What a week of games to set up what will be an absolutely wild last week of the regular season. Here’s what went down:
GAME 1: TRIPLETS (5-2) DEFEATED BALL HOGS (4-3)
The Triplets kind of got whatever they wanted offensively. When the Ball Hogs went small, the Triplets were able to punish them with their size – when they tried to use bigger lineups, they couldn’t cover the three-point line. Joe Johnson was able to score from all over the floor, and finished with 20 points, 9 rebounds, and four assists.
On the Ball Hogs’ side of things, Jodie Meeks and Leandro Barbosa’s shots weren’t falling, and the duo finished a combined 4-20 from the floor and 1-8 from three point range. That wasn’t going to get it done, especially since the Triplets enjoyed a 23-13 advantage on the boards.
GAME 2: TRILOGY (5-2) DEFEATED GHOST BALLERS (4-3)
Trilogy have been the Hezi God show for the past few weeks, but in Week 7 they reminded us how good they are at putting the clamps on their opponents and winning with physicality. Trilogy held the Ghost Ballers to 2-11 shooting from beyond the arc, won the rebounding battle 19-15 and, most importantly, got to the free throw line nine times while only allowing the Ghost Ballers to shoot one free throw.
Ryan “Hezi God” Carter had yet another good game, finishing with 19 points on 6-12 shooting from the field and 3-6 shooting from 3. However, the day belonged to Earl Clark, who finished with a game-high 21 points and 4 assists while playing his usual stellar defense. The game-winner came on a pull-up three from the seldom-used veteran David Hawkins, which was a feel-good moment for everyone in the building.
GAME 3: KILLER 3’s (5-2) DEFEATED POWER (4-3)
This game really came down to shotmaking. Power was able to keep Franklin “Frank Nitty” Session contained for most of the game, but his teammates were able to pick up the slack by making tough, contested jumpers all game long. As soon as Donte Greene smoothly knocked in a four-point shot early in the first half, it was clear the Killer 3’s were feeling it. Greene and Dominique Johnson stayed red-hot all game, making tough jumper after tough jumper.
Power played well offensively, and almost stole the game with a furious second-half run, but their shooting let them down, as they finished 2-10 from beyond the arc (2-9 on threes and 0-1 on fours), and missed four of their nine free throw attempts, which is simply unacceptable in FIREBALL3.
GAME 4: 3’S COMPANY (3-4) DEFEATED ENEMIES (4-3)
If you like volume shooting, this was the game for you. Michael Beasley finished with a game-high 27 points and 15 rebounds, but he had to work for those points – he shot 13-31 from the
field, 0-2 from three-point range, and missed a four-point shot. He didn’t record an assist, and in fact each team had just two assists apiece in this game. This was 3’s Company’s final game of the season, and they went out doing what they did all year: letting Michael Beasley cook, for better or for worse.
On the Enemies’ side of the ball, the big story was that Jordan Crawford’s ultra-reliable shot finally failed him. All season long, he’s made shot after shot off the dribble and fading away against tight defensive coverage. Against 3’s Company, he shot just 6-19 from the floor, and missed all five of his three-point attempts. As a team, the Enemies shot just 2-16 from three-point range, which left enough of an opening for Beasley’s impressive if not terribly efficient display to lead 3’s Company to the upset win.
GAME 5: TRI STATE (3-4) DEFEATED BIVOUAC (2-5)
Bivouac once again struggled to hit shots, shooting 14-34 from the field and 2-10 from three-point range. That left the door open for Justin Dentmon to lead Tri State to a win behind an absolutely spectacular performance. He scored a game-high 31 points, shot 13-16 from the field, and dished out three assists for good measure. Thanks to Dentmon’s performance, Tri State will play another week, while Bivouac’s season will come to a premature end.