PRINCETON: Week 3 Power Rankings  

By Phil Jackson | Princeton League Coordinator  

1. Princeton Generals | 3-0 (1)

The Generals seem to be just getting started this season as they have already beaten the top two teams below them in the rankings. Team captain Mike Montella has the team firing on all cylinders and there looks to be no end in sight. Greg Ford led the Generals to a win over the Lakers 87-71 with 37 points and Eric Puchon added a solid 16 points to the mix. The Generals out-rebounded the Lakers 40-29 which seems to be a common theme in games they’ve won. They are the only undefeated team left this season and only time will tell if they are able to be stopped. 

2. Life Time Lakers | 2-1 (2) 

The Lakers played a double header Wednesday night, suffering a loss against the Princeton Generals and a win in a close game against Da Nets. Against the Generals, team captain and league leader in scoring (28.0 ppg) Kosty Yablon led the team offensively posting 26 points, 6 assists, and 3 steals in the loss. It’s safe to say that the presence of Kerry Foderingham was missed in the game as he has played an integral part in the teams success in their two wins this season. The game vs. Da Nets however ended in truly exciting fashion coming down to the final play that saw the Lakers win 68-65. Kosty had yet another Allstar performance posting a season high 36 points and added 6 rebounds and 6 assists. The No. 2 spot has been a home for the Lakers in the past few weeks and they will surely look to string together a winning streak to keep their championship hopes alive. 

3. The Fundamentals | 1-1 (4)  

First-overall pick, Ilya Fedyainov, had himself a night in their win vs. the Life Time Hoodlums 64-55. He went off posting a season-high 26 points on 8-10 shooting from the field. Team captain Marcus Lotierzo added 13 points and 6 rebounds. The Fundamentals were able to get critical stops on the defensive end forcing 10 turnovers that helped them grab their first season win in Week 2. This team is sure to improve play, but chemistry right now is lacking and it showed in their first week loss vs. Princeton Generals. Ilya is no doubt this teams first option for scoring, but the team will need to find another consistent scorer. The supporting cast did show up for Week 2, and will need to keep that momentum going if the team hopes to post more wins. 

4. Da Nets | 0-2 (5)

The No. 4 spot has to go to this squad. Though they are 0-2 this season, their play against the Life Time Lakers in last week’s loss was hard-fought. They found themselves in a tight match with the No. 2 overall team and only lost the game by three points led by Andre Cole (22 points, 10 rebounds) and Jarrett Phelps (18 points, 22 rebounds). This squad is still lacking in attendance, a carryover from last season. This team is comprised of solid shooters, great rebounding, and ball movement better than any team this season. Da Nets will hope to turn around their season moving forward before things get out of hand. 

5. Life Time Hoodlums | 0-2 (3)

The Life Time Hoodlums come in at No. 5 in the rankings mainly due to lack of team chemistry. This is our newest squad in the league and it shows on the court. They fell to The Fundamentals in Week 2 55-64, shooting just 36 percent from the field and turned the ball over 10 times in the match. The team is led by guard Nicholas Baughan (18 ppg) and Anthony Marti (10 rebounds). Don’t count this team out though, every game they have played so far has been hard-fought but they seem to keep running out of gas down the stretch.  

Predictions 

7 p.m. – Da Nets (0-2) vs. The Fundamentals (1-1) | Fundamentals 61, Nets 54 

8 p.m. – Life Time Hoodlums (0-2) vs. Princeton Generals (3-0) | Hoodlums 67, Generals 74

9 p.m. – The Fundamentals (1-1) vs. Life Time Lakers (2-1) | Fundamentals 68, Lakers 69