Grinders at The Eldridge Club Season 1 review……
The first season at the new diggs went off great. Folks learned how to do the scoreboard and shot clock quickly, adding a flair of the big leagues that Grinders has desperately missed. New people have been hanging out after games now that the bar is a stone’s throw away. The heckling has even gotten better during games due to the swing lube allowed in the gym. Our website is looking better than ever and we even have a Twitch or a Snappychat or a Remind (whatever the hell the kids use these days) to engage in daily Grinders tom-foolery. I think the changes to Grinders have been a positive one.
As for the season…….We had an undefeated team in the regular season for the first (?) time in Grinders history. Team Pink looked like the 73 win Warriors team from a few years ago walking over the league to a 6-0 record. Team Blue was the predominant favorite pre-season and looked like they were unstoppable…..until a 4-game slide made them look less than G-league going into the playoffs. Teams Black and Grey looked to be lost throughout most of the season but occasionally looked like they were figuring it out (Curt drops 40, Grey beats Blue for first win). We had people make their debuts (Tirado, Pauly J., Wayne, Eric) and saw old stars return (Grant, Curt, Jeff May, AK47). Teams were getting used to the 3-ball being in play and how that was going to affect things. Hell we even had a buzzer-beater from “half-court”. All-in-all it was a fun first regular season. We even had our first Grinders awards. This session we need to figure out a way to make that ceremony better.
On to the playoffs we go…….
Team Black vs Team Blue: No one knew what was going to happen in this one. Black finally had Curt and Grant and could beat anyone on a given day. Blue was riding a 4-game losing streak and looked like they were in trouble. So to be frank, this one didn’t live up to the billing. Grant and Curt were brutal going a combined 7-50. Mike missed more layups than Ford. Luckily for Black the supporting cast of Jon, Pauly J, and Worm had it going and kept them in it for most of the game. Blue relied on Jon “This time Robin saves Batman” Witt who dropped 24 by the game’s end (his first clutch performance since the Reagan administration). Blue eventually pulled away and walked into the finals on the red-brick road that Curt and Grant shot for them.
Team Pink vs Team Grey: This game looked more like a WWF wrestling match by the end than a free-flowing, highly-talented basketball game. Pink got out to a quick start raining 3’s all over Grey’s faces from everywhere on the court. Stats don’t lie. Grey was the worst shooting team in the league and Pink had the best defense. It was no surprise that Pink was way ahead at the start. Then something funny happened. Pink forgot how to put their balls in the hole. They forgot who the right team to pass to was. Grey slowly, methodically crept back in and made it a game early in the second half. Luckily for Pink (who was terrible in the second half), Grey was even worse at finishing and Pink snuck out a bad win.
Team Pink vs Team Blue: Mike happened………that is all. Words can’t put into picture what his performance looked like, combine Jordan’s shoulder-shrug game in the Finals, Kobe’s 81 vs Toronto, and Magic’s performance in game 6 of the Finals as a rookie. It was simply spectacular. Oh, Witt, Doyle, and Nixon were also on the court……..we think…….maybe.
As for Pink, 7-1, and a missed opportunity for Grinders immortality as the ONLY undefeated team ever. Too bad, so sad. If the Finals were a chicken bone Team Pink woulda gone Mama Cass all over it. The Cash Cousins no-showed, Ford disappeared, Jeff May left his game on the trainer’s table, and Cole still has 3rd burns from getting torched by Mike (47 pts, 11 3’s).
All-Grinders
First TeamC/F: Grant Decz
F/G: Mike Malicki
F/G: Tommy Hughes
F/G: Richie Creamer