The playoffs……..
Quarter-finals
We here at Grinders HQ were wondering if the cream would rise to the top. The betting favorites would eventually make their claim to the title.
In the quarter-finals Team Curt (Hoops) took out Team Handsome Boy (Justin). Whose 1-2 punch would play better was the question surrounding this one. Curt and May outplayed Justin and Jimmy, fueled by some late game turnovers and missed shots. Justin is left to wonder what could have been if only Jimmy lived up to his league record $32 salary.
In the other quarter-final the only question would be if Mike Milicki would be healthy? A healthy Milicki gave Stye-Eye a shot at it all. A hobbled Milicki and their season would be over. Team Framer (Richie/Ford) took advantage of an injured Mike and beat up the rest of the team. Framer had 3 people with over a 20 GAPE. They dominated the game on the inside and moved on.
Semi-finals
In the first semi-final the reigning/defending champs (Hi-liter) took on the league’s best scoring duo from Hoops. Hoops had what many people thought was the best chance to knock off Mike “The Big Fundamental” Gersitz and co. Hoops was missing Josh Lanzot which proved to be costly. Hoops couldn’t get many open looks and had too many 1 and done possessions. Team Hi-liter ran their offense through Big G to the tune of 28 and 16. Though the game was close at times, Pauly J and Wayne hit big buckets late to keep Hoops at bay and take the W.
In the second semi-final Team Framer (all 2 of them) took on the Dadbods. Team Framer should have forfeited but league director Jon “2-rings” Witt was benevolent and gave Framer 2 subs to try and advance. The subs (Worm and “Bang Bang” Tirado) actually outplayed the actual members of the squad. Vaillancourt and Chuck combined to shoot 4 of 23 for 10 points. Worm and Jon combined for 24. The Dadbods did what the Dadbods do, shorten possessions, set offenses back 80 years (think 4-corners). They took advantage of the missing Framer “studs” (I find that laughable to describe Framer players) to bore their way to the finals.
Championship
Oh…….it…….was……..on. The 2 best teams. Identical 8-2 records. The season series was split 1-1. Contrasting styles. The makings of a classic. There was no love lost between these 2 teams. The Hi-liters beat the Dadbods in the last game of the regular season to capture the 1-seed (by tiebreaker). Things got hot and heated in that one and it would continue in the pre-game. Tommy was complaining and crying about the team the Dadbods played in the semis. This continued throughout the night with he and Cole yelling at each other. Onto the game…..
For all the theatrics this game turned out to be a dud. The defending champs came out flat and fell flat. The best offense in the league was held to 13 made fg’s. They had 3 players with a negative GAPE by game’s end. Big G. was held to 10 total attempts and no one else on the team scored in double digits.
The Dadbods led 17-11 at half. Hi-liters made a run cutting the lead to 27-25 before “2-rings” and KO hit 4 straight jumpers to pump the lead back to 10. “New Guy” Salvait hit a jumper late and Playoff MVP Newberry controlled the boards late to secure the victory*.
Rumors swirl that the Dadbods will “run it back” in September. Until then, keep on Grinding.