BETHANY, OK – The Potawatomi Fire stayed perfect on the year after beating a tough Enid Outlaws team 111-101 on Saturday night.
Even though it was an Enid home game, the Fire and Outlaws were playing essentially a neutral site game as Saturdays contest took place at the Sawyer Center on the campus of Southern Nazarene University in Bethany.
The Fire, who were playing their fourth game in eight nights, had to fight to come out victorious. Enid made tough shots and kept the game close forcing the tired Fire to use up all their remaining energy to get the win.
“I’m proud of the toughness our guys showed tonight,” said Fire head coach Mark Dannhoff. “We have had a tough stretch and playing four games in eight nights is never easy. I’m proud of the mental toughness we showed tonight to fight through adversity get the win. Enid is a good team, and they didn’t quit. We had to play all 48 minutes tonight and earned this win.”
The Fire did face adversity throughout the game. Four players were called for technical fouls and Jachai Simmons was ejected in the second quarter after picking up two technicals. That left the Fire with just nine players available for much of the game. Enid had to face their own adversity with several guys in foul trouble much of the night and two players, Mike Evans and Deng Bol, fouling out of the game.
Throughout the game, Enid kept trying to grab momentum but once the Fire went up 50-49 going into halftime, they never relinquished the lead. The Fire relied on their veteran savvy and shot making ability to keep Enid at arm’s length throughout the second half.
Deshawn Munson led the Fire with 25 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists, and three steals. It was his first triple-double of the season. K.D. Moore had 23 points and five rebounds for the Fire. Chuck Guy scored 17 for the Fire and in the process surpassed 2,000 career points in the TBL, becoming the first player in TBL history to achieve that feat. Guy also had five assists and four rebounds. Off the bench, Ricky Artis II had 17 points and 17 rebounds while Ruston Hayward had 15 points, six rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
“We got good contributions for all of our guys tonight,” said Dannhoff. “Munson is really getting into that zone as a player where he can take over a game and he was fantastic for us tonight. K.D. continues to come up with big shots for us. Tonight, Ricky and Ruston were both big off the bench for us. It wasn’t just their scoring, it was the defense and rebounding that were big. For Chuck to get 2,000 career points is special. He’s such a great player and person and I’m proud to see him hit this mark. It’s crazy to say but it doesn’t seem like he gets the credit he deserves. Hopefully, people around the league will really start to take notice of the player he is.”
A full box score is available here.
With the win, the Fire closed out the first half of the regular season at 10-0. Up next, the Fire will host the Little Rock Lightning on Friday, April 19th. That game will take place at FireLake Arena and will tip off at 7:00 PM.
You can watch a live stream of the game on TBL TV or listen to the game on KGFF Radio (100.9 FM/1450 AM/KGFF.com).
Be sure to follow the Fire on social media (Instagram, Facebook, X) to stay up to date with all the latest information on the Fire.
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The Potawatomi Fire are the first professional basketball team owned by a Native American tribe (Citizen Potawatomi Nation) in Oklahoma. The Fire compete in the Central Conference of The Basketball League (TBL), a men’s professional basketball league, now with 38 teams across the U.S. and Canada. Along with winning the TBL championship in 2023, the Fire organization was named the 2022 winner of the Jim Koch Award as TBL’s Best Ran Business. The dance team of the Fire, the Fire Girls, were named TBL’s 2022 Best Dance Team and Central Conference Best Dance Team in 2023.
The TBL season begins in February and runs through June, concluding with a championship playoff tournament. The players that make up the rosters of the TBL teams are former NCAA (Division I, II or III) or NAIA athletes. Many have played in the NBA’s developmental G-League and/or professionally overseas.
Story by Chris Cox / Photos by Landon Kidney