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The Fastbreakers stun White Men Can’t Jump with a big come from behind win in League B. While Pelican Bay and the Toon Squad both stay undefeated a week ahead of their heavyweight matchup in League A.
Buffalo, NY- Week 4 was chock-full of great matchups. The biggest matchup in League B was between White Men Can’t Jump and the Fastbreakers. The Fastbreakers were looking to stay undefeated, while White Men Can’t Jump were looking for the upset. The White Men got off to a fast start behind the hot hand of Frankie Musso, who scored 15 of his 19 points in the first half. Joey Catalano (17 points) also kicked in three three-pointers in the first half as White Men Can’t Jump jumped out to a 45-29 lead at the half. During halftime captain Nick DeMonte gave an inspirational speech and made some strategic changes that would prove to change the course of the game. In the second half the Fastbreakers turned the ship around and quickly cut what was once a 19 point deficit into a lead at about the five minute mark. Tony Conti (12 points) knocked down a pair of threes during the big second half run and big man Seth Runge dominated on the inside, scoring 17 of his 25 points in the second half. The White Men Can’t Jump continued to fall apart at the end as the Fastbreakers completed the biggest comeback of the season with the 79-71 win.
The Wolf Pack picked up their first win of the season against Sean Kenney and Off Constantly. Matt Brooks scored a team high 15 points in the win as they look to stay in the hunt for the final playoff spot. Healthy Buffalo picked up their third win of the season against the Premature Shooters. After starting shorthanded, it appeared that Off Constantly might be poised to pull off the upset as they carried a tie game into the break. Jeff Star played his heart out for Off Constantly, leading his team with 25 points, but it wasn’t enough as Healthy Buffalo laid on the attack in the second half as they reached full strength. Uchenna Gigi scored a team high 19 points to lead Healthy Buffalo to a 61-47 victory and a perfect start to the season through four weeks.
Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy joined the Fastbreakers and Healthy Buffalo as the final three undefeated teams in League B with another big win in Week 4, this time against the Nickel City Dimers. Lenny Frears (19 points) and Troy Langworthy (22 points) dominated the court from the start, leading Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy to a 49-23 lead at the half. In the second half Sean Baker (15 points) tried to rally his troops, but came up short as Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy cruised to an 84-47 win. The Nickel City Dimers will have a chance to get their season on track in Week 5 as they take on Grind Time who are also in search of their first win of the season.
United Hoops knocked off Concrete in the 4:40 pm game as they welcomed the return of their captain Justin Stokes (19 points). The win keeps United Hoops within one game of first place in League B as they get ready to play the Fastbreakers in Week 5. The U.H. picked up their first win of the season against Grind Time despite playing without their veteran captain Mike Capuana. Will Castro led the attack with 29 points while the U.H. to a 50-44 win.
In the first game of action in League A, Captain/Coach Jake Walkow made his triumphant return from an ACL injury he suffered in Season 8. Unfortunately his return was spoiled by the Toon Squad, who extended their record breaking winning streak to 14 games. Justin Andreozzi led all scorers with 27 points.
In the 7:25 pm game Norfolk N’ Chance played host to the Billies, who played in place of Niagara University, who were enjoying their spring break away from school. The Billies fought hard, but were no match for a souped up Norfolk N’ Chance team, led behind the potent offensive attack of Todd Kane (21 points) and Mark Giordano (20 points).
Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl stayed hot with a big win over Court Justice. After nearly surrendering their double digit lead in the game’s closing minutes, Swoopin’ held on the the narrow win, 80-76. John Papincak led all scorers with 31 points, including a key layup in the games closing moments. The loss drops Court Justice to 2-2, while Swoopin’ remains just one game out of first place with the win.
R.I.P. Ent and the Buffalo Braves had this game circled on the schedule at the beginning of the season. While both teams came into the game 0-3, there was no loss of intensity in this one. R.I.P. Ent dominated the first half defensively, holding the Buffalo Braves to just four field goals. The Buffalo Braves made a good run in the second half behind the strong shooting of Aris Schultz (16 points) and Hank Bell (10 points), but it was too little too late as they fell to 0-4 with the 64-60 loss.
Pelican Bay looked to keep their undefeated season alive against the Cleveland Beamers. The Beamers came out on fire in the first half, playing with a passion and intensity usually reserved for the playoffs. Edvin Ramulic (29 points) did his best to keep his teammates in the game, but they couldn’t handle the onslaught delivered by Pelican Bay. Ahmed Nagaya (17 points) put in another strong all-round performance and has begun to draw interest from scouts on the Healthy Buffalo Dream Team, while Antonio Samedi put the finishing touches on this win with a thunderous dunk in the closing minutes. Final score: Pelican Bay 75, Cleveland Beamers 54.
Monumental Matchup in Week 5
In what is perhaps the most highly anticipated Champions League matchup since Jon Plail led Norfolk N’ Chance over Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl in the opening week of Season 9, Pelican Bay will face the Toon Squad in the third game of action in Week 5. A the league’s reigning champions, the Toon Squad will carry a 14 game winning streak into the game along with an air of invincibility. Yet they will have their hands full with a very confident Pelican Bay team. Can the Toon Squad make it 15 straight? Be there this Sunday at 2:50 to find out!
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Pelican Bay knocks off 2 Live Crew to join the Toon Squad and the Cleveland Beamers as the last remaining undefeated teams in League A. While Off Constantly made a second half surge to give the Fastbreakers a scare in League B.
Buffalo, NY- Despite the cold weather outside, their was some intense basketball action at the Knights of Columbus last Sunday. In the first game of the day Niagara University picked up their first win of the season with a 69-66 victory over the Buffalo Braves, who fell to 0-2. Galen Stone of the Buffalo Braves led all scorers with 30 points, but it wasn’t enough to over come a solid team effort by NU, who were led by Isaiah Thomas with 20 points.
R.I.P. Ent lost another close one as they fell 68-67 to John Papincak and Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl. Swoopin’ jumped out to a quick lead in the first half behind the shooting of Bryan Legge who scored 22 of his 24 points in the first half. In the second half R.I.P. Ent made a run and cut the lead down to two points before coming up just short at the end.
The VeryAggressiveGuys were looking to pick up there first win of the season against Court Justice in the third game. They carried a 34-33 point lead into the half against a shorthanded Court Justice team, but couldn’t hold onto the lead when Court Justice got back to full strength. Brian Walter led Court Justice with 25 points iin the 79-66 win, while keeping them within striking distance of first place in League A.
It was a battle of the undefeated teams as Pelican Bay squared off against Travis Craig and 2 Live Crew. Pelican Bay looked to continue their run in the first half as they took a commanding 27-17 lead into the half, while appearing to be in full control of the game. However in the second half Travis and Terence Craig came out on fire, shooting 2 Live Crew right back into the game. They got it down to a two point game before Pelican Bay finally finished them off, 62-57. Mark Gross led Pelican Bay with 18 points, but suffered a high ankle sprain near the end of the game. The timetable for his return is not yet know. He is listed as questionable for next week’s game against the Cleveland Beamers.
Speaking of the Beamers, they got a strong win against Norfolk N’ Chance, who came out looking pretty flat in Week 3. Edvin Ramulic continued to dominate offensively in Week 3 leading all scorers with 25 points, while Jon Plail led Norfolk N’ Chance with 12 points. The Beamers will play Pelican Bay next week in a battle of undefeated teams in the late game at 10:10 pm.
Healthy Buffalo continued to their strong start to the season with a 71- 58 win over the Wolf Pack. Big-man Darren Kresge made his season debut for Healthy Buffalo after missing the season opener against Grind Time. Swing-man Uchenna Gigi led all scorers with 31 points, carrying his offensive attack seamlessly over to the Champions League from the 4-on-4 League at the Town Boys & Girls Club.
In Other League News
Off Constantly came close to knocking off the Fastbreakers with a 70-66 loss. Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy cruised past the U.H. to remain undefeated at 3-0. Concrete beat White Men Can’t Jump 64-60 in a rematch of Season 9′s playoff game. Nick Jarmusz led all scorers with 28 points. The Billies rolled past Grind Time 73-44 as Mark Ward (39 points) made his triumphant return after missing Week 2 for personal reasons. United Hoops picked up a 77-47 win in the late game against the Nickel City Dimers, despite playing without their captain Justin Stokes. Gabriel Ruiz stepped up in their captain’s absence to lead United Hoops with 24 points.
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Adam Brasky scores 22 points as the Toon Squad knocks off Norfolk N’ Chance in League A, while Nick Jarmusz scores 43 points to lead Concrete past Off Constantly in League B.
Buffalo, NY- Week 2 welcomed the last two teams into the mix, as the Cleveland Beamers and the Wolfpack made their season debuts after the opening week bye. The Cleveland Beamers picked up the win over a shorthanded R.I.P. Ent. The Beamers showcased a completely revamped team from last season as only John Meyers (9 points) and captain Edvin Ramulic (36 points) returned from Season 9. While the new players 
showed some promise, they were definitely missing something a spark out on the court with the absence of utility man Lee Tringali, who was let go in the off-season.
The Wolfpack on the other hand, had their hands full as they were introduced into the league with a game against the Fastbreakers. As the Fastbreakers jumped out to a 38-13 halftime lead, many analysts were reminded of the Wolfpack of yore, who failed to win a game in the history of the franchise. However, they fought back in the second half and lost by a more respectable 71-39 margin and the season is still young. Unfortunately things won’t get easier in Week 3 as they have a matchup against a Healthy Buffalo squad loaded with firepower.
United Hoops picked up there first win of the season against The U.H. It was an all round solid team effort for United Hoops, who were led by Xavier Ruiz who had a team high 20 points. Will Castro led The U.H. with 22 points, but it wasn’t enough to fend off a determined United Hoops squad who picked up the 61-47 win.
Nick Jarmusz had another impressive offensive night in Week 2 as Concrete thrashed Off Constantly. Jarmusz scored a season high 43 points as he looks to defend his scoring title. While it is still early, Concrete looks to have the pieces to make a deep run come playoff time.
The Premature Shooters put their first notch in the win column with a solid victory of Grind Time. Jeff Starr led the offensive attack with a game high 23 points, while Grind Time suffered in the absence of their leader Mike Bartoszek, who missed the game for undisclosed reasons. Final score: Premature Shooters 60, Grind Time 40.
White Men Can’t Jump picked up another convincing win in Week 2 with an 86-28 win of the Nickel City Dimers. WMCJ Captain Frank Musso led all scorers with 27 points, while sharpshooter Joe Catalano chipped in 19 points and veteran Nick DiGangi scored 15.
Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy joined the Fastbreakers and White Men Can’t Jump as the third team to jump out to a 2-0 start in League B. They beat the Billies 49-42. The Billies were without their franchise leading scorer Mark Ward. In his absence the Billies failed to drum up much offense as only Frank Pieri (13 points) reached double figures. Clayton Hess carried Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy in this one as he scored a season high 20 points.
In the first game of League A action Swoopin’ In’ On Ya Girl played the Very Aggressive Guys as both team were in the hunt for their first win of the season. Swoopin’ jumped out to a commanding 44-26 lead at the half and then held on to lock up the 77-66 win. Antalik (29 points) and Papincak (27 points) were a dynamic duo on the court and overshadowed the strong play of Ineson (23 points) and Bennett (31 points) for the Very Aggressive Guys.
Ahmed Nagaya continued his scoring prowess for a second consecutive week with a 32 point performance to follow up his 29 point performance on opening day. Niagara University got off to a better start against Pelican Bay than they did against 2 Live Crew in Week 1, but it wasn’t enough to pose a legitimate threat to Mark Gross and Pelican Bay who locked up their second win of the season with the 74-59 win.
The Toon Squad looked to continue their historic run through the league as they locked up their 13 consecutive win dating back to the beginning of Season 9. This week Norfolk N’ Chance were their victims. Adam Brasky scored a game high 22 points, while Justin Andreozzi chipped in another 20 points in the 62-53 win.
In the final game of Week 2 Court Justice played 2 Live Crew in a frenetic game of high-paced back and forth basketball. 2 Live Crew outlasted Court Justice behind the strong play on both ends of the court by Travis Craig (21 points). The win puts 2 Live Crew in the elite company of Pelican Bay and the Toon Squad as the only remaining undefeated teams in League A.
Get ready for more of Buffalo’s best basketball action this Sunday!
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