Friday, July 8, 2016

Spring Season 2016 - Finals Report!



Fan Cam!
Friends and family at the 2016 Legends Basketball Finals this spring.

Game Summaries


Elite Division

Ninja Win Spring Championship - their 6th!
Congratulations to Ninja on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends Elite Division. D'Angelo (far right) was voted Elite league MVP!
Waiting on team report by Ninja Management!

30+A Division

Colonial's Revenge Pull off the Upset - take Championship!
Congratulations to Colonial's Revenge on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 30+A Division. Dave McNally (far right) was voted league MVP!
by Reid Sassman
We switched to the team name Colonial's Revenge this season after accomplishing our prior goal and team name from last season: the Quest for a .500 (won/loss record). This was our 3rd consecutive season in Legends, and as we've gained in experience playing together, we've improved our ball movement on offense and our defensive rotations each season.

During this spring season our improved play resulted in a 5-2 regular season record with our 2 losses being closely contested battles with #1 seed Expansionites and multiple-winning Woodchippers.

We picked up our game a notch in the playoffs, benefitting from a few opponent players absences more than we suffered from missing some of our own guys, and were indeed able to get Colonial's Revenge on the Expansionites and Woodchippers in our playoff rematches! 

Our squad looks forward to defending the title next season and will try our best to do what the Golden State Warriors could not by repeating.


30+B Division

Crocodiles win First Championship!
Congratulations to the Crocodiles on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 30+B Division. Zach (far right) was voted league MVP!
What a season! Our team, the Crocodiles, has played in the Legends League in each of the last four years and we have been chasing a championship each year. This year half of our players returned and we added some new players who contributed strongly to our season. Over the years, we have faced injuries and a few players missing various games due to traveling. It is satisfying for us to persevere through those challenges this year.

We stared this season slowly with a record of 1-3. As the season progressed, we began to create spacing on offense, develop patterns for moving the ball, and build a sound defensive strategy. The championship game may have been the best game that we played all year. All of our players played to their strengths. Throughout the game we had good communication on defense and it helped everyone stay focused on their roles in our team defense.

Two of our shooters got hot and made key baskets in critical situations when the game seemed to be slipping away from us. Our MVP made timely defensive stops that kept our energy and momentum at a high level throughout the game.

We are excited to return next year and hopefully compete for another championship.

30+C Division

HAVOC Finish Perfect Season!
Congratulations to HAVOC on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 30+C Division. Tony (far right) was voted league MVP!
by Tre Johnson
The Spring 2016 season for HAVOC brought  a returning team to Legends with some new faces. This mixture of both returning veterans and new players brought a perfect balance on the floor and had an immediate impact.

Everyone who watched this group play agreed about one thing: The team's chemistry was something to envy. HAVOC had one vision: Play as a team, improve in every game, and let our game do the talking. All members quickly adapted to their roles on the team and filled those roles perfectly. To that end, HAVOC pulled off the perfect 10-0 season and all teammates agreed, this was one of the most fun teams any of us had ever been a part of in our basketball careers.

The championship game brought us face to face with an old rival: Baskethounds. We knew we would need to bring our "A" game as these guys had been in championship games before and would be ready to play.

For this game, we called upon each other to play to our strengths and do our jobs. Whether it took a key block, steal, pass, or shot we seemed to have someone step up and deliver at those critical junctions. Big men dominated the glass and pushed the ball, while our guards ran the floor really well.

After we jumped out to an early double-digit lead, Baskethounds fought back and cut the lead to single digits. We prided ourselves on playing solid defense all season, and this game was no exception. We stepped up the intensity on defense; ran the floor and executed on offense; brought the lead back to double digits and never looked back.

A shout-out to our MVP Tony, who brought his entire repertoire to this game. He played stellar defense, ran the floor incredibly well, and attacked the basket at critical junctures to ensure our team the victory. 

We look forward to the Fall Season, moving up a Division, and bringing HAVOC back to the Legends League for another run!

40+A Division

Elders Clinch Again - Most Ever (12) in Legends!
Congratulations to the Elders on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 40+A Division. Joe (far right) was voted league MVP!
by Kyle Rice
It was rivalry week as the Elders met their greatest foes the HD Chasers in the finals. As we've come to expect from these two teams it was a well played, closely contested game throughout. The Elders hit a few more shots at the end and came away with the victory.

MVP Moe Fay led all scorers with a 30-point game, supported on this night by Steve Dixon bombing from long and John Windt displaying nifty left handed moves.

Matt Anderson continued to add to his league-leading career assists totals to a streaking Bill Webb. Roger Waldron provided much needed muscle in the middle, while coach Kyle Rice focused on putting together a good halftime speech.

40+B Division

Hound Dogs Win Yet Another Championship (10)!
Congratulations to the Hound Dogs on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 40+B Division. Dave (far right) was voted league MVP!
by John Boneta
The Hound Dogs hung in there against some pretty good (and younger) teams. What can I say? Everybody contributed to all the victories. Just a very tough and resilient bunch of guys. This was probably our most difficult postseason, especially since Len went down at the beginning of the last game. Very proud of Dave, Jeff, Len, Chris, Fred, and George.

40+C Division

Squirrely Flyers Win Championship in First Season!
Congratulations to the Squirrely Flyers on their Spring 2016 Tournament win in the Legends 40+C Division. Rob (far right) was voted league MVP!
by Sean McDonald
An amazing and unexpected inaugural season for Squirrely Flyers. The team of four Legends veterans and four new players came out on top behind balanced offense and timely defensive stops. They were able to win several close games early in the season while developing some team cohesion and learning to play together. Those early wins would prove crucial to the playoff seeding. After starting the season 4-0, the Squirrely Flyers struggled during inter-division play, losing two games in a row as the playoffs approached. A solid final game of the regular season secured the top seed and a first round bye with a 5-2 record.


The semi-final game tested the Squirrely Flyers' mettle. Facing a red-hot Wolftrapper's offense, emotionally fueled by the early loss of a key player to injury, they found themselves trailing by 9 at the half. Two quick scores in the second half had Squirrely Flyers down by 15. Utilizing a critical second-half time out with over 18 minutes left in the game, coach Sean adjusted the defensive strategy. The focus on defense by the entire team, and in particular Gene's quick hands, created a number of turnovers and fast break opportunities. Outside shooters Bill and Rob drained key 3-pointers. Mick completed the comeback when he sunk three free throws after getting fouled on a 3-point attempt. A couple of quick baskets at the end of regulation resulted in a final score that doesn't reflect how close the game ended.
During the finals, the Squirrely Flyers were determined to focus on defense from the opening tip. Their opponent, Bucket List, apparently had the same plan. The result was a low scoring first half for both sides, with just enough offense for Squirrely Flyers to lead by six at the half. The pace picked up in the second half, and Squirrely Flyers never relinquished the lead and closed out the season with a solid win. 

Congratulations to Rob for his selection as MVP based on consistent performance throughout the season and clutch scoring in the playoffs.

We enjoyed playing against great opponents and look forward to the fall season, with the full knowledge that we will get everyone's best game!

Check out the Season High Scorers!