The first game of the night we had West Coast Shooters Vs FCHWPO. I was very excited for the two games I was covering tonight because it was my first time seeing the talent level of the A league. I wasn’t disappointed due to the fact of the WCS living up to their name hitting a ton of threes. Michael Pulsifer and Eric Daguanno were the ones hitting the shots from the parking lot. The team's first 21 points came from the 3pt line. FCHWPO managed to stay in the game with all that 3pt shooting because Joe Schneider was a beast on the offensive glass giving his team many second chance opportunities. They were down 21-17 with 11 minutes to go in the half. WCS came out of a time out right where they left off. FCHWPO was trying to match their energy from long range but were coming up short as they shot 3-16 from there. Due to their lack of threes and the montage of 3s from WCS, WCS was able to get a double digit lead and managed to hold it for the rest of the half. They had three players score in double digits. Mike with 13, Hugh O’Neil with 11, and Eric with 10. Johnny McCarthy was doing all he could to keep his team in the game with 10 points mostly coming from under the basket. WCS leads 46-29 going into half number 2.

  The story of the first half was pretty much the story in the second as well in the first 10. WCS managed to maintain the lead due to the great ball movement from them. They always were finding the open guy as 5 players would end the game with multiple assists. The team themselves had 17 with a 59-40 lead. With under ten minutes to go FCHWPO was running out of time. They couldn't buy a shot from long range as that was pretty much their game plan the whole half. They only hit 2 in the whole half which was one less than the first. WCS would coast the remainder of the game and remain undefeated with a 74-62 victory.

FCHWPO definitely could've had a chance if they hit more threes this game but the shots just weren't falling. They fall to 3-5. It was a great introductory to the A league for me as a scorekeeper!!

Suffolk Edge Out FCHWPO in Chippy Battle

This game was fierce, with lots of chatting, pushing, and shoving boiling over into some serious beef. From unnecessary transition fouls, to throwing the ball off opponents’ heads, I really thought a fight might break out at any moment late in the second half. Fortunately nothing escalated too far, and it made for a competitive game. Suffolk led 42-36 at the half behind 16 points from Grillakis, who was unstoppable at the rim, and three threes from Liban. FCHWPO had a bit more balanced attack, as Sellew and Che had 8 points each while McCarthy added 7 points and 5 assists. Even with some strong second half performances from FCHWPO, Suffolk proved to be too much, as they pulled out the 75-64 victory.

Grillakis’ hot start set the tone for this game, as he finished with 21 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal. He hit only three of his five free-throw attempts, but his constant rim pressure is the key to this offense going, as he’s an insanely good finisher and added 4 assists in this game for a well-rounded effort. Sam Holze came alive in the second half, ultimately propelling his team to the win with 21 points of his own, plus 1 rebound, 3 assists, and 4 steals. Holtze shot four of six from range, made his only free-throw, and was a menace defensively with 4 steals, which doesn’t even account for all the pressure he applies to opposing lead guards. With a few middies and finishes at the rim, FCHWPO was lost guarding him in pick and roll, and he made them pay with some clutch shots. Yusuf Liban had a huge game, going five of eight from deep for 15 points and 1 rebound. After an active first half, FCHWPO adjusted to limit his touches, but he responded by hitting two huge threes late in the game, including one that was more or less the final dagger. Logan O’Donnell continued his strong play with 15 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal. O’Donnell has become more consistent around the rim and also hit a three in this game, pairing well with Holze and Brace in P&R situations due to his versatility. Bret Edwards hit a three for 3 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal, while Bolden Brace went scoreless, but added 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, playing a major role in the victory despite being washed and unable to muster up even one bucket. Nice win for Suffolk, who pick up their second consecutive victory to move to 3-3 on the season.

FCHWPO lose their third game in a row, playing pretty well but giving up a few too many TOs and hitting only five threes in the game despite shooting a respectable percentage. Johnny McCarthy continues to do his thing, finishing with 22 points, 7 boards, and 5 assists. McCarthy shot four of seven from deep, but outside of him, the rest of the roster shot one for six. As the sole shooter on his team (C. Sellew and Phelan both out this game), McCarthy got a lot of attention and was only able to get up seven attempts, giving Suffolk a 23 to 13 edge in attempted threes, which was ultimately the difference in this game (11 makes to 5). Fru Che finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 steal. Che is the clear second option on this team, as his physicality inside and high-release jumper in the mid-range make him a reliable scoring threat. He’s also strong on the glass and a plus defender, as he continues to have a strong session for this team. Eric Sellew went for 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, starting off super aggressive inside with 8 first half points. Sellew is an excellent passer (over 5 apg), but is capable of scoring way more, especially inside. If this team isn’t going to hit many threes, they may as well dominate inside more than they already are. Joe Schneider finished with 6 points, 14 rebounds (6 offensive), 2 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in this game, making his presence and physicality felt defensively while dominating the glass on both ends. He leads the league in offensive boards and is top 5 in twos made at the time of writing. Aidan Cyr chipped in 6 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal. Cyr is a strong defender with his athleticism and good for a few tough buckets inside every game, while consistently making the right play. In a similar vein, Meech Ramirez hit his only three-point attempt for 3 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 steal, playing very well in his role. FCHWPO fall to a disappointing 2-4 on the session, as they’re clearly capable of much more and are now fighting for a playoff spot.