Court Justice and the Tune Squad roll to victory in week one, while newcomers Yao Know What I Ming roll to an easy win in their league debut in League B.
Buffalo, NY- The Healthy Buffalo Champions League kicked off it’s ninth season this past Saturday and analysts are already predicting the championship matchups. There are a lot of new teams in the mix this season, particularly in League A. Niagara University, Yao Know What I Ming (not to be confused with last season’s Yao Know What I Ming, led by Healthy Buffalo legend Mike Ridge), the Cleveland Beamers, Niagara University, the Superstars, Franchise Players, and the Tune Squad are all new or revamped teams in the league.
In game one the Billies cruised past the Toon Squad in a 92-53 victory. The Billies were led by league veterans Mark Ward (38 points) and Frank Pieri (34 points), who climbed the leader board early with big-time scoring games. The Toon Squad team was formed at the last minute and will likely be fortified in the weeks to come.
The second game featured White Men Can’t Jump and the U.H., who made one of the biggest acquisitions in the off season by bringing in free-agent Perry Davis. After a couple seasons off, WMCJ brought back fan favorite Joe Catalano, who led all scorers with 16 points. James Capuana continued to build off his strong performance last season, leading the U.H. with 15 points while leading the U.H. to a 55-47 win.
Gary Lee had his revamped squad ready to roll in week one against Bashir Ansari and Team First, who came up just short of a title in season 8. Newcomer Jason Sardo looked sharp in his debut, scoring 10 points, while reigning scoring champ Nick Jarmusz led all scorers with 31 in Concrete’s 69-64 win.
Zach Shroyer led League B’s sole new team Yao Know What I Ming to a solid win over Healthy Buffalo. Kyle Perla (22 points) and Dan Berlad (27 points) had impressive opening week performances. They pulled out the 76-52 but will have a much more difficult test next week against Team First.
In another classic Champions League matchup the Very Aggressive Guys faced off against Nick DeMonte and the Fastbreakers. Mike Bennett returned to his roots rejoining the Very Aggressive Guys as they seem once again to have the pieces to make a run at a third title. Shawn Satarian lit up the scoreboard with 35 points, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Very Aggressive Guys as they wrapped up the opening season win 65-62.
In the first taste of League A action Niagara University took on Johnny Meyers and the Cleveland Beamers. Isaiah Thomas (18 points) and Eric Pittman (24) led NU with an impressive mix of inside and outside shooting, while Edvin Ramulic led all scorers with 29 points including the game winning three pointer to lead the Cleveland Beamers to a 64-61 win.
In the 7pm game United Hoops took on Tito Harris and the Superstars. United Hoops were without their captain Justin Stokes, as he missed the game for personal reasons. Gabriel Ruiz did his best to step up in his absence, leading United Hoops with 17 points, but it wasn’t enough to grit out a win in this defensive-minded contest. Tito Harris led all scorers with 18 points, while leading his team to a 55-47 win.
After missing the summer league, Court Justice came out blazing in their opening week game against the Franchise Players. This game was just about wrapped up at halftime as Court Justice took a 46-25 lead into the break. Kevin Ford did it all while scoring a game high 30 points, while captain Eric Justice kicked in another 10 points in the 89-58 win. Through eight games Court Justice looked like the team to beat.
In the final game of the night Justin Andreozzi and the Tune Squad faced the reigning champions, Norfolk N’ Chance. In an interesting twist, captain Andreozzi recruited two of the most important pieces from Norfolk N’ Chance’s championship roster, as Josh Becker and Adam Brasky joined the Tune Squad. With Becker and Brasky, Andreozzi pieced together roughly the same team that ran through the APEX League in its inaugural season, while Dean Antalik returned to his roots after a single season stint with Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl. Tune Squad jumped out to a 25 point lead by halftime, while dismantling the reigning champs. To add insult to injury Norfolk N’ Chance captain and emotional leader Anthony Giordano was forced out of the game with a broken nose. Joshua Becker scored at will, making it look easy while dropping 41 points in the 108-83 win.
For Norfolk N’ Chance and the other eight teams that suffered defeat on opening day, the good news is that there is still a lot of basketball to be played over the coming months. It matters not who sits atop the standings in week one, but who is left standing on December 14th. Play resumes next Saturday at 2pm.
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