Ball Don’t Lie
The league by the numbers:
72 players
37 players who have taken or are taking the Never Too Late Basketball Weekly Practice Programs or have attended an NTL Weekend Camp
35 players who have not
5 father/son combos
7 players who have never played PFL (65 who have)
League cumulative percentages, Week One:
Three pointers: 39/110 = 35.5%!
FG: 121/384 = 31.5%
FT: 34/72 = 47.2%
Week One, March 8, 2014
G1: Debut game of the Spring season saw the Carruthers of the Brickbottom Bouncers (and of Lexington) score 29 points to the Eastie Riders 32. Can the Bouncers survive with just 3 assists again? Mitch Early (he played in the PFL Summer 2013 league) grabbed 10 boards and will be fighting with his dad for more next game. The Riders underperformed or were they waiting for Erik Morales “to walk through that door”? Looking up and down the stat sheet and you see players who can and will play better.
Game One /Brickbottom Bouncers (1-0) 35 – Eastie Riders (0-1) 32
(Players missing: BB: Mike “Mikan” Earley, Josh Kratka, Nick Mildwoff; ER: Cox and Rox)
G2: Neither team had a player score in double figures. Neither team shot at least 28% from the floor. There were 11 assists total for the game. It was a bit like who wanted to lose it more? Even David Po, MR Positive-Assist-to-Turnover-Ratio Man finished underwater (3 A to 4 TO). Nik Skosgberg picked up where he left off last spring by positioning himself for 10 rebounds. Cherry St won by not shooting 4/22 in the first half. Scott Lieber and Chansaly Ker were solid.
Game Two / Cherry Street Pickers (1-0) 31 – Winter Hill Runners (0-1) 29
(Players not there to help their teams this week: CP: Lida Mullendore, Chizzy Uchendu, Ranjith Zachariah; WHR: Tim “Star Power” Knauer, Sam Marks)
G3: This game was one part sorry and one part amazing. Shamen Lai and Lee. Sultans of Threes. Lai 6/8; Lee 5/11. They were like Jerry West and Gail Goodrich, Frazier and Monroe, Slick Watts and Gus Williams! It was raining supernatural jumpers, magical crossovers with no intermediaries to step in and stop them. Nothing could cure the ills of The Rollers who just, you know, rolled over and played dead. What did they think PFL was? An audition for totem poles? Play defense! Move your feet! Here’s a question: are Chip Allen and Larry Bavis worth 42 points? We’ll soon find out. (Sorry for coming down so hard on the Rollers but I make these teams and see them as being able to compete. Rollers were not competitive and that makes me look bad. Hence, I rant, blame others. Rollers? Can you play better next week? Thanks.)
Game Three / Mystic River Shaman (1-0) 77 – Ten Hills Rollers (0-1) 35
(Absent players: MRS: JR Morris, Mike Peerless, Brad Schutzer, Peter Wright; THR: Chip Allen, Larry Bavis)
G4: I don’t know, maybe it was a letdown after the revelatory acts of G3. Maybe it was the Game 4 blues or just the fact of two teams named Pickles and Shoots going at it. Kind of sloppy, out of control. Too physical. Too briny. More fouls should have been called, more shots made. The Shoots prevailed on ice free throws by Dave Hartung, latest PFL/NTL hero, with 1 second left and the score tied. Nailed them both!!! Jamal Halawa shot well for the Shoots. Chris Perrotti is becoming a force. A good force. Erik Morales walked out that door with a groin pull.
See you Saturday!
Game Four / Spring Hill Shoots (1-0) 39 – Powderhouse Pickles (0-1) 37
(Absent but not forgotten: All Shoots present; PP: David Duane, Jim Duane, Tom Hamel)
Chip and I weren’t at the game but we are still called out so let me reply. When we play this team again And we will. I will not be so arrogant to say will win but the game will be within 8 points. I’m taking friendly Bets that’s right Steve you have your first point spread for pfl.
Hi Steve and PFL’ers –
That was a tough game one loss. Shooting foul with one second left? I think the gym needed to be emptied, due to contract with Kennedy Elementary….
Anyway, a few notes: (1) You forgot that Pepe was absent, (2) Floman did not sit for one tic. 40 minutes on the floor, since we only had 6, and guys were GASSED, (3) Perrotti is playing his best ball in years- so glad you noticed! and (4) Two of our players missing were both noted as “top 5 offensive players” in the Winter session. Y’all on notice!
See you Saturday.
BFlo
I love these game recaps! Steve, thank you for highlighting my rebounding and not my 3-13 shooting. It appears that I should have only taken shots in the second half of this game.