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Strat-O-Matic ForumIssue 100 March 2003
FROM COMMISSIONER SCOTT ELLIS, 2ND AMER. BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Quad City wins 5 of 8 from Tri-City to tie Hawks for North crown
In an appropriate capper to a wonderful season, Kathleen Feeney's Amazing Rimrockers whipped Chris Feeney's Blackhawks to finish with 46 wins in the regular season. Tri-City also won 46 games, putting those two Feeneys in a tie for the North Division title.
The tie-breaker, as always, will be penalty points. Kathleen picked up a couple this season, Tri-City had none. That means Tri-City is officially crowned North Division champion for the fourth time. (The other times were in 1998, 2000 and 2001.) Congratulations again, Chris! You keep on truckin'!
And congratulations, too, to young Kathleen, who took perhaps the worst team in the SABL for the last three years (the Garden City Gladiators) and put them in the playoffs via good trading, drafting and coaching. Way to go!
Who's Trading?
March 2003
THIS DEAL TAKES EFFECT AFTER OUR 2002-03 SEASON IS OVER. THEY ARE FOR NEXT YEAR, NOT THIS YEAR. DO NOT ADJUST YOUR ROSTERS. I WILL NOT ADJUST OUR WEBSITE ROSTERS UNTIL AFTER THE SEASON IS OVER.
11. Finney trades J. Richardson, Rose, its 1st and McLean's first to Holcomb for Iverson, Weatherspoon and St. Lucie's 1st.
February 2003
THESE DEALS TAKE EFFECT AFTER OUR 2002-03 SEASON IS OVER. THEY ARE FOR NEXT YEAR, NOT THIS YEAR. DO NOT ADJUST YOUR ROSTERS. I WILL NOT ADJUST OUR WEBSITE ROSTERS UNTIL AFTER THE SEASON IS OVER.
11. Finney trades J. Richardson, Rose, its 1st and McLean's first to Holcomb for Iverson, Weatherspoon and St. Lucie's 1st.
10. Chapel Hill trades Garrity & Richmond's 2nd to Good News for Outlaw
9. Chapel Hill trades B. Knight to St. Lucie for Claxton
8. Chapel Hill trades Olowokandi. T. Thomas & St. Lucie's 1st to Holcomb for Kirilenko & K. Brown
7. Bakersfield trades Kidd and its 1st and 2nd picks to St. Lucie for S. O'Neal
6. Holcomb trades E. Jones & Abdul-Rahim to St. Lucie for Iverson & McKie
5. McLean trades Rose & its first pick to Finney for T. Murphy
4. St. Lucie trades House & K. Brown to Holcomb for R. Strickland & Richmond's 3rd pick
3. St. Lucie trades Stockton & Holcomb's 1st to River City for R. Hamilton & East Asia's 3rd
2. St. Lucie trades Nash, D. Johnson, Gugliotta & Chapel Hill's 2004 1st to Good News for Iverson, House, Brooklyn's 3rd & Bakersfield's 3rd
January 2003
THIS DEAL TAKES EFFECT AFTER OUR 2002-03 SEASON IS OVER. IT IS FOR NEXT YEAR, NOT THIS YEAR. DO NOT ADJUST YOUR ROSTERS. I WILL NOT ADJUST OUR WEBSITE ROSTERS UNTIL AFTER THE SEASON IS OVER.
1. Chapel Hill trades Bender & Sura to Holcomb for VanExel, Newble, Finney's 2nd & Holcomb's 2004 1st
Aces (66-12), Galactic (65-13) split 2-2 at St. Lucie
In an incredibly competitive encounter, Steve Walters' Thunder and Scott Ellis' Aces battled to a standoff in the first four games of their decisive 8-game series. Both teams were making buckets at will and the Aces FG% was 60% or better every game.
Galactic pressed St. Lucie the entire series, leading to arm-assist fatigue by John Stockton from all the dazzlers being thrown. St. Lucie didn't press Galactic much, but the super guard combo of Gary Payton and Terrell Brandon doesn't need no stinking press to throw dazzlers. They scored their fastbreak points the old-fashioned way - they earned them.
Game 1 - Galactic 163, St. Lucie 161
It went right down to the last couple of seconds in this one. Galactic led 91-79 at the half, but the Aces out-scored Galactic 45-35 in the fourth quarter to close the gap and it stayed close right down to the last possession. Galactic's big 41 to 23 rebounding edge was the biggest factor in the Thunder win.
Steve Nash led all scorers with 43 points for the Aces. Old Man Stockton had 16 assists, Shaq dunked 27 points and Duncan dunked 24.
The Mailman delivered 32 points and 11 rebounds for Galactic. Gary Payton had 26 points and 10 assists. Bonzi Wells scored 23 points and Terrell Brandon had 10 assists.
Game 2 - Galactic 153, St. Lucie 139
The game was actually a blow-out as Karl Malone and Payton (both ex-Aces, BTW) again led Galactic to victory land. Malone had 29 points, while Payton scored 28 with 16 assists. Brandon added 11 assists as St. Lucie was forced to commit a suicide-press to try and catch up.
Tim Duncan scored 36 points and John Stockton scored 21 points with 10 assists.
Game 3 - St. Lucie 130, Galactic 129
Another nail-biter down to the last seconds. Duncan had 24 points, 4 blocked shots and 10 rebounds for St. Lucie. Stockton had a mind-blowing 21 assists.
For Galactic, Malone scored 24 and Payton 23. Derek Coleman added 21 points.
Game 4 - St. Lucie 137, Galactic 127
Galactic led it 103-98 going into the fourth, and even increased their lead to 10 points with about 8:50 left in the game. St. Lucie reluctantly put on the press to try and stave off disaster and like manna from heaven, it worked, forcing 4 turnovers in less than 3 minutes and tying up the game with about six minutes to go. Galactic collapsed after that flukey press success and the Aces ended up wining by 10.
Chris Webber and John Stockton both scored 24 points, but Stockton added 14 assists to his line. Duncan had 13 rebounds for St. Lucie.
Gary Payton again was marvelous, scoring 36 points. Brandon scored 21.
The scene now shifts to Galactic, where Steve Walters must win 3 out of 4 to take the South Division title. Will the wily Walters pull another basketball out of his hat? Stay tuned.
Playoff teams set in Classic Conference, but who plays who is not
We don't know exactly who is gonna play who yet until the St. Lucie-Galactic series is over, but we know who is gonna be in the playoffs from the Classic Conference: St. Lucie, Galactic, Bakersfield, McLean, Holcomb and Tulsa.
In the Royal Conference, we know that Richmond, Akron, Tri-City, Bettendorf and Quad City are in. The final playoff spot will either be Iowa or Brooklyn, depending on the outcome of the Brooklyn-Bettendorf series.
Stay tuned.
Bakersfield & Tulsa to be in the playoffs, East Asia will not be
It's been an SABL tradition not to allow autoplayed teams in the playoffs. Usually, when a team is on autoplay, a coach has quit (Paul Bennett) or the coach has let his/her team get behind on the schedule because they don't care anymore.
East Asia Coach Paul Bennett resigned, so his Dragons don't deserve to be in the playoffs. But Bakersfield Coach David Squires has not quit - the only reason his team is on autoplay is because of stupid Strat-O-Matic. The game company has not programmed the basketball game to work on Windows XP and David's old Windows 98 computer that played it has died.
Since it's not David's fault that his team is on autoplay, the Blades will make the playoffs. We will designate a non-playoff team coach to manage Bakersfield through our post-season dance.
And since East Asia is not in the playoffs, that means the next team down the list gets in, which, in the Classic Conference, is Tulsa, coached by Philip Creider. Tulsa was the worst team in the league for most of the season, but Philip worked hard the last few series and won some crucial games to take himself way out of the cellar. And now, by a "twist" of fate, he's in The Dance. Congratulations!
Regular season almost over, playoffs to start about April 1
Hard to believe, but the 2002-03 SABL regular season is almost finished. All that remains to be played are:
March 1
BRK vs. BET
March 4
EST vs. BAK (To be played by a neutral coach)
March 8
QAD vs. TRI
March 9
GAL vs. STL
The Galactic-St. Lucie and Quad City-Tri City series are very important - they will determine the North and South Division winners.
One final note: If these games become 30 days late, penalty points might apply. If they become 35 days late, I will autoplay them.
Tri-City (43-31) & Quad City (41-33) to play for North title
The SABL's March Madness continues as these two North Division titans take on teach other for their divisional championship. Stay tuned.
Galactic (64-11) win first one at St. Lucie (64-11)
Steve Walters' Thunder defeated Scott Ellis' Aces in a thriller that went down to the last possession, 163-161. The two teams are tied with seven games to go in the series that will decide who wins the South Division.
It's official - Chapel Hill (22-60) has the worst SABL record
Tommy Field's Jams have the dubious honor of finishing with the league's worst record this season. That means his team has the first pick in the 2003 Draft.
But Tommy's traded that pick off and it's now held by David Squires' Bakersfield Blades. Will the West Division winner get even stronger next year by picking Yao Ming to go with Shaq up the middle? Or will he go for Amare Staudamire? Or will he trade the pick off?
The second-worst record is owned by the Good News Roosters, and Coach Jeff Perigoni still has his first round pick. If Ming goes first, will Staudamire go next?
The third-worst record is owned jointly by the Miles Bulldogs and Finney Longhorns. Since those teams split 1-1 with each other in the regular season and neither team had any penalty points, we next go to total team offense to determine who is worse. Miles scored 100.8 ppg to Finney's 94.9 Team defensive-wise, Miles allowed 108.3 ppg to Finney's 103.0. Miles is better offensively (5.9 ppg) than Finney is better defensively (5.3 ppg), so Finney gets to draft third this fall. Miles will draft fourth.
The fifth-worst team in the league this year is Davenport. But Coach Kevin Feeney does not own that pick. The Evil Druid Mark Feeney, his brother, does.
River City and Tulsa have tied for the sixth-worst record. They, too, split 1-1 vs. each other this season, but River City has 5 penalty points, so Mike Resnick will draft 7th and Tulsa will draft sixth.
Remaining games to be played will determine the rest of the drafting order.
Tri-City (43-31) takes 6 of 8 from River City (26-56)
The Hawks are inching towards another division title, and showdown with Rimrockers. River City has now finished its season.
Mark Feeney to remain just a humble Evil Druid
Just to make it clear, there will be no jointly managed SABL team next season. Tom Jargo has left the SABL and Mark Feeney will remain the coach of the Bettendorf Druids next season. The two teams we have available in the SABL are the defending World Champion East Asia Dragons and Tom's Miles Bulldogs.
Richmond (62-20) sweeps Iowa (32-50) at Iowa
Frank Rowley's Richmond Raiders and Dennis Derby's Iowa Tornadoes have now finished their regular seasons.
Richmond (58-20) takes 2 of 3 from River City (24-53)
Tulsa (26-56) sweep Jams (22-60) at Chapel Hill
Tulsa left the Jams twisting in the wind as they swept Chapel Hill in Carmichael Auditorium: 99 - 88 100 - 95 and 110 - 105. The Jams are making a determined rush for last place, but sadly there is no Chairman Yao waiting, as that draft pick was traded for (don't remember -- don't tell me!). But the Jams are bringing in several new players, and have already promised prospective season ticket buyers a refund of $50,000.00 each if the Jams finish under .500 in 2004!
Both Tulsa and Chapel Hill have now finished their seasons.
Longhorns (27-55) lose all 3 to Galactic (63-11) at Finney
Doug Dillingham's Longhorns are the 7th team to finish its regular season. Galactic has slipped to 2nd place in the South but is just one game behind St. Lucie. The only games Galactic and St. Lucie have left are with each other and the division is riding on that series' outcome.
Akron (44-38) is 6th team to finish regular season, takes second in East
Twisters (23-56) take 3 of 4 from Holcomb (45-37) at Tulsa
Charlie Dillingham's Heat is the fifth SABL team to finish its regular season and he's in the playoffs! Good job Charlie!
Davenport finishes season at 25-47
The Amazing Kevin Feeney's Dazzlers are the fourth SABL team so far to complete the 2002-03 regular season.
Tri-City (39-27) sweeps Akron (41-38)
Tri 98 Akr 91
Tri 103 Akr 91
Tri 98 Akr 85
Twisters (20-55) take 2 of 3 from Chapel Hill (22-57)
McLEAN (52-30) ENDS SEASON ON WIN STREAK
The Nats won their last six regular season home games, including sweeping their series with Good News by scores of 119-115, 111-102, and 102-99. Despite wide margins in rebounds in two of the three games, the Roosters were unable to break through, partly because they also averaged 34 fouls per game, allowing the Nats to average 39 free throw attempts per game. They also blew an 18 point third period lead in game three. Allan Iverson led Good News in all three games, averagin 24 points. Andre Miller was the hero in game one for the Nats, with 29 point on 12 for 15 shooting. Jerry Stackhouse led in games two and three, and averaged 22.3 for the series.
The Good News Roosters (23-59) also finished their season with this series, too.
Galactic (60-11) loses all 4 at East Asia (60-12)
Galactic (60-7) sweeps Finney (24-55) at home
Game one saw Thunder shoot 64% from the field. Payton had 19 assists. Top
scorer for Longhorns was Richardson with 17. M.Norris had 13 assists in 29 mins
of action.
Game two was a Thunder free throw fest making 39-45(87%). R.Patterson had 28
points in 29 mins. Once again Richardson lead Longhorns in scoring with 17
points. Galactic out shot Finney 56% to 44% from the field.
Game three had C.Robinson going for 30 points after only scoring 19 in first 2
games for Longhorns. R.Patterson scores 28 again this time in 28 mins. Payton
had 22 points and 12 assists for Thunder.
G1) Finney 105 Galactic 130 G2) Finney 98 Galactic 131 G3) Finney 103 Galactic 124
Bakersfield (51-24) takes 3 of 4 at Tulsa (18-54)
Game 1 127-92
Game 3 123-103
Game 4 115-113
Game 2 116-103
Galactic (57-7) takes 3 of 4 from East Asia at home
G1 East Asia 119
Galactic 130
Thunder shot 63% with 40 assists. Galactic also outrebounded East Asia 40-33.
Pierce lead all scores with 32 but shot only 2-14 on 3's. C.Williamson added 28.
Robinson had 26 with 6 rebs.
Wallace had 8 with 8 rebs.
Galactic was lead by Malone with 30 and 10 rebs. Payton had 23 with 5 rebs and 6
assists. Brandon had 6 with 16 assists and 2 steals.
G2 East Asia 132
Galactic 120
Dragons handed the Thunder their 3rd lost of the season at home. One key was
East Asia out rebounding Galactic 52-40 and holding the Thunder to 49% on field
goals. Dragons shot 54% with 6-17 3's.
Once again Pierce lead the way for Definding champs East Asia with 40 points, 6
rebs and 6 assists. C.Williams added 21 and D.Robinson had 17 with 7 rebs and 4
assists. Snow had a great game with 27 points, 6 rebs, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Galactic was lead by Malone with 32 and 8 rebs. Payton had 24 with 7 rebs and 7
assists. Brandon 10 with 12 assists.
After game two's loss and Paul Pierce averaging 36 points a game I decided to
use the Press Defense the entire game and to double team Pierce and/or
Williamson at the 3 position with my defensive center when Wallace was at center
for the Dragons.
G3) East Asia 115
Galactic 127
G4) East Asia 117
Galactic 151
Dragons had 42 TO in the 2 games. Pierce shot 37% from the field(5-23 22% on
3's). Williamson shot 41% from the field. Wallace shot 72%(13-18) in 75 mins and
grabbed 26 rebounds, 16 in game 3.
Thunder boomed in game 4 with 9 players in double figure scoring lead by Malone
with 28. Galactic shot 64% (5-7 3's) with 44 assists.
We are looking for two good coaches! For two good teams!
Yes, ladies and gentlemen of the Strat computer basketball world, two of our league's best teams have just become available for your perusal and adoption:
Last year's World Champion East Asia Dragons, current holders of a 56-12 record, loaded with talent like Paul Pierce and Ben Wallace, can be yours, if you act quickly.
Likewise, the talent-laden but hard-luck Miles Bulldogs, with Antoine Walker and Jamal Mashburn, also is up for grabs. With a high first-round draft pick, this team could contend for its divisional title next season.
Now just how, you may be thinking, can I ever hope to get one of these great ballclubs? Your Strat basketball dream can come true simply emailing the commissioner, Scott Ellis at scottie@adelphia.net. Contact me today, before these teams are gone tomorrow!
Tigers (28-47) take 3 of 4 from Iowa (31-43) at Brooklyn
Brooklyn takes three, all nail biters, including an OT win in game 4. Iowa blows the Tigers away in game 2, 112-83.
Raiders (56-19) sweep River City (21-47) at Richmond
Richmond Sweeps the 3 game series at home versus River City to conclude our home
games with a record of 34 - 7 in Richmond.
Game #1
River City 105 - Richmond 123
River City has 3 players score in double figures as they trail Richmond by 16
points at halftime and never recover.
Allan Houston leads River City with 33 points and grabs 7 rebounds. Richard
Hamilton follows with 15 points and 6 assists, and Marcus Fizer rounds out the
double figure scoring with 13 points and 6 rebounds. Corry Blount grabbed 9
rebounds to lead River City in that category.
Richmond's balanced attack (8 players in double figures) is led by Dirk Nowitzki
who scores 24 points and grabs a game high 12 rebounds. Predag Stojakovic and
Michael Finley both follow with 16 points. Antonio McDyess and Michael Redd each
contribute 12 points. Keon Clark scores 11 points, and Baron Davis & Mark
Jackson both score 10 points and dish out 9 assists each.
Game #2
River City 105 - Richmond 116
River City is led by Richard Hamilton who scores 29 points, Allan Houston
follows with 24 points. Marcus Fizer scores 12 points and Tony Battie rounds out
the double figure scoring with 10 points and grabs 7 rebounds to lead River
City.
Predag Stojakovic scores 26 points on 8 of 12 shooting from the field, including
4 of 4 from 3 point land, and 6 of 6 from the foul line. Dirk Nowitzki chips in
19 points on 6 of 8 shooting from the field and 6 of 7 from the foul line. Baron
Davis scores 15 points and dishes out a game high 6 assists, and Michael Redd
scores 13 points on 5 of 7 from the field and 3 of 4 from behind the 3-points
arc. Antonio McDyess scores 8 points on 4 of 4 shooting from the field and grabs
a game high 8 rebounds in just 19 minutes of playing time. The Raiders shoot 57%
from the field, 69% from behind the 3-point line (11 of 16), in coasting to the
win.
Game #3
River City 85 - Richmond 112
River City has 4 players in double figures, led by Allan Houston who scores 22
points. Marcus Fizer follows with 14 points, and Richard Hamilton & Tyson
Chandler score 12 & 10 points, respectively.
Richmond is led by Predag Stojakovic who scores 18 points & dishes out 5
assists. Dirk Nowitzki scores 17 points and grabs 6 rebounds. Michael Finley,
Antonio McDyess, and Michael Redd score 14, 12, & 11 respectively. We again
shoot well from beyond the 3-point line, as we hit 10 of 18 for 56%, we also hit
28 of 32 free throws for 88% in the win.
Raiders (53-19) take 3 of 4 from Iowa (30-40) at Richmond
Game #1
Iowa 106 - Richmond 98
Iowa is led by Vince Carter who scores 27 points and collects 7 rebounds as Iowa
pulls away from a tie at the end of the 3rd quarter to win by 8 points. Keith
Van Horn follows with 21 points, Steve Francis scores 17 points and dishes out
10 assists. Tyron Lue comes off the bench to score 14 points and Tracy McGrady
rounds out the double figure scoring with a 12 points.
Richmond is led by both Dirk Nowitzki & Predag Stojakovic who each score 25
points, Nowitzki also collects 9 rebounds. Baron Davis score 13 points and
Antonio McDyess scores 10 points on 5 of 5 shooting from the field. Mark Jackson
dishes out a game high 13 assists in the loss.
Game #2
Iowa 101 - Richmond 105
Iowa leads by a dozen at the break, but is outscored 40 -24 by Richmond in the
3rd quarter and never recovers in the close loss. Tracy McGrady leads Iowa with
24 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. He is followed closely by his cousin Vince
Carter who score 22 points. Steve Francis scores 15 points, grabs 6 rebounds,
and dishes out 8 assists. Keith Van Horn and Juwan Howard follow with 11 & 10
points respectively.
Richmond is led by Predag Stojakovic with 22 points, Mark Jackson follows with
16 points and Michael Finley contributes 14 points and 8 rebounds. Dirk Nowitzki
and Michael Redd score 10 points each, and Baron Davis scores 7 points and
dishes out a game high 11 assists.
Game #3
Iowa 96 - Richmond 98
Iowa hits a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make this game a real close ballgame.
Steve (Franchise) Francis scores 22 points and grabs 11 rebounds to lead Iowa.
He is followed by Tracy McGrady who scores 14, Marc Jackson contributes 13 and
Keith Van Horn scores 11 points and grabs 8 rebounds in the loss.
Richmond's balanced attack has just 3 players score in double figures, but all
12 players score in the game to earn the win. Dirk Nowitzki scores 19 points,
followed by Predag Stojakovic with 16 points, and Michael Finley contributes 15
points and 6 rebounds. Baron Davis scores 9 points grabs 6 rebounds and hands
out 10 assists in a good overall effort.
Game #4
Iowa 121 - Richmond 128
Iowa & Richmond both decide to show off their offensive capabilities in this
game, marked by each team scoring 40 points in the 4th quarter. Iowa is led by
Tracy McGrady who scores 42 points, he is followed by Latrell Sprewell who
scores 24 points. Keith Van Horn contributes 17 points, 10 rebounds and 6
assists. Steve Francis and Jawan Howard score 11 & 10 points respectively.
Richmond's Predag Stojakovic scores 30 points to lead 8 Raider players in double
figures. Antonio McDyess scores 15 points on 7 of 7 from the field and 2 of 4
from the free throw line in just 16 minutes. Keon Clark scores 15 points, and
Michael Finley, Baron Davis, Mark Jackson and Eddie all score 11 points. Curry
scores his 11 points in 11 minutes of action on 5 of 5 from the field and 1 of 2
from the free throw line. Dirk Nowitzki rounds out the double figure scoring
with 10 points on 3 of 6 shooting. Baron Davis in addition to his 11 points
dishes out a game high 11 assists.
East Asia Dragons Coach Paul Bennett has quit the SABL
Good luck, Paul! We're a gonna miss ya'.
Paul has tendered his resignation effective immediately, so any remaining games you have with the Dragons, please autoplay his team and play both the home and away games ASAP.
Again, we all wish the best of luck to Paul, our defending World Champion and he's welcome back in the SABL anytime.
Tom Jargo has quit as coach of the Miles Bulldogs
Good luck, Tom! We're a gonna miss ya'.
But that also means we have the Miles Bulldogs and East Asia Dragons franchises are open for next season! Two good teams and they need two good coaches. Apply with the commissioner today!
Again, we all wish the best of luck to Tom, and he's welcome back in the SABL anytime.
More penalty points coming - no amnesty this time
Yep, we still have February games outstanding and there's no excuse for it. If I don't get these games by this weekend (March 9), you'll get lotsa points and they won't get rescinded. Check and see if your team is on this list and let me know what's going on, 'cause it's no more mister nice commissioner:
Feb. 3
IOW at BAK (Bakersfield is on autoplay)
Feb. 15
RIV at AKR
Feb. 19
BAK at GAL (Bakersfield is on autoplay)
Feb. 22
IOW at BRK
Feb. 23
BET at TRI
Feb. 24
EST at GAL (East Asia is on autoplay)
GAL at EST (East Asia is on autoplay)
Feb. 25
TUL at BAK (Bakersfield is on autoplay)
March 1
AKR at TRI
TRI at AKR
March 2
DAV at IOW
March 3
RIV at RIC
RIC at RIV
March 4
CHP at TUL
TUL at CHP
EST at BAK (Bakersfield is on autoplay, EST is on autoplay. Games will be played by a neutral coach)
BAK at EST (Bakersfield is on autoplay, EST is on autoplay. Games will be played by a neutral coach)
Hawks (30-26) split with druids at Bettendorf (35-37)
HISTORY MADE: McLEAN TAKES SERIES FROM ST. LUCIE
For the first time in McLean franchise ownership, the Nats took a series from St. Lucie, winning three of four games at home.
Game one. The Nats got off to a bad start - maybe they were reading the Aces'
press clippings - as they were crushed 135-103. The Aces shot 58
percent from the floor, Duncan and O'Neal had 14 rebounds apiece, and Kobie
Bryant had 36. Stackhouse had 30 and Andre Miller had 17 assists, but no
one else was close to a "highlight stat". McLean fell behind in the third period
and their pressing led to too many easy St. Lucie baskets.
Game two. This time it was the Aces who were reading press clippings, falling
127-120. Andre Miller hit several clutch baskets and free throws
down the stretch, negating the Aces' comeback. Stockton and O'Neal had 31
apiece, Jalen Rose led six Nats in double figures with 25, and the Nats
had nine turnovers to 18 for the Aces.
Game three. This was the thriller, as the Nats held on to win in overtime, 136-132. Kobie carried the load for the Aces with 41, and Tim Duncan chipped in 24, but Shaq only added 13. The Aces could have won, but Stockton missed a technical free throw and a penetration shot in the last four minutes. Stackhouse had 32, and Rose hit for 31 on 14 for 21 shooting including 3 for 3 on threes. Andre Miller had 19 points and 18 assists.
Game four. The Aces picked up 15 first quarter fouls, which really messed up their rotation all day, and they fell 135-117. O'Neal had 23 and Duncan had 22 lead six Aces in double figures. But Stackhouse was the thoroughbred, hitting for 43 with 16 for 17 from the foul line. Jihidi White played O'Neal tough, getting 12 points and 11 rebounds in 20 minutes.
GAME 1
With a strong second half (60-41), the Tulsa Twisters roll to a 106-93 victory over the Good News Roosters. Shawn Marion (25 pts, 11 rb), Jermaine O’Neal (22 pts, 13 rb, 6 blks), Alvin Williams (15 pts), and Jumaine Jones (11 pts) paced the victorious Twisters. The Roosters’ Allen Iverson was held to 17 pts on 22% (5 of 23) shooting. The visitors’ Jason Terry led the team with 17 pts.
“An obvious key to having a chance against Good News is to keep A.I. in check; we did that tonight,” remarked Coach Creider. “What a nice way to start off a 4-game series.”
GAME 2
Tulsa’s fortunes changed in Game 2 as the Roosters pulled out a 103-96 victory. Iverson led the visitors with 28 pts (on 46% shooting) and 4 steals. The supporting cast of Terry (16 pts), Al Harrington (14 pts), and Samaki Walker (12 pts) also played key roles. O’Neal lead the Twisters with 23 pts (on 77% shooting) and 10 rb. Unfortunately, the rest of the team only shot 41% which was not enough to keep pace with the hot-shooting Roosters (52%).
GAME 3
The Roosters winning ways continued with a 97-86 victory. The visitors outscored Tulsa 30-19 in the 4th quarter to earn the win. Iverson once again led Good News in scoring, pouring in 39 pts (on 50% shooting, including 71% from 3Pt territory). Terry, with 16 pts, was his only teammate who scored in double-digits. Marion led the Twisters with 31 pts while Jones led in rebounding with 10.
Three-point shooting was the difference with Good News shooting 59% (10-17) and the Twisters only shooting 18% (2-11).
GAME 4
The last game of the series was dreadful as Good News stomped Tulsa 106-90. The visitors led 82-54 after 3 quarters. A major factor in the game was the disparity in free throws: Good News 26-32 and Tulsa a measly 9-12. Iverson scored 11 of his game high 30 points from the line. The visitors’ Harrington played a strong game (18 pts and 12 rb). O’Neal (25 pts) and Wesley Person (22 pts) led the Twisters in the losing effort.
“After our victory in Game 1 I really liked our chances but what do I know,” lamented Creider. “Going to a more “fastbreak offense” in the last couple of months has given our team more of a fighting chance but our inability to play well on defense or make that key rebound continues to haunt us. Plus, on the offensive end of the court, I have never seen a team miss so many put-back shots off of offensive rebounds. Antonio Davis in particular has been a major disappointment in that area.”
“A solid showing in this series would have gone a long way towards keeping us from having the league’s worst record. I know, I know, the worst record equates to the draft rights to Yao Ming but I still want to avoid that distinction. We still have home series against Holcomb and Chapel Hill and, by golly, I am going to push my team towards a strong final run to the season.”
Richmond (50-18) take 3 of 4 from Dogs (24-58) at Miles
Tom Jargo's Miles Bulldogs are the first SABL team this year to finish its regular season games.
Quad City (41-33) sweep Dogs at Miles
Jams (21-55) drop 2 of 3 to Holcomb (44-34) at Chapel Hill
The struggling Chapel Hill Jams dropped 2 out of 3 to
visiting Holcomb BUT
actually outscored the heavily favored Heat by 2 points for the series.
(Your classic moral victory).
Game 1: Heat 112 -- Jams 102 Jayson Williams - 25 points
Game 2: Heat 114 -- Jams 108 Rahim - 33 points
Game 3: Jams 109 -- Heat 91 Rasheed 15 pts 11 boards 0 Techs
Thunder (51-6) take 2 of 3 from Blades (47-20) at Bakersfield
G1 Galactic 118
Bakersfield 115
Galactic was lead by Payton with 16 points and 17 assists. Malone added 23
points. Malone and Payton combined for 15 TOs.
Bakersfield was lead by G.Robinson with 35 points. Brand had 21 with 11 rebs.
Mourning had 19 with 9 rebs. M.Miller had 21 points. Kidd 4 points, 10 assists,
1 reb and 4 steals.
G2 Galactic 110
Bakersfield 121
Galactic was lead by Payton with 19 points, 5 rebs, 6 assists and 5 steals.
Jordan had 27 with 5 assists. Malone was held to only 9 points.
Bakersfield wa lead by G.Robinson with 32 points, 3 rebs, 3 assists, 3 steals
and 1 bk. Mourning had 20 with 7 rebs. Miller added 18 points. Kidd had 14 with
8 assists, 6 rebs and 3 steals but 7 TOs.
This was only the 2nd loss for Galactic at home this year.
Bakersfield shot 62% from the field with 8-15 on 3's. 83% on FTs(19-23) and out
rebounded Galactic 36-35 as well as out assisted 36-30.
G3 Galactic 135
Bakersfield 122
Galactic came back strong after the lose with 27 points 9 rebs, 3 assists and 2
steals from Malone. Payton had 24 points with 6 rebs and 7 assists. G.Hill had
17 points and 8 rebs in 19 mins. Patterson had 17 points 4 rebs, 7 assists and 1
steal in 21 mins. Jordan had 14 points, 3 rebs and 3 assists in 17 mins. Coleman
lead both teams in rebounding with 11.
Bakersfield was lead by G.Robinson with 35 points, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 BK.
Brand had 28 points with 7 rebs. Berry had 14 points 6 rebs, 8 assists and 1
steal. Kidd had 6 points, 2 rebs 17 assists and 4 steals with 0 TOs in 36 mins.
Rimrockers (38-33) take two of three from Miles (23-52) at home
1st game - 98-96 MIL
2nd game - 101-82 QAD
3rd game - 106-92 QAD
Bakersfield 118 - Brooklyn 102 at Brooklyn
Mourning, Robinson, and Brand all scored in the 20's and Brand had 11 boards. Pau Gasol had 32. 18 points in the 1st quarter.
Good News (20-55) lose three of four to Tulsa (16-48) at home
BAD NEWS FOR GOOD NEWS-THEY LOSE FINAL SERIES AT HOME TO
TULSA THREE GAMES TO ONE-MOVE TO NEW ORLEANS IS CONFIRMED BY MANAGEMENT
Game 1
The Roosters blew a ten point lead in the 4th quarter and the Twisters prevailed
in overtime 102-95. Tulsa had six players in double figures. Iverson scored 15
first quarter points for Good News and wound up with 30.
Game 2
Wesley Person scored 33 points to lead Tulsa to a 116--106 victory. The Twisters
shot 56% from the field. Iverson again paced the Roosters with 36.
Game 3
The final Rooster win at Good News by a 103-93 score. Jason Terry was on fire
scoring 48 points, 29 in the first half.
Game 4
No real exciting details. It was ugly from both sides. Tulsa prevailed 88-84 to
win the series.
Rimrockers (35-31) take 5 of 6 from Davenport (22-55)
Iowa (29-37) sweeps Dazzlers (21-50) at Davenport
Game 1 Iowa 90 Dav 87 Smith's 3 pointer fails
Game 2 Iowa 102 Dav 88
Game 3 Iowa 103 Dav 101 Double teamed McGrady scores at the buzzer
March Madness descends on SABL
And I'm not talking about Parity.
Nope, I'm talking about our divisional races and how the playoffs are shaping up. Two division titles are wrapped up, but two aren't.
In the East, Richmond's Frank Rowley's Magic Number is three to take his first-ever SABL divisional title. He is running away with his division (47-17) over second place Akron (40-33). Good job Frank and welcome to the winner's circle! Dave Scott's Blimps will still make the playoffs, though.
In the West, even though they are finishing the season on autoplay due to computer problems, David Squires Bakersfield Blades (46-18) are gonna win their division over Charlie Dillingham's Holcomb Heat (42-33). Charlie's gonna make postseason play, though. And even though they are on autoplay for the regular season, we may have a coaching volunteer from a non-playoff team run Bakersfield during the playoffs so David's team won't miss out. Stay tuned on that one.
In the North, three time division champ (1998, 2000 and 2001) Tri City (28-24) is showing why you can never count this Amazing Feeney out of the ballgame. Chris has hauled his Hawks up to first over the surprising Quad City Rimrockers (30-30). That battle is yet to be decided. Kathleen's Rimrockers are likely in post season play, as are the Evil Druids (33-35), but final Royal Conference playoff slot is still up for grabs.
In the South, the soap opera continues, as Steve Walters' tenacious Galactic Thunder (49-5) holds on to first place by mere percentage points over last year's Classic Conference champs, the St. Lucie Aces (63-7). And our current World Champs, the East Asia Dragons (56-12) are still in the divisional hunt, too. All three teams are gonna make the playoffs, but winning the division is crucial for home court advantage and could make a difference in who makes it to this year's SABL Finals.
The other team with a lock on a playoff berth in the Classic Conference is the strong McLean team (46-29).
The race for Yao Ming is still led by Tulsa (13-47), but it's far from decided. Good News (19-52), Chapel Hill (20-53), Miles (22-50), River City (21-44) and even Brooklyn (25-46) all have a chance to finish with our league's worst record.
Iverson (28.5 ppg) and Pierce (28.9 ppg) continue battle for scoring lead
Good News has The Answer but Paul has Paul. This scoring battle is going down to the last SABL game.
East Asia's Ben Wallace (11.9 rpg) holds a slight rebounding edge over Tri City's Danny Fortson (11.6) and Bakersfield's Brent Barry leads all scorers with a .637 fga. Miles Reggie Miller and Akron's Damon Staudemire are tied for FT% with .928 each. Akron's Wally Szczerbiak has the highest 3PT FG% with .493. McLean's Andre Miller (12.0 apg) barely is ahead of Galactic's Gary Payton (11.9 apg) in assists. Iverson leads in Steals with 2.2 per game, while Payton leads in turnovers with 3.9 per game. St. Lucie's Tim Duncan leads with 3.4 blocks per game. Finney's Doug Christie leads in Defensive Stops with 137.
Richmond 111 - Bakersfield 113 at Bakersfield
Richmond was led by Dirk Nowitzki who scored 22 points
and grabbed 9 rebounds. Perdag Stojakovic scored 20 points with 7 rebounds.
Michael Redd had 15 points in just 15 minutes of playing time. Michael Finley &
Baron Davis both chipped in 12 points.
Bakersfield was led by Elton Brand with 21 points & 7 rebounds. Mike Miller &
Chauncey Billups both scored 20 points, with Billups adding a game high 11
assists. Glenn Robinson scored 14 points, and Shane Battier had 10 points, 6
rebounds, and 7 assists. Scott Pollard scored 8 points & grabbed a game high 10
rebounds.
Bakersfield 110 - Richmond 97 at Richmond
Bakersfield collected 60 rebounds and dominated most of
the game on their way to the convincing win.
Bakersfield only had 3 players in double figures led by Glenn Robinson's 22
points. Shane Battier had 19 points and 8 rebounds and Mike Miller scored 15
points. Elton Brand had 7 points and 10 rebounds to lead Bakersfield in that
category.
Richmond had 5 players score in double figures led by Dirk Nowitzki with 17
points and 10 rebounds. Predag Stojakovic scored 16 points, Michael Finley &
Mark Jackson both scored 14 points with Jackson dishing out 8 assists.
Finney 94 - Richmond 101 at Richmond
Finney had 6 players score in double figures led by Cliff
Robinson who scored 18 points & grabbed 8 rebounds. Doug Christie scored 16
points with 6 rebounds, Ron Artest scored 13 points with 6 rebounds, too. Eric
Dampier & Lorenzen Wright both scored 12 points & Wright led all rebounders with
a dozen. Mochie Norris rounded out the double figure scoring with 10 points and
11 assists.
Richmond was led by Predag Stojakovic who scored 21 points. He was followed by
Dirk Nowitzki who score 17 points and grabbed 11 caroms. Michael Finley scored
12 points and Baron Davis rounded out the double figure scoring with 11 points,
8 rebounds and 10 assists. Richmond led going into the 4th quarter by 23 points
and coasted to the win, despite 56 rebounds by Finney.
ROOSTERS SALVAGE ONE OF FOUR FROM FINNEY AT HOME
Game 1
The Longhorns defeated the Roosters 99-93 behind a balanced scoring attack.
Cliff Robinson led the Horns with 22 and Brian Grant had 16 rebounds. Iverson
topped the Roosters with 27. Jason Terry had a miserable game hitting only 3 of
20 from the field.
Game 2
Finney wins 101-79. Good News was never really in the game. Lorenzo Wright had
21 points and 12 boards for the Longhorns.
Game 3
Another loss for the Roosters 105-91. Jason Richardson scored 22 points and
Brian Grant had 10 rebounds to pace Finney.
Game 4
Good News avoided the sweep with a 85-80 victory. Iverson had 29 points to lead
the Roosters.
Penalty points are piling up, one coach in danger of expulsion
Yep, this year bogged down in February with a vengeance. And penalty points are piling up like snow in an Eskimo village. One coach is only 5 points from being thrown out of the SABL. That's never happened before. I hope it doesn't happen now.
The thing is, except for just a few coaches, we've had a pretty good year. Some great divisional races are going on and the playoffs look to be incredible. But we ain't gonna slow down the 15 or 16 coaches who are on time for the four or five that aren't. That's what causes most Strat leagues to fold, and we ain't foldin'. We are playing ball. If you can't keep up due to temporary time constraints, no problem. Just let me and your opponents know and we'll autoplay your team until you have time again to play.
But what you can't do is stay silent, aloof and unaware of what your team's schedule is and not let us know what's going on. If you don't care about your team, why should the rest of us care?
My penalty point amnesty is still available. Get those game results to me or get me a good explanation of why you got behind by 11:59 pm on March 2, and I'll rescind all the penalty points assessed for games from Feb. 8 onward. If I don't hear from you, the points stand.
Penalty point report
Now the part of my commissioner's duties that I like the least, assessing penalty points. I also check our Yahoo! group site, too, to look for results, but since Yahoo! is not reliable, you must email me directly to avoid getting penalty points. Please let me know ASAP if I've made an error. Sometimes my email server screws up. And if you are gonna be late for some legitimate reason, let me know by telephone or email what's going on so you can avoid getting penalty points.
It's your responsibility to follow up with coaches that don't send you instructions. You have to stay on top of the schedule to find out who's supposed to be sending you what and when. "I didn't get any instructions" better not be your only defense. Did you contact your opposing coach and make an effort to get those instructions? "Why did you wait and let the games get two weeks late?" will be the question I'm gonna ask.
Home games are the home coach's primary responsibility. You need to let me know that you have tried to contact your late opponents to avoid penalty points. If you didn't try to contact them and find out what's going on, then you'll probably get some penalty points. Get enough of them and you'll drop down places in the draft.
LATENESS KILLS LEAGUES. IF YOU DON'T HAVE TIME TO PLAY THE GAMES, YOU DONT HAVE TIME TO BE IN THE SABL. UNLIKE OTHER LEAGUES YOU MAY HAVE BEEN IN, THE TRAINS RUN ON TIME HERE.
Here's the current tally:
Bakersfield - 6 points total. Bakersfield falls two places down in our 2003 Draft
2 points for no results for Iowa at Bakersfield, Feb. 3
2 points for no results for Brooklyn at Bakersfield, Feb. 2
2 points for no results for Akron at Bakersfield, Feb. 1
River City- 5 points total. River City falls one place down in our 2003 Draft
3 points for no results for Bettendorf at River City, Jan. 23
2 points for no results for Brooklyn at River City, Jan. 15
Bettendorf - 5 points total. Bettendorf falls one place down in our 2003 Draft
2 points for no results for Akron at Bettendorf, Dec. 7
1 points for no instructions for Bettendorf at St. Lucie, Feb. 6
2 points for no results for St. Lucie at Bettendorf, Feb. 6
River City- 2 points total.
2 points for no instructions for River City at Akron, Feb. 15
Quad City - 2 points total.
2 points for no results for Akron at Quad City, Jan. 15
Akron - 2 points total.
2 points for no instructions for Akron at Good News, Feb. 15
Davenport - 1 point total.
1 point for no instructions for Davenport at St. Lucie, Feb. 7