The Canton Charge (29-18) topped the Iowa Energy (24-23), 102-97, at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines on Sunday evening. Canton locks themselves into the top Wild Card spot in the East, as they'll face the Central Division winner in the opening round of the playoffs.
Tied 44-44 at half, the Charge surged in the third quarter by hitting 11-of-18 shots (61%), led by Brandon Paul's perfect shooting quarter to net 12 of the team's 31 points. After Canton took the lead 47-46 at the 11:20 mark of the third, they never relinquished their advantage for the remainder of the contest.
The win improves the Wine & Gold to 6-0 on the road and 10-3 overall versus the Central Division this season.
Paul led the Charge in scoring for the second straight night, pouring in 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting with five rebounds, and two steals in 33 minutes. Jorge Gutierrez provided a superb all-around effort of 21 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and three steals in 35 minutes off the bench. James Singleton added 19 points and seven boards in 43 minutes.
Three Iowa players scored 20+, led by Willie Reed's 23 points, 15 boards, and two steals in 34 minutes. Russ Smith scored 23 points with six rebounds, and six assists in 39 minutes. Damien Wilkins scored 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting in 42 minutes. The Energy scored 72 points in the paint to the Charge's 22.
Information supplied by the Canton Charge was used in this story.
