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Riverdragons Advance To NBDL Finals

April 17, 2005 - NBA G League (G League)
Columbus Riverdragons News Release


COLUMBUS, Ga.— The Columbus Riverdragons earned their first-ever birth to the NBDL Finals with a convincing 96-89 win over the Roanoke Dazzle on Saturday night at the Columbus Civic Center in the semi-finals of the 2005 NBDL Championship Tournament presented by Delta Air Lines. Behind a dominating first half and the NBDL's top defense, Columbus shut down Roanoke for the second time in eight days to advance to next Saturday's championship match-up with the defending NBDL Champion Asheville Altitude, who defeated Huntsville 90-86 in its semi-final game on Saturday night.

Reed Rawlings led all scorers with 23 points, posting his second straight 20-plus point performance against Roanoke, after putting up 27 points in the two teams regular season finale on April 9. Defense again was the story for Columbus, as the Dragons contained the NBDL's scoring champion, Isiah Victor, holding the veteran forward to 16 points on six of 14 shooting from the field. The Riverdragons held the Dazzle to 43 percent shooting from the floor and forced 19 Roanoke turnovers to earn the victory.

For the second straight game, Columbus exploded to the early lead out of the gate. The Dragons registered six players in the scoring column and held the Dazzle to three field goals in the first quarter en route to a 26-11 lead after one period. Derrick Zimmerman registered seven points and four assists while Ramel Curry posted six points helping Columbus take early control of the contest. The Riverdragons overpowered the Dazzle on the boards as well, outrebounding Roanoke 20-8 in the stanza.

Columbus upped its lead to as many as 29 points in the second quarter, as Neil Yanke hit a baseline 18-footer to give the Dragons a commanding 52-23 advantage with 1:50 left in the first half. A Kitwana Rhymer jump hook, Seth Doliboa free throw, and Sung-Yoon Bang three-pointer helped the Dazzle close the gap to 53-29 at the half. The Riverdragons strong defensive presence continued in the period, holding Roanoke to six field goals on 18 attempts from the floor while forcing five Dazzle turnovers. Columbus also maintained its balanced scoring attack, as nine Dragons registered in the scoring column led by Rawlings' seven second quarter points. Overall, the Dazzle hit just nine of their 32 field goal attempts in the first half, committed 12 turnovers, and were outrebounded 32-19 as Columbus went to the halftime locker room up by 24 points. Victor ended the first half with one point, hitting none of his seven field goal tries.

Roanoke found momentum late in the third quarter, as Victor rediscovered his offensive game. The 6-9, forward from Tennessee connected for six of the Dazzle's eight points in an 8-2 run capped by a Victor dunk that brought Roanoke within 19 points, at 63-44 with 3:47 left in the period. The Dazzle closed the gap even further as a Casey Sanders free throw with 54 seconds to go brought Kent Davison's club within 16 points at the end of the stanza. Overall, the Dazzle outscored the Riverdragons 23-15 in the third to close the gap to 68-52 heading into the fourth quarter. Doliboa netted nine points, Gary Hill-Thomas connected for eight, and Victor posted six points in the stanza to help get Roanoke closer.

A Victor breakaway dunk with 5:34 left brought the Dazzle to within 13 points, at 81-68 with 5:34 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Columbus responded with a 6-0 spurt as Rawlings hit a jumper and two free throws along with two foul shots from Zimmerman to bring the Dragons lead back to a more comfortable 19 points with 4:46 to go. Bang connected for a pair of treys in the final two minutes to pull Roanoke within single digits, but it would be too little, too late for the Dazzle, as Curry and LeRoy Hurd hit consecutive jumpers inside the two minute mark to ice the game for Columbus.

The Riverdragons finished with three players in double figures. Along with Rawlings game-high 23 and Curry's 21 points, Zimmerman posted 12 points, seven assists, and four steals. Roanoke was led by four players in double figures. Doliboa notched a team-high 19 points, Bang hit for 17 points, Victor finished with 16, and Hill-Thomas netted 12 points in the loss.

The Finals of the 2005 NBDL Tournament presented by Delta Air Lines will take place at the Columbus Civic Center next Saturday, April 23. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. as the Riverdragons host the Asheville Altitude. For ticket information visit the Columbus Civic Center box office, Ticketmaster outlets at Publix Supermarkets, or call 1-800-4-NBA-TIX. For more information, log onto columbusriverdragons.com or nbdl.com.

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