It couldn’t have been a better Legacy Leagues summer for Greg Horne.
After seeing his Flint Tropics win the Championship in Connecticut as well as his newfound love, the Duje’s Boys, win in Rhode Island, The Weekly Rebound podcast host coached his team to a 106-100 victory over Team Sauer in the Summer 2019 All-Star Game.
The new Team Horne vs Team Sauer format has been well received around the Connecticut League, and Horne was confident in his draft picks. He took a very different coaching approach than Connor Sauer, who co-hosts the Weekly Rebound Podcast with Horne. When Sauer was standing up and talking to his players, Horne would sit back and let his team “do their thing.”
“After the first (quarter), I had Dom (Langston) come to us and he was like, ‘look, we’re playing for the fourth quarter, we play the big times, we’re the big-time players,” Horne said. “I had Nick Japs doing his thing, that’s what we do in Flint Nation.”
Japs won All-Star Game MVP after putting up 26 points and hitting six threes. He helped keep Team Horne within reach of Team Sauer, who held the lead the majority of the game. Team Horne ended up tying the game 83-83 entering the fourth quarter, and gained their first lead with just over 7:30 left.
“We came out slow because it’s the All-Star game,” Mike Bozzuto sad. “We didn’t really expect them (Team Sauer) to come out and go that hard.”
Bozzuto had 23 points on the night, many of which were set up by Carmine Santorelli, who had a team-high seven assists.
The gas pedal was held down on both ends of the court all game. Both teams wasted no time utilizing fast break offense. Jaden Battle once again shined with a game-high 29 points, proving that he can match up well against the best players in the Legacy Leagues.
Jason Bindner, the sole player representing the Brick Layers, had a rookie campaign that saw great individual stats without a win to back it up. For him, being named to the All-Star game in his inaugural season meant a lot.
“It’s been real nice, especially to leave the league on a win,” Bindner said. “First of the season, man. Can’t end better than that.”
With another Legacy Leagues season officially in the books, players were reminded of the community that they’ve all established in Trumbull, Conn.
“It’s fun to get out here and play with a different group of guys, learn new faces and new games,” Bozzuto said. “All-Star games are always a good time.”
