Our first overtime game of the season came between Light Blue and Red in the day’s first contest. Right from the start, Light Blue seemed to maintain the upper hand, connecting on all cylinders and playing together extremely well, but Red never seemed to go away. Whenever Light Blue went on a run, Red quickly countered and narrowed the lead within minutes.
After starting the second half on a 12-4 run, Light Blue began to look disorganized. After their lead evaporated, Light Blue began to play well again, passing and cutting, making layups and playing solid D, and their lead returned. But they could never manage to sustain a high level play for long stretches of time, enabling Red to stick around.
The end of the game is where the fun started. With 1:25 left, Joel Morris completed an old-fashioned three point play and cut Light Blue’s lead to one point. Following that play, Red seemed to fall apart, with a technical foul being called, sending Light Blue to to the line with 41 seconds left. After one made free throw, Red came down and missed a three point attempt, which would have given them the lead, and it looked all but over for the squad. The next possession, Myrto St. Fleur got fouled, and made one of two attempts giving Light Blue a three point advantage. With 24 seconds left, a jump ball was called on Red’s offensive side of the floor, and the possession arrow was in their favor. After a few bad attempts, Dexter Newsome caught the ball in the corner and, with two hands in his face, rose up and nailed the three point shot, tying up the game and sending it to overtime.
After trading possessions to begin overtime, Light Blue eventually pulled away with the victory, but it was an exiting game to watch.
Overall, Emperor could not be stopped for Light Blue. He finished well around the rim and Red did a fantastic job finding him down low on multiple possessions. He is definitely a player to watch, finishing with 22 points on 10 of 12 shooting.
The second game was surprisingly similar to the first, minus the overtime theatrics.
But first, let me start by saying how entertaining Dark Blue (Blue Hill Boys and Girls Club) is to watch. They crash every offensive rebound (which sometimes hurts them on defense), slash and drive to the rim, and, most importantly, they have fun in the process. They also have some serious talent and play well together as a group.
But back to the game. It became clear very early on that Green (CASH) is a school team that has played together multiple times in the past. They worked extremely well as a unit, and are a resilient bunch of players. Whenever Dark Blue went on a run, CASH remained composed in the face of adversity. They never panicked and continued to make smart decisions.
In the second half, the game play quickly increased. Both teams were trading possessions at a rapid pace, and neither held the upper hand. When Dark Blue would crash the offensive glass, Green would get out quickly on a fast break and beat their opponents down the court. This led to a bunch of easy buckets, keeping Green in the game. Then, with 5 minutes remaining, Green began to unravel. They could not seem to keep up with the fast paced style that Dark Blue possessed. A few big free throws by Keow on Dark Blue set the team over the edge and they captured a 61-57 victory.
The highlight play of the day came as Parris (or Pretty Boy Parris as he is named on the score sheet) drove to the rim on a fast break. He euro-stepped his opponent and completed the nice finish around the rim. It was a great display of talent.
Week 4 Games:
FEATURED GAME:
Thursday, April 28th at 7:30 pm
Light Blue vs. Dark Blue
In a match-up of the blues, we’ll see if Light Blue can keep their momentum going after picking up a big victory in week 3. But I don’t know if they can keep up with Dark Blue’s fast-paced mentality.
Tuesday, April 26th:
6:30 pm: Red vs. Purple (O’Bryant)
7:30 pm: Grey vs. Green (CASH)
Thursday, April 28st:
6:30 pm: Yellow (Boston United) vs. Black
7:30 pm: Dark Blue vs. Light Blue
Play Hard or Go Home 