TUNE IN ON SATURDAY ON CBS AND PARAMOUNT PLUS AT 1:00 EST FOR 3’S COMPANY VS. TRI STATE, WHICH WILL BE FOLLOWED BY ALIENS VS. TRIPLETS. AT 3:00 PM EST, BALL HOGS VS. GHOST BALLERS WILL FINISH THE DAY. THAT GAME WILL BE SHOWN ON THE STREAMING SERVICES LISTED BELOW.
ON SUNDAY, THE GAMES WILL START AT 3:00 PM EST. POWER VS. 3 HEADED MONSTERS WILL START THE DAY, FOLLOWED BY BIVOUAC VS. ENEMIES, WITH TRILOGY VS. KILLER 3s ENDING THE WEEKEND. YOU CAN WATCH THEM ON VYRE OR DAZN, TWO STREAMING SERVICES THAT HAVE PARTNERED WITH THE BIG3. YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THEM HERE:
VYRE: https://vyre.tv/downloadvyre/
DAZN ON APP STORE:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dazn-stream-live-sports/id1129523589
DAZN ON GOOGLE PLAY:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dazn&hl=en_US&gl=US
YOU CAN ALSO WATCH THE BALL HOGS VS. GHOST BALLERS, AS WELL AS ALL 3 OF THE SUNDAY GAMES ON THE BIG3 YOUTUBE CHANNEL.
Coming into Week 2 of the season, half of the teams in the BIG3 will be looking to continue their momentum from a Week 1 win while the other half will be looking to right the ship after a Week 1 loss. Let’s see what we have:
SATURDAY
GAME 1: 3’S COMPANY VS. TRI STATE
In Week 1, 3’s Company (1-0) was able to beat Bivouac in a fantastic game that featured a phenomenal debut from Michael Beasley, who was just voted the Microsoft Player of the Week. Beasley scored from everywhere, including two baskets from the four-point circles. He’s one of the players with the potential to prevent Joe Johnson from three-peating as the BIG3 MVP. If he can build on what he did in Week 1, 3’s Company should be in a good position against Tri State.
Tri State (0-1) was on the wrong end of a 50-35 blowout when they played Power in Week 1. They were without Captain Jason Richardson, who was in Health and Safety Protocols, so their game against Power shouldn’t be indicative of how they’ll play the rest of the season. If Richardson is healthy and ready to play, this game should provide a much more accurate sense of where Tri State is at this season.
GAME 2: ALIENS VS. TRIPLETS
This should be a great game. The Aliens (1-0) looked absolutely phenomenal in their Week 1 win over the Enemies. Dusan Bulut and Karlis Lasmanis, two FIBA 3×3 veterans, orchestrated a symphony of off-ball screens, cuts, and timely passes. The Aliens’ level of ball movement and man movement was on another level from every other team in the league in Week 1, and it was too much for the Enemies to deal with. Big man and fellow FIBA veteran Tomislav Ivosev will be joining the team after missing Week 1 with visa issues, which should make the Aliens that much more dangerous. (Unfortunately for the Aliens, Lasmanis will miss Week 2 because he will be playing for Latvia in the 3×3 World Cup.)
Meanwhile, the Triplets (0-1) got their Week 1 win over Trilogy with a strategy on the opposite end of the spectrum: they gave the ball to Joe Johnson, and they got out of the way. Even though Johnson had trouble hitting on his shots from outside the paint, he scored a league-high 30 points, including the game-winner.
Will the Aliens’ FIBA-inspired experiment work against one of the best teams in the league, or does the road to BIG3 success still go through Iso-Joe? I’m extremely excited to find out.
GAME 3: BALL HOGS VS. GHOST BALLERS
The Ball Hogs (0-1) were without Captain Leandro Barbosa in Week 1. (Barbosa is a Player Development Coach for the Golden State Warriors, and responsibilities relating to the team winning the championship last Thursday prevented him from making it out to the opening week of the BIG3). Without one of the league’s best players, they didn’t have enough firepower for the Killer 3’s, and found themselves on the wrong end of a 50-33 defeat. As with Tri-State, we won’t really know what level the Ball Hogs are at until this week, as Barbosa is one of the best players in the league.
The Ghost Ballers (1-0) are coming off a thrilling 53-50 overtime win against the Three Headed Monsters. George Gervin’s team was a treat to watch. Captain Ricky Davis can still get a bucket when his team needs one. The 253-pound Darnell Jackson has a silky-smooth touch from outside. Mike and Jermaine Taylor seem to be absolutely everywhere at all times. The 6’11 Chris Johnson is the best shot-blocker in the league, can handle the ball, has range out to the three-point line, and might have more pure talent than anybody in the BIG3. Everything he does has the potential to make your jaw drop. This should absolutely be a fun contest.
SUNDAY
GAME 1: POWER VS. 3 HEADED MONSTERS
Power (1-0) had a convincing 50-35 win against Tri-State in Week 1. They were led by 2022 BIG3 #1 overall pick Glen Rice Jr., who finished with 23 points on 10-16 shooting from the field, and 2nd round pick TJ Cline, who went for 16 points on 6-7 shooting from the field and flashed some serious playmaking skills for a big man. Coach Nancy Lieberman’s squad looks reloaded and ready to return to where they were in 2018, when they won the League Title.
The 3 Headed Monsters (0-1) will be looking to bounce back from their heartbreaking 50-53 overtime defeat in Week 1. Look for Kevin Murphy, who had 28 points against the Ghost Ballers, and Captain Rashard Lewis, who added 18 points of his own, to again shoulder the majority of the scoring load. If Murphy can be a little more efficient than he was in Week 1 (he shot 9-23 from the floor), 3HM can absolutely secure a win in this game.
GAME 2: BIVOUAC VS. ENEMIES
While Michael Beasley got the headlines and the win against Bivouac (0-1) in Week 1, new Bivouac Captain Gerald Green may have had the better debut. Green’s jump shot is beautiful and unblockable, and he scored 26 points on 10-16 shooting (and 4-8 shooting from deep) against 3’s Company. Green and Corey Brewer (16 points) combined for 42 of Bivouac’s points in Week 1. If the team can be a bit less top-heavy and Green can keep up the level of play he showed in his debut, a bounce-back win should be on the cards.
In a lot of ways, Enemies (0-1) drew the short end of the stick in Week 1, as Gilbert Arenas’ club was the first team to go up against the FIBA-inspired style of play Aliens will bring to the BIG3 this season. How they fare against Bivouac, who play a more “conventional” style of FIREBALL3, should give us a better sense of where they’ll be at this season. The keys to the game for them will be slowing down Green and getting more out of team Captain Nick Young, who went scoreless against the Aliens.
GAME 3: TRILOGY VS. KILLER 3’s
Defending league champions Trilogy (0-1) played well in Week 1, but ultimately were overwhelmed by Joe Johnson, which has been a fairly typical story since Johnson entered the league. Captain James White made Johnson work for his points and scored 21 of his own on 7-12 shooting from the field (4-6 from three-point range), while Isaiah Briscoe added 20 points on 8-14 shooting. That’s a good enough effort to beat most teams. Unfortunately for Trilogy, Joe Johnson did what Joe Johnson does, and Triplets were able to take home the win behind his 30-point performance.
The Killer 3’s are coming off a convincing win against the Barbosa-less Ball Hogs, but this promises to be a much, much stiffer test for Charles Oakley’s team. The Killer 3’s did an excellent job of spreading the wealth in Week 1, with Captain Franklin “Frank Nitty” Session handing out 7 assists while Dominique Johnson, Donte Greene, and Josh Powell all finished with 15 or more points. They’ll have to continue to share the ball and bring their A-game if they want to have the defending champs start the season on a 2-game losing streak.
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