we don’t play well we could be the ones going home heightens everything for us. It puts us under more pressure only getting one game but we like it. We want to keep advancing.” 

Sioux Falls headed into the NBA G League playoffs on the hottest streak in the entire league. They were winners of six in a row before heading to Salt Lake City on March 28. Their winning streak gave them a spark of confidence that they could head into the playoffs with the belief that they could take down anyone in their paths. 

“Once we clinched a playoff spot, we knew we could compete with anybody,” Powell said. “We just believe in ourselves and we are confident. We kept a confident mindset going into Salt Lake City. They were a really hot team and playing well, but we stepped up and competed at a high level.” 

Sioux Falls left Utah with a win in a game where they nearly held control the entire way. Orlando Robinson was the leading scorer in that game with 31 points on 11-15 FGA, 17 rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks. All five Force starters were in double digits and combined for 101 of the 115 points scored. A total team effort that punched their ticket to the semifinals and a third road trip to Stockton to face the Kings. 

This game proved a little more challenging for Sioux Falls as they spent the entire game trading punches with Stockton. The pivotal moment of this game came with 31.3 seconds left where Jamal Cain drained a go-ahead three to take a one point lead. Sioux Falls was able to come out of the dog fight with a 98-97 win where DJ Stewart was the leading scorer with 27 points, six rebounds and four assists. 

“We were very confident in the shot Jamal took,” Powell said. “As soon as it left his hands, we all thought it was going in. We were happy that he was open to take that shot. At that moment, we didn’t want the ball in anybody else’s hands. It was a quick turn around because we had to worry about making a couple stops on the defensive end. It was a tough game, but we were beyond happy that Cain made that shot.” 

The victory marked the third time this season Sioux Falls has defeated Stockton on the road. They handed the Kings three of their six home losses in the regular season. 

Sioux Falls proved that they can win games playing different styles of basketball. They went into Salt Lake City and were able to win a high scoring shootout and left a dog fight in Stockton with a gritty one point win. This gives the team confidence that no matter what is thrown at them the rest of the way, they know they can win either type of game. 

“It’s good for the coaching staff and players to see we can win different styles of games,” Powell said. “Obviously, we want to be a high scoring team, but it doesn’t always work out that way. Stockton was a low scoring fight from the beginning. It is hard to keep teams in this league under 100 points. It shows we have grit and can win those scrappy games, but we can be a high scoring team too. It does a lot for our confidence to be able to do both.” 

A factor that has propelled Sioux Falls all season is the depth they carry on the roster. You never know who is going to be the leading scorer. On any given night, Mychal Mulder can make nine threes and score 40. The next night, it can be Jamaree Bouyea stuffing the stat sheet and putting up 30. Opposing teams have to pick their poison when squaring off against the Skyforce. 

“Our depth is our strength,” Powell said. “You can’t really take things away from us. You take Myke out of the game, Bouyea is going to attack you. You take away Orlando, Cain or DJ are stepping up and scoring. We have a lot of weapons that make us hard to guard. That’s what has taken us as far as we are. We let our guys play like themselves and it’s a fun thing to watch.” 

Sioux Falls will host the Western Conference Finals game after the sixth seed Rio Grande Valley Vipers upset both the South Bay Lakers and Memphis Hustle. While the Force was taking care of their business, they kept a close eye on the Vipers knowing that if they kept winning they would be able to return home. 

“The cards fell in our favor,” Powell said. “It’s a great opportunity to play in front of our home fans. It’s exciting. Our fans are something we’ve cherished and we’ve wanted to do this for them for a while. It’s time now to take advantage of home court, embrace it, and give our fans a great show.”

The dreams and visions of being in the NBA G League Finals is certainly within reach for the Skyforce, but they will have to get past the Vipers first - a team that Sioux Falls swept on the road  in a back-to-back in January to steamroll six wins in seven games. 

“We have to take it one game at a time,” Powell said. “That’s how we’ve approached it all season, one game at a time. Nothing changes now that we’re in the playoffs. RGV is in front of us and they’re a really hot team right now. We know we have to be locked in and take advantage of this game before we can think about finals.” 

$10 Tickets are one sale now for tomorrow night's game at the Sanford Pentagon.