PCTI 8, Game 2 Review

PCTI 8, Game 2 Review

 

Memorable Quotations:

 

1. “Who’s got next?” – JT after hitting a 3 and putting his team up 28-19 in the first half
2. “God Dammit, Ian!” – Bruiser after air-balling a 15-footer in the first half
3. “I’m feeling the JUMBO lineup!” – BC, during a timeout in which TP, BC, and Bruiser shared the court and played together
4. “Let’s not waste a timeout, WAKE UP!” – DK, yelling from the bench after watching his team’s defensive malaise
5. “It’s all me, I got this team on back.” – Smo, during a timeout in the 2^nd half
6. “See anything, Smo? Lotta good things.” – Conversation between Beas and Smo as Nutt Saxx made a comeback in the 2^nd half
7. “You’re a bitch. No, you’re a bitch.” – Heated exchange between Joe and Hops after the two were tangled up on the sideline

 

Game Play:

 

As is typical with the second leg of a back-to-back game, both teams got out of the gate relatively slowly. The pace of each team was noticeably less fast than was game 1, no doubt due to the gym’s humidity and general fatigue among the players. However, WLTB jumped out to another 5-0 lead in the first half on the backs of a Sabin triple and Bow mid-range jumper. It took the Nutt Saxx several minutes to break the seal on the game, but did so with a pair of Hops’ free throws to make the score 5-2. WLTB then connected on 3 consecutive triples by DK, Bow, and JT sandwiched around a Wilson 3-ball that extended the lead to 14-5. Although it was early in the game, this was a pivotal moment given that a second consecutive blowout could’ve destroyed Saxx’s faith in itself. Sensing this, Saxx reeled off a 14-6 run of its own in which all of its players outside of Smo scored. At 20-19, balance had been temporarily restored. Not to be outdone, WLTB responded with an 8-0 spurt, highlighted by triples from Bow and JT, forcing Saxx to use a timeout at 28-19. Although Beas and Hops abated the run with back-to-back buckets, BC and Sabin scored the next 10 points, led by the Beast’s and-one and triple. WLTB strutted into halftime with a healthy 40-27 lead and the confidence that it commanded the day to this point. Saxx was forced to re-group and consider how to stop the balanced attack of WLTB.

 

With renewed energy and momentum, Saxx started the 2^nd half like a house afire and a 9-3 run. This put the score back to a much more manageable 43-36 deficit. After Beas and DK traded buckets, Saxx went on another 4-2 jaunt bringing the score to 47-42. At this point, momentum was clearly with Saxx. Although a Sabin triple pushed the lead to 50-42, this would be the last basket for WLTB until the closing minutes of the game. Sensing that WLTB was in a drought and having a difficult time scoring the ball, Saxx pounced with an 8-0 run, tying the score at 50, highlighted by Beas’ energy and effort on the offensive glass. Both teams went a few minutes without scoring and neither team seized control of the moment. With about 3 minutes to go, TP converted on a very difficult backboard shot, but was immediately matched by a deuce from Abe. Once again, TP came up with his second consecutive huge play, scoring on a strong drive in the lane. After WLTB got a stop on the defensive end, Bruiser converted two game-tilting baskets in a row, the first of which was an incredibly skilled and fortuitous tip-in of a WLTB miss. At 58-52, Saxx exhausted itself in the effort to climb back in the game. It simply did not have enough energy left to claim the lead and knot up the series. Sometimes, a team can use all of its effort to climb out a hole but not have enough in reserve to fully scale the mountain. This game proved two things: one, many PCTI games come down to which side makes a play in the last few minutes (WLTB made a shot, Saxx did not), and two, this is a game of runs. Both teams made massive runs at each other, followed by periods of drought.

 

Analysis

 

• Neither team shot the ball well, Saxx at 34% and WLTB at 35%.
• Likewise, neither team shot well from 3, but WLTB made 4 more tries than did Saxx.
• 15 offensive boards for WLTB helped give them 4 extra shots more than Saxx.
• Both teams turned it over a ton. Saxx with 12 and WLTB with 14, both huge numbers given the lack of ball pressure in the tournament.
• Saxx with 11 steals and every teammate with at least one.
• Remarkably, not a single player on either side shot better than 50% for the game.
• The 3-ball abandoned Saxx on day 1. 5-32 in Game 1 and 5-22 in Game 2, combined 19%.
• Hops with 10 of his team’s 16 total free throw attempts on day 1.

 

Top Players

 

1. Beas – 14 points, 11 boards (4 offensive), 2 steals, 7-15 FGAs
2. Abe – 16 points, 11 boards, 2 steals, 6-19 FGAs with 3 triples
3. Joe – 11 points, 8 boards, 3 steals, 2 assists, 4-10 FGAs with 2 triples
4. Bruiser/TP Combo: 16 points, 18 boards (5 offensive), 4 assists, HUGE plays down the stretch