SUMMERLIN REC:  Week 3 Power Rankings

By L.C. Comine | Summerlin Media Associate

1. Ball Is Life (2-0)

Ball Is Life survived last week and moved to 2-0 and they will take it I would imagine.  With only four guys they were in a 44-minute dogfight with HYR Life.  Ball Is Life won the game 84-79 and it was very much in doubt going into the final minutes.  MVP Mihail Kocevski proved to the league why he is the MVP scoring 43 points, knocking down a James Harden amount of free throws 18-22, grabbing 14 rebounds, dishing out 4 assists, and had 3 steals.  Keep in mind Ball is Life only had four players!  Chris Ford had 16 points, Bobby Mears had 12, and Jeff Jones had 13 to lead Ball Is Life.  I tip my cap to these guys they easily could have given up in this one but they fought till the end and they won this game with effort and free throws.  Ball Is Life made 28-38 free throws in the game which was compared to 4-5 for HYR Life.  Ball Is Life is still the top dog in the league but there are a few teams on their heels.  Ball Is Life has a big game this week against the 2-0 WTF JR? squad.

2. Team Worldwide (2-0)

Another impressive game by the Worldwide squad as they dominated Chris’s Angels 88-70.  What a game by Thomas Reymond as he scored 39 points, had 1 rebound, and had 8 assists.  Greg Murray made his Rec debut and scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.  UH newcomer Frank Lerma also had another solid game as he scored 15 points on 6-12 shooting.  Once again Worldwide shared the ball really well as they had 19 assists on 35 made field goals.  So far through two weeks Worldwide had knocked off two of the top teams in the league.  Its tough not to put this team at No. 1 in the rankings but Ball Is Life hasn’t been beaten yet.  Worldwide should have no problem moving to 3-0 this week as they take on BAR.

3. WTF JR? (2-0)

Well it wasn’t pretty at times last week but WTF JR? Is 2-0 as they defeated THRYV 71-67 in a game that ended up being much closer in the final minute that should.  Sean Breen once again had a big game for JR? as he scored a game high 34 points which included six 3s.  Breen is now No. 5 all time in 3s made and #11 in points scored, he will continue to rise the ranks in the coming weeks.  Marcus Milner had 16 points and Juan Carter had 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists to help lead WTF JR?  This team has figured things out on defense early this season and if they can figure out some better continuity on offense they will be a big time contender come playoff time.  This week WTF JR? has a huge test as they get the defending champs Ball Is Life which will be our Game of the week.

4. Recspekt (1-1)

Is this ranking too high?  Is it just right?  I don’t know what to think of this Recspekt team this season.  They did get their first win of the season last week in a shootout against Hickory 125-102 but I am a little concerned about this squad.  Recspekt has always been known for good, hard nosed defense.  So far this season they are giving up 98.5 PPG and are ninth out of 10 teams in the league in points allowed.  Granted they are scoring 101.5 PPG and second in the league but Recspekt will need to sure up that defense ASAP if they want to contend for the title again this season.  They have the offensive fire power with Edward Vaughns, who is averaging 37.5 PPG and newcomer Derrick Brown averaging 29 PPG.  I think the addition of Tim Parelli is going to help the defense but he will need some help and hopefully Sam Michelli will be available soon.  Recspekt should move to 2-1 this week as they face HYR Life but keep in mind HYR Life will come ready to play especially after they way they played a week ago.

5. Free Agents (2-0)

Some may say this is too high but these guys are 2-0 and have looked good in those two games.  Last week the Free Agents defeated BAR 57-52.  Four of the five starters scored in double figures for the Free Agents led by Matt Stone with 15.  The key for this squad moving forward is managing the minutes for all the guys on the roster.  There are 10 guys on this roster and being it a Free Agent squad all are wanting to play.  This team has 3-4 guys that can really play and if they can figure a way out for every guy to be happy then these guys have a chance to put together a solid season.  They are first in points allowed through two games only giving up 58 PPG.  This week they will be challenged by the Hickory Huskers, who are one of the most improved teams in the league this season.

6. Hickory Huskers (1-1)

I think if you would have told Hickory if they would have scored 102 points against Recspekt last week they would have thought they would have won.  Well that was not the case as Recspekt defeated them 125-102.  Hickory was down 21 points at the half and really never recovered.  Mike Smiljanic had a huge night for Hickory scoring 35 points and grabbing 15 boards (where was that last season Mike?), Kerry Knoll also added 35 points for Hickory.  Make no mistake about this version of the Hickory Huskers, they can score and will have no issues this season doing so.  However they have to show some effort on defense.  125 points given up isn’t going to win many games.  The talent is on this team it's all about putting the same amount of effort they put on defense as they do on offense.  Hickory has a chance to knock off the 2-0 Free Agents this week and start the season 2-1.

7.  Chris’s Angels (0-2)

I don’ think anyone saw this start coming for the Angels.  Maybe 1-1 but not 0-2.  Last week they had a tough game against Team Worldwide and fell 88-70.  Granted the Angels did not have Chris Ward last week but I don’t think he would have changed the outcome.  The key for the Angels has always been Adam Schmitt.  When he is dominating, so does the Angels.  So far this season Schmitt is averaging 17 PPG and 14.5 PPG which is very impressive but he is only shooting 34 percent from the field and he only has 1 block this season.  The Angels have had two tough opponents to start the season and I have no doubt this squad will right the ship.  In fact I believe it will start this week.  I think the trio of Ward, Schmitt, and Henry Nguyen will get it going this week against THRYV and it will be the start of the Angels turn around.

8.  HYR Life (0-2)

HYR Life had their chance last week to slay the beast.  They had Ball Is Life and they just couldn’t close it out.  Ball Is Life rallied and defeated HYR Life 84-79 in a game that was a 5-on-4 game.  Even though they came up short against the short handed Ball Is Life squad, HYR Life should feel good about the trajectory of their team.  In defeat Nathaniel Burgess and David Finn showed the league they can be a formidable one-two punch.  They scored a combined 45 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, and 4 steals.  If this team can get 100 percent attendance the rest of the season I think they will continue to get better and better.  Throw Chase Elder in with these two and you have a team that is going to be competitive with everyone in the league.  I said this would be my surprise team and last week they almost got Ball Is Life.  This week they got another chance at an upset as they get Recspekt.

9.  THRYV (0-2)

This team is much better than this ranking.  However they are 0-2 and that’s just how the ball bounces some time.  Last week they battled until the end against WTF JR? and almost stole the game in the final seconds but they couldn’t prevail and lost 71-67.  I really like the combination of Jonathan Mawhinney and Barrington Milner.  They combined for 32 points last week but most importantly showed great chemistry and shared the ball.  What this teams needs to figure out is their rotations.  Numerous times in last week’s game they had guys sub in and no one wanted to sub out.  I understand there is eight guys on this roster but they all need to work together and figure it out and guys must understand their roles in key times of the game.  If THRYV can figure all of that out they have a good team that like HYR Life will be very competitive with the rest of the league.  This week THRYV has an interesting game against the winless Chris’s Angels.  

10.  BAR (0-2)

Can it get any worse for this BAR squad?  They are 0-2 and in these two games BAR has only scored a combined 92 points.  Last week both Hickory and Recspekt scored over 100 in their game and BAR has yet to score 100 on the season.  BAR is still playing defense, they are only giving up 61 PPG this season so far which is second in the league.  If they can just figure out a way to score some points these guys could be dangerous.  I don’t think it will get much better this week for the men of BAR as they will face the hottest team in our league, Team Worldwide.

Predictions

Last weeks results:  3-2

Season results:  3-2

6:30 p.m. - HYR Life vs. Recspekt | Recspekt -11.5

6:30 p.m. - Chris’s Angels vs. THRYV | Angels -13

7:30 p.m. - Ball Is Life vs. WTF JR? | Ball Is Life -9.5

7:30 p.m. - BAR vs. Team Worldwide | Worldwide -24.5

8:30 p.m. - Free Agents vs. Hickory Huskers | Free Agents +10.5