Canton Charge are taken for a cuisin’ by the Grand Rapids Drive
As heavy fog began to gather outside the Canton Memorial Civic Center the Canton Charge (12-21) seemed to be coming out of a fog of their own over the past half dozen games or so including a 43 point blowout at the Q last Saturday. The Charge drew first blood but that lasted for a scant amount of time as Grand Rapids Drive (16-18) cruised throughout the game with double digit leads as the final score was 119-109. This is the third victory this season for the Drive with one last away game set for March 22nd in Grand Rapids.
Canton started with missing 8-of-10 field goals to start the game as Grand Rapids Drive guard Michael Bethea Jr. hit for nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from three point land helping give the visitors a 31-18 lead after 12 minutes. The Charge shooting woes continued as they could only muster 32% from the field on 7-of-22 shooting. One bright spot was Levi Randolph hitting twice from the arch giving him 6 points on the stat board.
Kobi Simmons returned from his 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers to score 10 of his first half points in the second quarter as the Charge tried to claw their way back. A Levi Randolph three pointer with 29 seconds left in the half cut the Drive lead to five points making him the lead scorer for the half at 13 points followed by Detroit Pistons’ 2-Way guard Kalin Lucas 12 points.
Grand Rapids came out of the locker room ready to play as they hit 60% from the field vs. Canton’s 34% as the Drive lead by as much as 16 points on three different occasions. The fourth quarter started off better for the home team with a 6-2 run but a Zach Lofton three pointer following a Drive timeout put the lead back at 15. Eng Adel scored on a reverse lay-up that started a 7-0 run for the Charge getting Canton to within 10 with 3:46 remaining. Another Drive timeout spelled the end as Detroit Piston 2-Way guard Isaiah Whitehead killed the last drive with a 24 footer giving them a 14 point advantage. Cavaliers 2-Way forward Deng Adel gave a highlight film type performance but it was not enough as the final score ended up at 119-109.
The Charge tied a franchise-record with 35 assists. Randolph led all scorers with 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting including 6-of-8 from three. His six made three-pointers tied a season-high set on January 19th vs. Maine. Simmons added 24 points and five assists in 32 minutes of action. Adel finished with 13 points and seven rebounds in his third game with the Charge, who are now on the losing end of six straight games.
Lucas led the Drive with 20 points in 28 minutes. Johnny Hamilton recorded a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Whitehead finished with 19 points, five rebounds and four assists for the Drive. The Drive seek their fourth consecutive win at home on February 8th with a divisional showdown with the Wisconsin Herd.
The Canton Charge go on the road for the next two games returning home for a Wednesday, February 20, 2019 contest against the Greensboro Swarm with tip-off at 7 p.m.
For Charge Nation Memberships, group outings, game day promotions and up-to-date information, head to CantonCharge.com or call 866-444-1944. The Canton Charge are part of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Quicken Loans Arena organization and are also owned by a group led by Cavaliers Chairman and Quicken Loans Founder and Chairman Dan Gilbert. The group also owns and operates the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League, who play their games at Quicken Loans Arena in downtown Cleveland.