No Jonathan Robles? No problem. Mike Davis made sure the absence of Robles was hardly noticeable by dropping 51 points en route to a 135-91 win over Flight Club. The Brotherhood shot an unbelievable 80 percent from the field. The 91 points surrendered is hardly concerning since they only allowed 12 first-quarter points, and took their foot off the gas on defense the rest of the way. They should have no problem with Run TMC next week.
2
(4-0)
No Limit used a 41-11 fourth-quarter shellacking to complete a 118-45 win over Fry Time in week 4. Five players finished in double figures while shooting 15-for-23 from beyond the arc as a team. No Limit is a complete team that is closing the gap between themselves and the top spot in the league, and has a very good chance of remaining undefeated against Stranger Danger next week.
3
(4-0)
After a tight first quarter against the Untouchabulls, the Monstars turned it on in a hurry and used their usual posterizing dunks to secure another easy win. Six of the Monstars’ seven players finished in double figures. Scoring 118 points on a day where the threes weren’t falling is impressive to say the least, and shows this team can beat anybody when things are clicking on offense. They’ll need to be clicking against the Flint Tropics in week five to remain unbeaten.
4
(3-1)
After fighting a tough battle against No Limit in week three, Team Moose rebounded for a big win against the formerly-undefeated Flint Tropics on Monday. The defense was at it again, holding a high-powered offense to 38 total points, including just one lonely point in the first quarter. Team Moose is one of the most fundamentally sound teams in the league that puts the clamp down when they have a lead. Sportslook will try and solve Team Moose’s lockdown defense in week five.
5
(3-1)
The Tropics are undefeated no more, and they can blame a rough first quarter for that. Despite not recording a field goal in the first quarter against Team Moose, Mike Bozzuto led the Tropics right back into the game, before Team Moose used their defense and free throw shooting to deny the comeback effort. Still, the Tropics look like one of the best teams in the league, and they will have an opportunity to show it when they face the Monstars in week five.
6
(3-1)
Redemption doesn’t like ending games in regulation. They secured their second-straight overtime win on Monday against a tough Bad Boyz team in one of the best games of the week. Dom Migliaro and Erik Silva combined for 34 points, and missed just one shot all night between the two of them. Redemption is an efficient team on the offensive end that can take down any team when they catch fire. They will look to stay hot from the floor against rival Goon Squad next week.
7
(3-1)
After their thrilling one-point win against Stranger Danger in week two, The Throne has decided to give themselves more of a cushion the last two weeks (winning by a combined 56 points), including their 80-48 win against Sometimes Y on Monday. The Throne almost doubled up Sometimes Y on the glass, led by Stenson Jean-Baptiste’s double-double. Nobody in the league rebounds at a higher rate than The Throne, and they will look to attack the glass against a smaller Lob 203 team in week five.
8
(2-2)
This team is one defensive stop away from being a top-five team in this league. However, their rough first two weeks, including that devastating loss to The Brotherhood in the season opener, has to be taken into account. That being said, those first two weeks feel like a distant memory with the way Sensual Chocolate has been playing of late, most recently a 111-90 win over Lob 203. With their full roster finally in attendance, Sensual Chocolate showed they are a force to be reckoned with when at full strength.
9
(2-2)
It took two quarters, but Sportslook came to life in the second half to take down Stranger Danger in week four. Five players finished in double figures, not surprisingly led by Bryan Acevedo’s 17 points. However, Acevedo had a hard time finding his stroke, finishing 3-for-11 from the field. He made his free throws when they counted, but will have to step up in a big way next week if Sportslook is to get by Team Moose and their top-notch defense.
10
(2-2)
It took Run TMC an entire half to wake up and run away late with a much needed win against the Double Dribblers on Monday. Newcomer Quincy McDay looks like a potential star in this league, scoring 30 points on 11-of-14 shooting to help Run TMC outscore the Double Dribblers 28-18 in the fourth quarter. Run TMC still feels like a team with a high ceiling. A looming matchup against the Brotherhood will be a big test for a team seemingly starting to round into form.
11
(2-2)
Danger: there are four quarters in a basketball game. Stranger Danger committed 16 turnovers (many of them in the final ten minutes) and coughed up another lead to fall to .500 on the season. Stranger Danger could very well be undefeated if there were only three quarters in a game, but there is four, and therein lies their dilemma. Their other dilemma is their week five task of taking on No Limit, who will have no remorse for their late-game struggles.
12
(1-3)
It has been a rough stretch for the Bad Boyz, who lost to a tough Flint Tropics team in week two, and dropped a heartbreaker to Redemption in overtime on Monday night. Their record doesn’t exactly reflect their talent, but they need to start racking up wins in a hurry to keep pace with the higher-tier teams. They overcame a rough first quarter and should be able to get back in the win column next week if they take care of business against Sometimes Y.
13
(2-2)
Facing a Goon Squad opponent with no bench, STP came out flying in week four and cruised to a 76-62 win. Mike Slattery and Joe Salvator combined for 35 points on 15-of-20 shooting, and are turning into a solid one-two punch for an STP team that is starting to find its identity. They have a legitimate chance to push their win streak to three against the Double Dribblers in week five.
14
(2-2)
Lob fell to .500 after running into Sensual Chocolate at the wrong time in week four. Eric Singleton was unconscious in the losing effort, pouring in 38 points, but was the only source of offense for many stretches of the game. Paul Mirmina provides some help on the offensive end, but this team needs to find other scoring threats to pull them into the top half of the league rankings. That will be tough to do in week five with The Throne up next.
15
(1-3)
The slide down the rankings continues for Goon Squad, although this time it can be attributed to a lack of bench production. (Granted, it’s hard to have bench production when nobody is on the bench.) Goon Squad arrived to week four with only four players and struggled to keep pace with a constantly-moving STP team. Matt Marconi led the offense again, but even he struggled to make shots. It felt like a bit of bad luck as many good looks rimmed out for Goon Squad, so they will seek a refund on their basketball karma when they face Redemption next week.
16
(0-4)
It looked like the Double Dribblers would finally get a win and pull of an upset against Run TMC on Monday, but they couldn’t keep it up for four quarters, and are now 0-4 to start the season. They kept it close for a while thanks to new addition Bernard Brantley, who scored 30 points and looks to be their new offensive leader. If the team can stay hot for four quarters behind Brantley, they will have a chance to secure that elusive first win against STP next week.
17
(1-3)
Flight Club found some offense and scored 91 points against The Brotherhood, but their defense was nowhere in sight as they were smoked in front of their loyal and boisterous fans. Brandon Guittard was fantastic, scoring 28 points and only missing one shot. Still, Flight Club has a major size issue, and will have a hard time pulling down rebounds against above-average teams. Fortunately for them, they get Fry Time next week.
18
(1-3)
The Untouchabulls held their own against the Monstars for the first 15 minutes in week four’s contest, but eventually folded and were doubled up 118-59. It’s hard to win against a superior team, especially when your leader Chris Rosario shoots just 5-for-14. He still led the offense with 14 points, but he will need much more than that when his team faces a red-hot Sensual Chocolate squad in week five.
19
(0-4)
Sometimes Y is another team that is learning the hard way about their lack of size. They were out-rebounded 52-29 vs The Throne in week four, and are now finding it hard to shoot over taller opponents on the perimeter (they shot 6-34 from three on Monday). To be fair, Sometimes Y’s early season schedule has been nothing short of brutal. Maybe they can find better luck against the Bad Boyz next week.
20
(0-4)
It felt like rock bottom for Fry Time on Monday against No Limit, who delivered a crushing 73-point loss. Adam Diaz had a solid 17-point night on 7-for-8 shooting, but nobody else on the team was able to reached double figures. Fry Time found it nearly impossible to get inside against a physically-superior No Limit team. It will be hard for them to climb out of the league cellar, but they will have a chance to get that first win against Flight Club in week five.
(1-3)
(2-2)
