Kouser’s Strong Play Lands Kobe’s Rebounders in Top Spot

MOUNT LAUREL: Week 3 Power Rankings

By Kevin Kolodziej | Mount Laurel Media Associate

1. Kobe’s Rebounders (2-0)

Two games into the season, captain Mike Kouser is up to his old tricks - he’s averaging 33 points and 21 rebounds while shooting 58 percent from the field - with a league-high 40.9 PPR. He’s as unstoppable as they come, and with Kouser on the team, Kobe’s Rebounders should continue to rack up the wins all season. With a strong group of players surrounding Kouser, Kobe’s Rebounders have to be the early-season favorite to win a banner.

2. Jay-Hawks (2-0)

Captain Jay Phillips assembled this team following the draft with the pitch that “we could have six teams in the league instead of five”. While that obviously seems nice on the surface, once you dive a little deeper, it is merely J.P. up to his old tricks. He essentially brought the Monsters to the league, with Karon Waller (24.2 PPR, fifth in the league), Jeff Kliewer (16.1 PPR, ninth in the league) and a few others who are yet to show up yet. Regardless of how they were assembled, they’re still a tough team and should compete for a title all season.

3. All Buckets (1-1) 

After falling in their season opener, All Buckets rebounded in a big way during Week 2 with a 12-point triumph over South Jersey Dynasty. They were led by Dame Gross, who had led Week 2 with a 49.6 PPR after posting a 34-point, 20-rebound stat-line. Drew Harris was the only other player on All Buckets to reach double-digit scoring (10 points) during the win, and if they were able to win by double-digits with just two double-digit scorers, that’s a good sign.

4. South Jersey Dynasty (1-1)

Week after week, Jabree Jackson continues to be one of the most dominant scorers in the league. During his team’s Week 2 loss, Jackson dropped 34 points with 7 assists and 5 rebounds in the losing effort. He’ll need to continue his strong play if they want to start winning some more games, but his surrounding cast will have to step up their game in a big way if they want to make a postseason run.

5. Jackrabbits (0-2)

Sure, the Jackrabbits have started 0-2 this year, but it’s a misleading 0-2. During the first game of the season, they were without Mustafa El-Amin, who was the first overall pick in the draft. In their second game, they were without big-man Jake Gurkin and El-Amin once again, and still played the Jay-Hawks tough throughout. Once their full roster is there, they should have no problem racking up the W’s.

6. Jesus Disciples (0-2)

Another season is among us, and it’s another season where Tim Robinson didn’t draft a true big-man. Sure, having athleticism is definitely beneficial in these games, but at some point, you have to start drafting a team to compete with the Mike Kouser’s and Dame Gross’s of the league. That being said, they still have a strong squad with Mike Nelson, Tory Whiting, Mu Kilic and Eddie Chambers, but they’ll need to play essentially perfect basketball to compete for a championship this season.