By Gregory Termolle
Boom-Shakalaka capped the regular season with a big win over Big Baller Brand behind Lucas Martin’s 34 points. Martin was close to a quadruple double, coming up three rebounds and two assists shy. Martin also recorded ten steals in his team’s final game of the Fall 17 regular season.
Boom-Shakalaka earned their sixth victory on the season with a 101-81 win over Big Baller Brand. Matt Camara attributed the win to the mustache he’s been growing out.
“Since I grew the mustache, we’re undefeated,” Camara said. “Victor (Kashouh, Jr) on The Alliance has a mustache, and they’re undefeated. I have a mustache, and now we’re undefeated with the mustache.”
Boom-Shakalaka sweep the season series against Big Baller Brand, after taking the first matchup, 81-47. To accompany Martin, Jeremy DiMicco had 31 points and 14 rebounds in the absence of his brother, Trevor, in their Week 8 matchup. Camara was the other Boom-Shakalaka played to reach double-figures with 27 points (and two dunks).
Trevor DiMicco and Marc Belleville were both absent in this game, yet Boom-Shakalaka was still able to put up 100 points. With the two of them, this game could’ve gotten a lot more out of hand. Nonetheless, the rest of the team was able to pick up the slack to pick up a double-digit victory.
Big Baller Brand finishes off the regular season winless, but have a shot to get their first victory of the season in a playoff matchup against the third-seeded Halfway Crooks on November 29. Brett Cody had 37 points in a losing effort, which locks him in for third in the league in scoring (24.8 ppg). Ryan O’Neill and Mark Keenan both had double-digit scoring outings, dropping 13 and ten points respectively.
Big Baller Brand was able to hang with Boom-Shakalaka for most of the game, but Boom-Shakalaka’s height and three-point shooting was ultimately too much. Big Baller Brand’s zone defense has been exposed in the past few weeks, and they decided to do it against Boom-Shakalaka once again. Martin and Camara combined for ten threes on the night to haunt that zone defense.
Big Baller Brand enters the playoffs as the six-seed, and they get the third-seeded Halfway Crooks in their first game. Big Baller Brand dropped both matchups against the Halfway Crooks, but in playoff basketball, anything is possible. Boom-Shakalaka gets a bye in the first round as a reward for being the second-seed, and will face the winner of the Halfway Crooks and Big Baller Brand game.
“It’s going to be tough, the Commissioner (Joey Zocco) really screwed us over with the scheduling,” Ryan Rawnsley said when asked about the two week break that comes along with being the two-seed. “We’ll have to stay loose and really get after it.”
