Will there be a Power Shift Soon?

GARDEN CITY: Week 3 Power Rankings

 By Anthony Leo | Garden City Co-League Coordinator

1. Jeurys Familia (2-0)

Jeurys Familia continues to roll with yet another impressive win. After two games now, the team is starting to build chemistry together and they are looking better and better each week. They are led by Mike Mastro and Jordan Oringer who play perfect off one another. Mastro through two weeks is leading the team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. He can do it all and beat you in so many different ways.

The difference for this season’s Jeurys Familia team is this might be the best one yet in terms of depth. They don’t have a real weak spot like past teams. If everyone gets involved and hits shots they are going to be one of the top two or three teams all season long.

2. Gale Force (2-0)

Gale Force in Week 2 showed they can shoot the ball with the best of them and it all starts with Richie Byrd setting the tone. Byrd controls the offense and dishes out assists right and left to shooters all over the floor. The team is shooting 42 percent from three and is ranked second in the league in points per game with 81. When the game gets close they go to Byrd who flips the switch and takes over the game.

If Gale Force can continue to shoot the three ball at a high rate and get Sky Khaleel involved in the offense when he returns they are only going to get better. All together they have one of the strongest starting fives that should be able to compete with Jeurys Familia and others.

3. Redstorm (2-0)

Slowly under the radar is Red Storm that now many people are giving enough attention to. They lead the league in points per game and have a full roster with size, shooting and play making ability. Team captain Steven Medard has been the go to guy and with his size it’s hard to stop him. Medard is averaging 24 points and 13 rebounds through the first two weeks and his co-captain Matt Gelsomino is beginning to find the stroke again from beyond the arc. Gelsomino combined with Haron Hargraves are two of the better shooters in the league and teams can’t leave them open. It’s a pick your poison type of offense with Medard down low and shooters all around him.

4. Savage Storm (1-1)

Savage Storm got off to a hot start in week one but took a step back in Week 2 with a loss to Gale Force. In their loss to Gale Force they clearly struggled to defend the three in their matchup zone. Offensively they move the ball very well and they play around their big men Matt Mehler who is a lock to score 20 and pull down 12 rebounds. Every night Mehler comes to play and puts up consistent numbers. If Savage Storm can improve defensively and put up nearly 80 points per game they will be a tough team to play week in and week out.

5. CST Elite (1-1)

CST Elite is by far the biggest team in the league from top to bottom. With their front court it’s really difficult for other teams to go to the basket and it’s the main reason why they rank second in the league in points allowed. CST Elite is only allowing 66 points per game and they force teams to shoot from the outside. Rob Sargeant and Maxx Rosenbloom lock up the paint, but they have to do a better job of rebounding the ball.

As a team, CST Elite is ranked seventh in rebounds and for two guys who are that big they need to dominate the boards. They key for CST Elite to make a run and succeed this season is the guys around Rosenbloom and Sargeant. Jordan Berry and Mike Gahan are the next guys up who handle the ball and create offense for this team. If both can shoot well and attack the rim CST Elite is a totally different team.

6. Shore Shack (0-1)

Shore Shack is one the two teams that has only played one game, but on paper they are too good to rank any lower. In their first game they played pretty well but didn’t have Chris Frey or Chris Pisciotta and still nearly won the game. With both Frey and Pisciotta back in the lineup this week they should take a huge step forward. Shore Shack will have one of the leagues stronger starting lineups with Frey, Pisciotta, Will Hennep, Craig Rallo and Mohamed Ibrahim. They aren’t going to be the biggest team, but they will play small and will be hard to defend. We’ll see how they do for the first time all together in Week 3.

7. Ref Elites (0-2)

On paper Ref Elites is a really talented team, but it hasn’t translated to the court just yet. They are 0-2 and have lost both games by a combined nine points. In Week 2 they came up just short losing by two points to CST Elite. They have a lot of talent and they need to get everyone on the same page. As of now they rank near the bottom of the league in points per game, rebounds and assists. They need to do a better job in all those categories but especially assists. No team can in this league by playing hero ball and going one on one. Having only nine assists per game as a team isn’t going to get the job done.

8. Threat Level Midnight (0-1)

Threat Level Midnight has only played one game and it was against the number one ranked team in the league. It’s hard to get an idea what this team will be after playing Jeurys Familia, but we will find out quickly as the season goes on. This team shouldn’t have major issues because they are led by Donte Howell who can average 30-plus points in this league. Howell paired with Brandon Perez makes for a really solid duo.

The key for this team is how well the others play and in week one the surprise was Ari Tancredi who showed he can handle the ball and create some offense. We’ll wait and see what this team does over the next few games before we make a solid assessment.

9. Monstars (0-2)

The Monstars have struggled this season to stay in games despite there more than competent offensive weapons. Jake Rosenbloom is having another nice season to this point averaging 19 points and 13 rebounds and as a team they rank fifth in the league in points per game. They also rank second in the league in rebounds and with all that you would think they would be on the board with a win. However, the Monstars have huge problems defensively. They rank dead last in the league allowing 89.5 points per game. That simply is not going to get the job done and it’s not going to lead to wins if they keep it up.