We’re now midway through the regular season. Let’s see how everybody fared:
GAME 1: TRILOGY (2-2) DEFEATED 3 HEADED MONSTERS (1-3)
The story of the game was Ryan “Hezi God” Carter, who looked ready to be a star in the BIG3. He showed some good stuff in his debut last week, but really put it all together on Saturday. Carter was able to use his world-famous handle to get to the rim, was able to finish through contact when he got into the paint, and hit jumpers from both the midrange and beyond the arc.
Carter finished with a game-high 27 points and 5 assists, and was able to lead Trilogy to a much-needed win despite the absence of Team Captain Stephen Jackson, star guard Isaiah Briscoe, and Head Coach Stephen Jackson. (Co-Captain Amir Johnson served as a player-coach for Trilogy on Saturday.)
3HM were also shorthanded, as 2022 BIG3 MVP was out with a knee sprain he suffered in Week 3. They struggled to find offense without Murphy, especially since New Williams, who got the spot in place of Murphy, went 0-10 from the floor. Brandon Moss, another injury fill-in, showed some flashes of serious ability – it’s only been one game, but the hyper-springy Moss might be one of the best athletes in the BIG3. However, as Head Coach Reggie Theus noted when he was mic’d up, Moss is still prone to trying to do too much, and his game-high four turnovers were one reason why 3HM had a problem establishing an offensive flow.
Ultimately, Trilogy were able to get the 50-36 win when Hezi God hit a step-back three that he knew was good from the moment it left his hand – he had turned his back to the rim and was already celebrating when the ball was in the air. After it went through, he was treated to a one-on-one interview on the floor with BIG3 Founder Ice Cube, which is a good way to know you’ve made it in this league.
GAME 2: TRIPLETS (3-1) DEFEATED 3’S COMPANY (1-3)+
The matchup between Joe Johnson and Michael Beasley didn’t disappoint. Johnson was patient and able to bully his way down low all game en route to scoring 20 points on 9-18 shooting from the field.
Beasley had some trouble getting his mid-range jumpers from the right side of the court, but was absolutely relentless when it came to getting to his spots inside, and was able to get enough fadeaways to fall to finish with a game-high 29 points on 11-25 shooting. He did a great job of not settling for long jumpers, as he took just one shot from beyond the arc on Saturday.
Unfortunately for 3’s Company, the team around Beasley was cold – Mario Chalmers went 1-8 from three-point range, and the rest of the team made just two of the eight shots they took from the floor.
The game came down to the wire, and Lisa Leslie’s team was able to execute just a bit better down the stretch. Jamario Moon came off the bench and made some nice plays down the stretch, and the game-winner came when he pulled down a rebound and set up Jeremy Pargo with an open three.
GAME 3: POWER (3-1) DEFEATED BALL HOGS (2-2)
These teams both came into Saturday playing fantastic basketball, and their showdown didn’t disappoint.
Power had a hard time staying in front of the Ball Hogs’ ultra-quick backcourt, and Jodie Meeks were able to slash, cut, and shoot their way to a combined 42 points on 18-33 shooting from the floor.
Meanwhile, the Ball Hogs had a ton of trouble with Power’s size. Royce White looks more comfortable scoring off the dribble than he did last season, and he got to the rim off the bounce essentially at rim. He was consistently able to finish in a variety of ways once he did get inside, and finished with 18 points. Glen Rice Jr. was also able to get into his bag and consistently find ways to the rim off the dribble, and continued to show fantastic playmaking, finishing with 21 points and a team-high four assists.
Power’s inability to hit shots kept the game close – they went just 2-16 from beyond the arc on Saturday, and a lot of those looks were open ones. However, their size allowed them to punish the Ball Hogs on the boards – Power pulled down 14 offensive rebounds compared to just 13 defensive rebounds for the Ball Hogs, and shot 14 more field goals and five more free throws than their opponents.
With the game on the line, Glen Rice Jr. was able to answer the bell for Power, as he was able to bank in a 3 to give Power a 50-49 lead late and put the game away with a turnaround from the elbow that ended it by a final score of 54-51.
When asked after the game how important it is to have a “closer” like Rice (who also made the shot that sent Power to the Finals last season) on the team, Coach Nancy Lieberman had this to say:
“Everybody has that in them, given the situation, there are a lot of guys who feel the moment. A closer is someone who’s not afraid. It doesn’t have to be the best player, just a guy who’s not afraid. Glen’s not afraid. It depends on matchups, what’s working, what feels comfortable in that situation, what’s a strength for your players. We have a lot of guys in this league who have a lot of those strengths.”
GAME 4: GHOST BALLERS (3-1) DEFEATED TRI STATE (2-2)
We saw last season that Tri State can be prone to living by the three and dying by the three, and we’re seeing a bit of that this season. When the shots have been falling for Tri State, they’ve looked like world-killers. On Saturday, they shot just 1-15 from three point range (and 0-1 from the four point circles) and struggled to get anything going offensively.
On the Ghost Ballers’ side of things, size doesn’t slump, and they were able to have their way against their smaller foes all afternoon. Mike Taylor was a house of fire, finishing with a game-high 21 points on 8-12 shooting from the floor and an electric 5-6 performance from beyond the arc. He put the bow on his performance with a three that officially put a 50-33 blowout win in the books for the Ghost Ballers, who look like real contenders.
GAME 5: KILLER 3’S (3-1) DEFEATED BIVOUAC (2-2)
Bivouac came into the game struggling to find a consistent offensive flow, and the Killer 3’s are not the team you want to see if you find yourself struggling offensively. They tormented Bivouac with relentless pressure every time they found themselves on defense, and Bivouac had about as bad of a game as you’ll see. They went 10-45 from the field, 0-8 from three, and Gerald and Garlon Green combined to shoot 2-21 from the floor.
The Killer 3’s had a balanced performance offensively, with four players scoring in double-digits and 8 of the team’s 20 field goals coming off of assists. Donte Greene hit a layup to mercifully end the game by a final score of 50-24.
GAME 6: ENEMIES (2-2) DEFEATED ALIENS (0-4)
This was essentially a must-win game for the Aliens, but they didn’t come out with much of a sense of urgency, and scored just nine points in the first half. They put up more of a fight in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to get them in the win column.
The Aliens continued to look too reliant on the three-point shot, and finished 5-17 from three point range without getting much pressure on the rim. They also didn’t battle much in the paint, and finished the game with just one offensive rebound (the Enemies, for their part, didn’t pull down a single offensive board). This team needs to go back to the drawing board, because it would be almost impossible for them to return to the playoffs this season.
The Enemies, meanwhile, did what the Enemies do – there wasn’t much ball movement (just three assists on 17 field goals), and big man Isaiah Austin had just two points, but Jordan Crawford, Elijah Stewart, and Quincy Miller were consistently able to cook in isolation, get to their spots, and hit shots while taking care of the ball – they only turned it over once on Saturday. They also managed to get to the line seven times, and hit all of their free throws.
The game-winner came when Jordan Crawford backed down Dusan Bulut in the post and hit the fadeaway to give Enemies the 50-39 win.