The Toon Squad makes short work of Pelican Bay to push their winning streak to an unprecedented 15 games. In League B, Lenny Frears led his squad to a two point win over Concrete in an instant classic.
Buffalo, NY- It was a battle of the titans as the Toon Squad took on league newcomers Pelican Bay. The hype surrounding this matchup had not been seen since Norfolk N’ Chance beat Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl in opening week of season nine. Pelican Bay captain Mark Gross had already proclaimed his squad the league’s best team. That title will have to be put on hold for now as the Toon Squad cruised to a 56-47 victory. Despite winning by nine, it was a tough, grind it out game as Pelican Bay held the Toon Squad to forty points below their average total per game. At half it was just 19-13 in favor of Toon Squad. Although the offense picked up a bit in the second half, the game was still defined by the solid defensive play. Josh Becker made his season debut for the Toon Squad and led the team with 18 points. Toon Squad may have one this round, but it’s very likely these two teams will meet again in the playoffs.
Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl stayed hot in week five with a win against the Buffalo Braves. The Buffalo Braves are in need of a spark after dropping their first five games of the season, while Swoopin’ stayed within a half game of first with the win. John Papincak had a terrific game, scoring a team high 32 points, including a nice fast break dunk in the first half. Aris Schultz did his best to keep the Braves in it, scoring a game high 33 points, but it wasn’t enough as Swoopin’ In On Ya Girl picked up the 83-69 victory.
R.I.P. Ent moved into the eighth and final playoff spot with a big win over the Very Aggressive Guys. They trailed by ten at half but chipped away at the lead before pulling ahead late to pick up the win. It was another heartbreaking loss for the Very Aggressive Guys, as they have started the season 0-5 after winning the League B championship in Season 9. Next week they will play the 0-4 Braves as both teams look to pick up their first win.
In the 3:45 game 2 Live Crew pulled out a razor thin victory over Norfolk N’ Chance. Norfolk N’ Chance was up the creek without a paddle to start the game as they were without their captain Anthony Giordano, who missed the game for undisclosed reasons. They only had four players to start the game and had no clue what to do about the referee fees. Despite missing their leader, they held it together to take a four point lead into the half behind the strong play of Sean Tuohey, who had his most productive game yet with 26 points. In the second half the Craig brothers got hot and made it rain from downtown as they took a two point lead into the final seconds. Jon Plail got off a shot from three-point range as time expired but wasn’t able to knock it down. Norfolk N’ Chance will welcome the return of Anthony Giordano in next week’s game against Niagara University.
Court Justice won a chippy game against the Cleveland Beamers in the matinee game. Multiple players were ejected in an ugly affair. Please let this be a reminder to all players that Healthy Buffalo has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to any of its players attempting to physically hurt or intimidate any other players, staff, or officials. If you violate this policy you will be gone.
The Wolf Pack got back in the playoff hunt with a big win over the Premature Shooters in the first game of League B action of the day. Vinny Santa Maria led all scorers with 19 points. White Men Can’t Jump brought home a big win over Off Constantly after suffering a heartbreaking loss in Week 4 against the Fastbreakers. Frankie Musso led all scorers with 21 points, while Joey Catalano (18 points) regained his shooting touch while knocking down four three-pointers in the win. Healthy Buffalo suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Billies. Frank Pieri led all scorers with 23 points in the win. The win keeps the Billies within striking distance of first place in League B. The Fastbreakers stayed undefeated with a big win over Justin Stokes and United Hoops. Seth Runge continued to get comfortable in the Fastbreakers offensive scheme as he led all scorers with 20 points. In a battle of winless teams Grind Time knocked off the Nickel City Dimers in a 69-44 win. Gurkirat Hans had a phenominal game leading the Dimers with 12 points, but it wasn’t enough to stop Grind TIme from picking up their first win.
In the final game of the night Concrete and Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy battled it out in another classic. This was the type of game that young basketball fans around WNY will be watching years from now on y2t.e80.myftpupload.com and YouTube as they dream of someday playing in the Champions League. It was a hard fought battle throughout. Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy carried a four point lead into the half and then somehow managed to stop Nick Jarmusz, the league’s leading scorer and reigning scoring champ, from scoring a single field goal in the second half. It almost got ugly near the end as league veteran Franklin Jackson laid a hard foul on Clayton Hess, but Pimpin’ kept their cool and held on for the 57-55 win. Lenny Frears and Clayton Hess led Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy with 13 points a piece. The victory for Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy sets up another Mega Bowl as they take on the Fastbreakers next week at 4:40 pm in a battle of unbeaten teams.
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