The Buffalo Sports & Wellness Association

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Playoff atmosphere strikes Kronies Jamfest as teams jockey for position and emotions run high.

Buffalo, NY-  Each game was better than the last in Week 5, as a number of games went down to either overtime or the last shot.  The intensity level was through the roof in what was definitely the season’s best week of basketball.  In Game 1, Papa Jake’s faced off against shorthanded Shining Force, which started the game with only four players.  Papa Jake’s got off to a fast lead behind the excellent shooting of Marc Antecki who scored 18 of his

Brian Rowlinson shoots a three.

season high 29 points in the first half, but couldn’t capitalize on the man advantage in the first half as Lenny Frears (23 points) and company set the gym on fire from three point range making 9 of 13 attempts in the first half, taking a 37-35 lead into the half.  The tide shifted the other way in the second half as Matt Musorgski entered the game for the Shining Force and Papa Jake’s leading scorer Dave Hall battled foul trouble in the second, fouling out with over eight minutes remaining.  It was now Shining Force that had the man advantage, which they used to pull off a four point victory, 61-57.

In Game 2, crosstown rivals Victor’s and Paper Beetch battled in the second meeting of the season between the teams.  Victor’s had a balanced attack with everyone of their players scoring at least six points, while Paper Beetch played well, but would have definitely benefited from having a sixth man to come off the bench.  Justin Myers played an excellent game, scoring a season high 20 points to lead Paper Beetch, but it wasn’t enough to hold off Victor’s  who moved into a tie for first place with the win.  Final Score: Victor’s 67, Paper Beetch 59.

Game 3 was a battle for first place between undefeated Swagged Out (3-0) and Norfolk N’ Chance (2-1).  Norfolk N’ Chance set the tone early, jumping out to a 37-23 half point lead behind the strong play of Dean Antalik (27 points) and Jon Plail (13 points).  Yet as the second half begin to unfold it seemed it was only a matter of time before Swagged Out made a run.  They got some momentum going a couple times, but each time Norfolk N’ Chance responded.  Corey Kadish (16 points) had a number of big shots down the stretch, as did Dean Antalik who continued his scoring prowess.  Jerry Shanley’s streak of 30+ games came to end, as did Swagged Out’s dreams of a perfect season.  Final Socre:  Norfolk N’ Chance 66, Swagged Out 58.

Game 4 was another nail-biter as the Tub Men faced off against Ebony & Ivory.  Rob Jacobs continued his strong inside play leading the WWIAFTM with 24 points, as the team tried to capitalize on Randy Martin’s early foul trouble.  But despite picking up some early fouls, Martin stayed aggressive scoring 17 of his 25 points in the second half and leading the team to victory 59-56.

Game 5 between Sponge Bob Square Pants and Court Justice was a BSWA classic in the making.  Sponge Bob Square Pants jumped out to a big lead early, leading by as many as 14 points in the first half with a good mix of inside baskets by Jon Bugio (15 points) and outside shooting by Andy Marlinski (15 points).  But in the second half Court Justice turned up the heat, playing a more aggressive defense and a full court press.  They were slowly fighting their way back into the game when Brian Walter caught fire, draining three big three-pointers down the stretch and forcing the game into overtime.  Sponge Bob Square Pants took control of the game in overtime and held on to a one point lead as the final seconds were ticking away, but instead of letting the clock run out they forced a pass inbounds which was picked off by Moe Bailey (21 points) who then scored the winning layup as time expired.  Final Score:  Court Justice 56, Sponge Bob Square Pants 55.

In the final game of the night the Flint Tropics took on Healthy Buffalo, who were looking to lock down their first win of the season.  The pregame lineup looked promising as mid-range assassin Nicholas Battaglia took the court alongside defensive specialist Jerry Pacillo for the first time this season.  But it didn’t seem to matter early as the Flint Tropics jumped out to a quick lead behind the fearsome threesome of Nick Pfohman (17 points), Andy Tate (11 points), and Joe Kassel who scored a season high 19 points.  The Healthy Buffalo team fought their way back into it though behind the strong inside play of Franklin Jackson and the nearly unstoppable scoring of Terence ‘Bermuda’ Dill who led all scorers with 27 points, including the game winning basket with four seconds remaining.  Final Score:  Healthy Buffalo 58, Flint Tropics 57.

Next Week’s Games to Watch

In the 3pm game Papa Jake’s looks to avenge an opening week loss to Sponge Bob Square Pants, as Burgio and company look to break out of their losing skid.  In the 8pm game Norfolk N’ Chance face off against Healthy Buffalo in a match-up of the leagues number two and number three leading scorers.  Both teams hope to have key players ready for the contest as Healthy Buffalo guard Jerry Pacillo suffered a lower-back injury in the win against the Flint Tropics and Norfolk N’ Chance’s  Mark Giordano has been battling a bad knee, despite having a breakout season.  As always the action starts at 3pm.

Kronies Jamfest 2 League A Scoring Leaders Week 5:  Mark Antecki 29, Lenny Frears 23, Moe Bailey 21, Dave Winiarski 20, Justiin Myers 20, John Papincak 19, Dwayne Jackson 17, Vaughn Williams 17, Jon Burgio 15, Andy Marlinski 15.

Kronies Jamfest 2 League B Scoring Leaders Week 5:  Jerry Shanley 29, Dean Antalik 27, Terence Dill 27, Randy Martin 25, Rob Jacobs 24, Joe Kassel 19, Jasen Ineson 18, Mark Vanoy 18, Chas Kirsch 17, Nick Pfohman 17.

Stats | Standings

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Rob Jacobs scores 23 in a big victory for the Tub Men

Buffalo, NY-  There was plenty of action to go around in Week 4 as the Tub Men overcame a first half deficit of fifteen points to wrap up their first victory.  Overall balance and parity is the rule, as only one of fourteen teams remains undefeated.

In Game 1 on Sunday Victor’s took on Sponge Bob Square Pants in a hotly contested ball game.  Jon Burgio came out firing early scoring 12 of his 19 in the first half, while carrying the offensive load for the team.  In the second half Dwayne ‘Stretch’ Jackson and Vaughn Williams stepped up hitting a number of big shots and critical free throws to carry Victor’s to a 61-54 point victory.  In the second game of the day R.I.P Ent took on Papa Jakes in another excellent game.  Depth was the difference in this game as Papa Jake’s ran out of steam playing with only five players against R.I.P Ent, which played with a deep roster and got another excellent game out of Mitch Reese (17 points) who continues to stay hot from the floor.  Final Score: R.I.P. Ent 60, Papa Jake’s 53.

Tub Men Captain Jon Matchette (Left)

In the 5pm slot the Flint Tropics took on an undefeated Norfolk N’ Chance who have started out the season hot, led behind the sharp shooting of Mark Giordano and Dean Antalik.  The Flint Tropics got off to a quick start led by Steve Allen (18 points) who went four for four from downtown in the first half, and then kept the pressure on in the second half with the strong inside play of Joe Kassel (13 points), who bounced back strong after struggling to stay on the court because of foul trouble in Week 3.  Dean Antalik fought valiantly in the second half to keep Norfolk N’ Chance in the game, scoring four consecutive three pointers in a late run, but it wasn’t enough to knock off the Flint Tropics.  Final Score: Flint Tropics 69, Norfolk N’ Chance 60.

In the 6pm game the red-hot Billies faced off against the Wacky Wavable Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tub Men who were looking for their first win.  The Billies looked ready to go early motivated by the return Tom Cavanagh, who had missed the prior to games due to undisclosed personal reasons and the arrival of Mark Ward who made his first appearance of the season.  The Tub Men got off to a slow start, but fought back in the second half behind great games by Gian Fernandez (14 points) and Rob Jacobs who scored a career high 23 points.  In the end the Tub Men pulled out the victory 51-44.

After the Tub Men wrapped up their first victory, the Shining Force were looking to do the same.   But they would have to fight through Paper Beetch to do so, who have been led by John Papincak who is averaging a league best 23.7 points per game.  It looked like the Shining Force might be in trouble early after getting off to a slow start, until Johnny Meyers made his way into the building midway through the first half and provided a big emotional lift for the team.  All six Shining Force players reached double figures providing just enough firepower to lead the team to their first victory, 61-53.

In the final game of the evening  the struggling Healthy Buffalo squad faced off against Ebony & Ivory.  Healthy Buffalo jumped out to a quick lead behind the strong play of Gerald Pacillo and Terrence Dill, but lost composure as the game went on leading to a number of turnovers and blown defensive assignments.  Randy Martin had another strong performance with twenty points, including a pair of three pointers late in the game, and sharp shooter Will Castro scored a season high 20 points, including four three pointers.  Final Score Ebony & Ivory 66, Healthy Buffalo 59.

Next Week’s Games to Watch

Undefeated Swagged Out comes back from their bye week to face off against Norfolk N’ Chance, who look to take a piece of first place with a win.  To do so however, they will have to slow down Jerry Shanley who is having a career year averaging over thirty points per game.  Norfolk N’ Chance will hope to see the return of Jon Plail who will be critical in keeping Swagged Out big men Ward Wilson and company off the boards.

Kronies Jamfest 2 League A Scoring Leaders Week 4:  John Papincak 22, Vaughn Williams 19, John Burgio 19, Marcus Loder 18, Mitch Reese 17, Mark Antecki 17, Dwayne Jackson 15, Dave Hall 15, Adam LaFluer 14, Lenny Frears 12.

Kronies Jamfest 2 League B Scoring Leaders Week 4: Dean Antalik 31, Terence Dill 27, Rob Jacobs 23, Andy Tate 20, Will Castro 20, Randy Martin 19, Chas Kirsch 18, Steve Allen 18, Gian Fernandez 14, Mark Giordano 14.

Stats | Standings 

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John Catanzaro works the ball into John Papincak

Swagged Out squeaks out a one point victory over WWIAFTM.  The last two undefeated teams in League A fall. 

Buffalo, NY-  This past Sunday was another remarkable afternoon of basketball in Buffalo.  In League A the final two undefeated teams went down, while in League B the WWIAFTM came up one point shy of upsetting undefeated Swagged Out.

Game 1 featured Paper Beetch, who were playing R.I.P Ent for the second consecutive game.  Paper Beetch won the first meeting behind the inspirational play of Frank Fusco, who stepped up in the absence of leading scorer John Papincak, but he didn’t suit up for Paper Beetch this week.  This week the spotlight was on Darcell Thomas who had a tremendous game, scoring a career high 29 points, with a combination of drives, mid-range jumpers and three-pointers.  Paper Beetch kept it close in the first half, but R.I.P. Ent broke it open in the second half, pulling out the victory and avenging last week’s loss.  Final Score: R.I.P. Ent 79, Paper Beetch 66.

In game 2 the Shining Force faced off against Victor’s who were well rested after a bye week last week.  In the first half Frank Dileo and Dwayne ‘Stretch’ Jackson set the stage for Victor’s scoring 25 of their 31 first half points, but the Shining Force stayed right with them with a balanced attack, including a game tying three pointer with only three seconds left in regulation by Dave Winiarski (16 points) that carried the game to overtime.  Victor’s pulled out the win in the extra period, final score 57-54.

In Game 3 the Tub Men tried to unseat Swagged Out from atop the standings in League B, who were without team captain Chris Wagner.  The Tub Men led throughout most of the game behind the strong play of Gian Fernandez who scored a season high 22 points and Jasen Insen who scored 21 of his 25 points in the first half in one of the league’s finest 20 minute shooting performances.  However, Swagged Out fought back behind leading scorer Jerry Shanley (35 points) who extended his 30+ point scoring streak to three games.  Final Score:  Swagged Out 58, WWIAFTM 57.

Nick Pfohman defends Will Castro

In the 6pm game Ebony & Ivory took on the Flint Tropics, who were without starting shooting guard Andy Pfohman, who suffered a knee injury in practice during the week.  The Flint Tropics came out hot as Nick Pfohman and Andy Tate connected for a few three pointers before big man Joe Kassel threw down an electric two handed put back slam dunk that really brought the fans to their feet.  As the game went on though, Kassel got into foul trouble, fouling out with 16 minutes left in the second half, leaving the Flint Tropics with only four players to take on Ebony & Ivory, which was too much to ask for as Emmanuel Cooper had his way in the inside, leading Ebony & Ivory to victory with a career high 28 points.  Final Score:  Ebony & Ivory 67, Flint Tropics 62.

In Game 5 undefeated Court Justice faced off against Papa Jake’s.  Court Justice was led by Reggie Alls (18 points), who was getting to the basket with ease, but missed the outside shooting touch of reigning Kronies Jamfest champion Brian Walter who was AWOL for the game.  Sean Mulhern had his best game yet for Papa Jake’s scoring 17 points and controlling the paint with a number of offensive and defensive rebounds.  In the end Papa Jake’s pulled out the win 56-48, grabbing a piece of first place in the division.

In the final game of the night the Billies looked to build off their week two victory against Healthy Buffalo.  The Billies were led once again by Justin Andreozzi who scored a team high 17 points and Frank Pieri who had another strong game in the paint scoring 13 points.  Team Healthy Buffalo brought on energetic newcomer Gerald Pacillo in a roster shakeup that attempted to bring some energy and excitement to the lineup, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Billies who wrapped up their second consecutive victory and remain only one game back in the division.  Final Score:  Billies 54, Healthy Buffalo 39.

Next Week’s Games to Watch

Game 1 on Sunday will feature Sponge Bob Square Pants (1-1) who are coming back from their first loss of the season against Victor’s Bar & Grill.  Will Victor’s Bar & Grill have an answer for Sponge Bob Square Pants big man Jon Burgio?

Norfolk N’ Chance will be back in action in the 5pm game against the Flint Tropics, who look to bounce back from their gut wrenching loss this past Sunday.  All eyes will be on Flint Tropics captain Nick Pfohman who will have an interesting match-up against Norfolk N’ Chance swing man and leading scorer Dean Antalik.  The action starts this Sunday at 3pm!

League A Week 3 Scoring Leaders:  Darcell Thomas 29, John Papincak 23, Dwayne Jackson 19, Reggie Alls 18, Frank Dileo 18, Sean Mulhern 17, Dave Winiarski 16, Dave Hall 15, Mark Antecki 14, Justin Meyers 13.

League B Week 3 Scoring Leaders:  Jerry Shanley 35, Emmanuel Cooper 28, Jasen Ineson 25, Gran Fernandez 22, Chas Kirsch 20, Randy Martin 20, Nick Pfohman 19, Andy Tate 19, James Daniels 17, Justin Andreozzi 17.

Stats | Standings

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Sean Mulhern drives to the basket against the Shining Force

Jerry Shanley goes for 30 plus, again.  Papa Jake’s and Paper Beetch both squeeze by with one point victories.  

Buffalo, NY-  It was another hot summer day for Week 2, as R.I.P. Ent and Healthy Buffalo made their debut appearances in Kronies Jamfest 2.  The afternoon kicked off with a match between Norfolk N’ Chance and Ebony & Ivory.  Ebony & Ivory was without top scorer Randy Martin and starting center Tim Book and then lost their other big man Mahli Shabazz early on in the contest.  The depleted roster left them with no chance to stop Dean Antalik (29 points), newcomer Jon Plail (24 points), and Mark Giordano who dominated from mid-range and scored a career high 22 points.  It was a big win for Norfolk N’ Chance as they get off to an early 2-0 start for the season and a tie for first place.

The second game of the day was between the Wacky Waivable Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tub Men and the Billies, who were without their captain Rich Lynch.  The Billies got off to a good start behind the strong play of newcomer Justin Ardrozzi (20 points) and Frank Pieri, who had a big game in the paint.  The WWIAFTM stayed with the Billies early behind the strong play of Jasen Enson, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Billies who pulled out the win, 50-39.

Marc Antecki goes for one of his 18 points.

Game three has a highly anticipated match-up between Papa Jake’s and Shining Force.  The Shining Force jumped out to a quick lead in the first half behind the sharp shooting of Dave Winiarski and Jay Vasquez and the inside play of Chris Meyers.  However in the second half Dave Hall took over, scoring 18 of his 24 in the half.  Papa Jake’s took a one point lead with nine seconds remaining, giving the Shining Force one last shot for the win.  Chris Meyers got to his spot at the top of the key, but was quickly double teamed.  He got off his shot as time expired, but it was wide left, giving Papa Jake’s their first win of the season.

In the fourth game R.I.P. Ent made their season debut against Paper Beetch.  It was an intense game throughout as R.I.P Ent  and Paper Beetch exchanged leads back-and-forth.  R.I.P Ent was led by big man Marcus Loder (18 points) and captain Darcell Thomas (15 points), while Paper Beech was led by the fiery play of Frank Fusco (13 points) who hit a number of big shots down the stretch.  In the end Paper Beetch squeezed out the victory 63-62.

The next game featured Court Justice and Sponge Bob Square Pants who were both coming off big wins in the opening game of  the season.  SBSP was without captain and leader Jon Burgio, who was replaced in the lineup by Brian Rowlinson, which slightly changed the size dynamic of the team.  But they fought onward in a defensive game led by Andy Marlinski (9 points) and Marcus Thompson (11 points) jumping out to a 25-23 lead at the half.  In the second half Court Justice took control of the game with a balanced attack, pulling out the win and a 2-0 start, 45-38.

In the final game of the night Healthy Buffalo took on Swagged out led by captain Chris Wagner, co-captain Mike Cepeda, and leading scorer Jerry Shanley.  Swagged Out jumped out to a quick lead behind James Daniels (23 points) and Jerry Shanley (31 points) who each scored 16 points in the first half, but Healthy Buffalo stayed in the game as mid-range specialist Nicholas Battaglia (7 points) knocked down a couple big shots and big man Terence ‘Bermuda’ Dill kept it close, leading Healthy Buffalo with 23 points.  In the end though the one-two punch of Shanley and Daniels was too much, final score Swagged Out 74, Healthy Buffalo 62.

Next Week’s Games to Watch

The 7pm game features undefeated Court Justice and Papa Jake’s, who will try to get a piece of first place with a win.  In the 5pm game Swagged Out will look to stay undefeated as  WWIAFTM tries to lock up their first win.

League A:  Top 10 Scoring Leaders for Week 2:  Dave Hall 24, Mark Antecki 18, Marcus Loder 18, Jordan Vaccaro 17, Dave Winiarski 15, Darcell Thomas 15, Tim Irvin 13, Mitch Reese 13, Frank Fusco 13, Joe Magauero 12

League B:  Top 10 Scoring Leaders for Week 2:  Jerry Shanley 31, Dean Antalik 29, Jon Plail 24, James Daniels 23, Terence Dill 23, Mark Giordano 22, Justin Androzzi 20, Chas Kirsch 18, Will Castro 16, Jasen Ineson 15

Stats | Standings

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