5th Seeded KW Appliances knock of Elmwood Village Cut & Shave in the play-in game, then go on to drop #1 seeded Team Chippewa in the Semi-Finals.

Buffalo, NY- On Sunday, May 8 in the play-in round of the Kronies Jamfest playoffs, Malone’s dropped to the Seven-One-Sixers in the West, while KW Appliances beat Elmwood Village Cut & Shave with a three pointer as time expired to advance in the East.  That set the stage for the semi-finals of the West, the East, and the Consolation Bowl tourneys to follow this past Sunday.

The first game featured top seeded Team Chippewa against KW Appliances.  While many pundits had predicted that Team Chippewa would win it all in the inaugural season of Kronies Jamfest, they had suffered a number of personal issues that left them short-handed to face off against KW Appliances in the playoffs.  While they were without two of their leading scorers (Rob Fitchlee and Fran Snyder), they did have Daniel Gilbert to try to fill the void.  Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to handle the KW Appliances, who beat them handily 86-60.

The following game featured That’s How We Do Work against the Flint Tropics, who were looking to avenge their week 7 loss in the regular season.  It was a close game throughout as Phil Puccia (36 pts) and Mike Ridge (23 pts) did their best to keep it close, but it wasn’t enough to hold off That’s How We Do Work, who were lead to Kronies Jamfest leading scorer Darcell Williams (28 pts) and Andrew McClaren (22 pts).  Final score THWDW 78, Flint Tropics 75.

In the 5pm game the Western Conference champion NF Boys took on the Seven-One-Sixers.  The NF Boys, who were six point favorites going into the game didn’t quite look like the number one seed, despite the triumphant return of point guard Shawn Satarian.  After jumping off to a quick lead the Seven-One-Sixers held on to end the NF Boys chamionship run, 66-53.

In the 6pm game red-hot R.I.P. Ent faced off against an invigorated Fusion team, who were bolstered by the return of big man Eric Worral, who flew back into Buffalo from Iowa to help his team have a chance to play for the championship.  In a hotly contested back and forth game, Fusion cam out on top 56-55, dashing the championship dreams of R.I.P. Ent, who had won six straight heading into the game.

Consolidation Bowl Madness!

In the 7pm game Norfolk N’ Chance took on a struggling Healthy Buffalo 1.0, who had to call up BSWA director Nicholas Battaglia to help fill in the void left by the Capuana brothers who went AWOL after week seven.  Battaglia fought hard, scoring eight points, including a three-pointer at the buzzer in the first half, but it wasn’t enough to hold off Dean Antalik (18 pts), Cory Kadish (8 pts) and the rest of Norfold N’ Chance who pulled off the win 48-41 and will advance to the Western Conference Consolation Bowl Championship.

In the 8pm game the Tarheels faced off against Healthy Buffalo 2.0.  The Tarheels got off to a quick 18 point lead behind the offensive firepower of James Daniels (39 pts, 28 in the first half) and it was too much for Healthy Buffalo 2.0 to overcome, despite an inspiring second half turnaround.  Final score Tarheels 81, Healthy Buffalo 2.0 69.

In the 9pm game the Billies took on Hutch’s, who were looking to make a statement after falling just short of the Championship bracket in the Eastern Conference.  Hutch’s leading scorer Shawn Dotzler came out firing, leading Hutch’s with 29 points.  The Billies hung tough behind the strong play of Rich Lynch, Nick Magnini, and Tom Cavanagh, but it wasn’t enough in the end.  Final score Hutch’s 82, Billies 54.

In the final game of the night Shining Force faced off against Practical Modern Basketball.  In a hotly contested game, Shining Force pulled out a win 66-65, despite a career game by Sean Cronin (16 pts).

Championship Week

This coming Sunday is Championship Week, the most highly anticipated day of the year for Buffalo sports,  as the eight remaining teams face-off for Kronies Jamfest 2011 supremacy.  Bring your mother, bring your sister, your dad, and your aunts, Sunday’s games will not disappoint.  Everyone is invited to the Kronies Jamfest banquet at Kronies Bar & Grill immediately following the final game.  May the best teams win.