(1) DB Connections vs. (5) Audacity of Dope | Thursday (9/2) 8:50pm @ MLK HS
KEY PLAYERS
M. Lee 12.6 ppg .465 FG% 1.2 rpg 1.5 apg 1.2 spg
A. Fisher 11.2 ppg 8.2 rpg 1.3 apg 1.8 spg 0.3 bpg
ANALYSIS: It's no secret AOD matches up well with the DB Connex, both bring a lot of bruisers and both like slow it down and make it a battle of attrition. In fact, AOD might be the only team that seems to look forward to a battle in the trenches with (F) Tony Hu and (C) Bryant Picone. But, it will be one of DBC's finesse players, (F) Jin Hong, that the Connex will miss the most as he returns to the College of St. Rose, particularly his athleticism and ability to finish and defend in transition.
DBC is a team that likes to play deliberately. They have great speed at the guards but rarely get out in transition. That's just fine for AOD, who will try to work the half-court as well. Returning (G) Jon Scheiman to the line-up is huge. His ability to set the table, not only for sharpshooter (G) Usama Nausrudeen, who is still questionable, but for everyone on the roster is key to this team's success. As is Fisher's aggressiveness on offense and late addition (F) Lamar Smith, a player captain (C) Len Kamdang deems the league's best defender. -- The Jet
DB Connections
GR
GR
Audacity of Dope
Advantage
(G) Ace Watana UCONN 5-9, 160 lbs
B
B+
(G) Jon Scheiman St. John's 6-2, 185 lbs
The two players with the richest pedigrees, the return of both of these respective PGs to their teams is huge but especially for AOD, who has missed their only real play-maker.
(G) Mark Lee 5-10, 175 lbs
B+
A
(G) U. Nausrudeen York College 5-11, 165 lbs
Lee has been a solid scoring threat for DBC this season and should continue to do so. Nausrudeen hasn't played a game since Wk 4 due to injury. Will he be back in time?
(F) Chris Youn 6-1, 215 lbs
B+
B+
(F) Lamar Smith NC Central 6-2, 200 lbs
Youn has been solid for DBC all season and brings a versatile game along with a deadly corner 3FG. Smith is now being touted as a premiere defender. They're not wrong.
(F) Tony Hu 6-3, 225 lbs
A
A
(F) Aaron Fisher 6-3, 190 lbs
Hu has been DBC's go-to when they need buckets in the half-court. Fisher will make it tough. It almost looks like he relishes these match-ups with Hu, their third this season.
(C) Bryant Picone 6-6, 230 lbs
A
B
(C) Len Kamdang 6-3, 250 lbs
With (F) Jin Hong out, Picone will defend the paint and he's no slouch, the defending Def MVP. Kamdang will bring his versatile game and hope to pull Picone out of the paint.
Kim and Grayson could be starting for any team in the league. Kim brings speed and Grayson a versatile big, both dimensions that will make DBC very tough. AOD's bench is blue-collar and will go all out.
ANALYSIS: Rumor has it that (F) Nic Echevestre might be out of the line up with a sore back. If ever there was a chance for the Asphalt Ninjas to steal this one, this is it The Ninjas barely escaped their first match-up despite holding a 20+ pt lead through the 1st half. And, the Fury played without Echevestre, (C) Ezra Hoover or (G) Joe Kim. Still, ASN was solid vs. a MonStars team and an all-world effort from (C) Nick Harrington (36 pts, 11 rebs). ASN (F) Brian Villy "Wojo" Womack (33 pts, 12 rebs) put up his own off the chart numbers in one of the all-time FBNYC games.
X-FACTOR: In their first game (F) Carlito Beach was able to create off the dribble as NYF struggled with his size and versatility. With their full roster, NYF will be able to shift their best defender (F) Varun Manocha over. For ASN, it's depends whether "Playoff Rommel" has arrived yet. (G) Rommel Dolar is a different beast in the post-season. -- The Jet
NYC Fury
GR
GR
Asphalt Ninjas
Advantage
(G) Jake Choi Yonsei University 5-11, 165 lbs
A
B+
(G) Rommel Dolar Baruch College 5-8, 150 lbs
Choi is NYF's best 1-on-1 player but tends to freelance at times. Still, when he's on, he's tough to stop. Dolar hasn't had a strong reg. season but it's all about playoffs for him.
(G) Joe Kim 5-11, 175 lbs
A
B-
(G) Andy Singleton 6-0, 195 lbs
A former MVP and Def MVP, Kim has been key to the Fury success while rarely scoring. Singleton is a shooter who's had his ups and downs but can also contribute other ways.
(G) Nic Echevestre UC Santa Cruz 6-4, 195 lbs
A+
A
(G) Carlito Beach 6-2, 225 lbs
Wong is always capable of putting up big digits in scoring, you can't sleep on him. Cho is past his hot streak earlier in the season but is still more than capable of getting it going again.
(F) Vick Manocha Cooper Union 6-4, 215 lbs
B+
A+
(F) Brian Womack 6-3, 190 lbs
Manocha gives NYF a deep threat and their most versatile defender, as does Womack for ASN but to a level perhaps only he could have predicted until last week.
(C) Ezra Hoover 6-5, 190 lbs
B+
B
(C) Danny Manning 6-5, 260 lbs
If Hoover can stay mobile and get out on the break, he can find success against ASN's very large front-court. Manning is very big and if he's in position, there's no moving him.
BENCH (G) Ren Hsieh (G) G. James (C) Mo Ghumman
A
A
BENCH (G) Wilson Lew (G) Tyquawn Goode (F) Joel Capili (C) Shion Campbell (C) Brian Nilsen
The Fury don't have a deep bench but every player coming off could be starting for any other team. James typically finishes games while Hsieh has made the biggest sacrifice in time. The Ninjas bench is deep with guys who can make an impact.
PREDICTIONS:
CHARLES BOK LEE
KENNY "THE JET" LI
STAN VAN GHANDI
JEFF VAN GHANDI
(1) NYC Fury
73
61
65
(3) Asphalt Ninjas
68
55
61
2K10 SUM Playoff Preview
FBNYC, 8.25.10
Connex finish as league's no. 1
Despite a rough start to the season, DBC finishes with top seed
The mid-to-low seeds haven't been finalized just yet but the playoff picture looks pretty clear. Here are some notes on how each team looks going into the post-season. There are certainly some legitimate contenders in the Top 2 seeds but everyone else looks like a wild card. There's really not that much disparity in talent, no one finished this season undefeated. So, let's let the playoffs begin already. -- Kenny "The Jet" Li
FASTBREAK NYC 2K10 SUM Playoff Preview
Diff.
Rank
Team
Record
Comments
N/A
1.
DBC
(6-2)
The truth is they have looked shaky in some games but DBC ended up where they've always thought they belonged, with the no. 1 seed. A rough start at 0-2, they haven't lost since. Sadly, they will lose (F) Jin Hong to school but (F) Stan Grayson should be solid. KEY PLAYERS: (F) Tony Hu (DBC) 10 ppg, 5.7 rpg; (G) Mike Kim 11.7 ppg, 3 apg
N/A
2.
NYF
(6-2)
The Fury had a stretch of 2 losses with (F) Nic Echevestre out of the line up but have dominated with him in the mix. They'll have to play an extra game to get there now but the Chip is their only goal. KEY PLAYERS: (F) Nic Echevestre 18.8 ppg, 5.2 apg; (G) Jake Choi 16 ppg, 4.1 rpg
N/A
3.
MNK
(5-2)
When they're hitting 3s, they look unstoppable. (F) Kevin Quach has elevated his game when the Kings play without dynamo (G) Nick Mui. Losing (F) Joe Vines to school will hurt but (F) Dave Wiggins and (C) Burton Williams will be eligible giving MNK size with that speed. KEY PLAYERS: Nick Mui 23 ppg, 4.5 apg; Kevin Quach 13.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg
N/A
4.
ASN
(3-4)
The Ninjas certainly have plenty of size and at least two players with great speed in (G) Rommel Dolar and (G) Tyquawn Goode. They also have a solid scorer in (F) Carlito Beach. They've looked real good and alternately real bad. This team is the wild card. KEY PLAYERS: Carlito Beach 12.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg; Tyquawn Goode 10.5 ppg, 4.8 apg
N/A
5.
AOD
(3-4)
When this team outplays their opponent and they usually do, the always have a chance to win. And, when (G) Usama Nausrudeen is making shots they can really surprise you. As it is, they've lost too many to be a real contender but they do have that early season W vs. DBC. KEY PLAYERS: Usama Nausrudeen 26 ppg, 4.7 rpg; (F) Aaron Fisher 11 ppg, 7.8 rpg
N/A
6.
MON
(3-5)
Everything rides on (C) Nick Harrington. The enter team is designed with him as the centerpiece, he makes everyone else better. Without him, the MonStars are as good as eliminated. KEY PLAYERS: Nick Harrington 21.2 ppg, 9.8 rpg; (G) Anthony Plunkett 10.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg
N/A
7.
BOI
(2-5)
Just last spring, they were Urban Professionals champs so this has been a tough season to say the least but they have looked good in come back wins vs. MNK and ASN. You just never know. KEY PLAYERS: (G) Ram Parekh 16 ppg, 3.8 rpg; (F) Kareem Merrick 10.2 ppg, 9 rpg.
Not much of the OCC in action but Fisher was strong in AOD's perhaps surprising win over a seemingly more talented BOI team. Fisher finally seemed to get his bearings against the substantially larger big men in the BLUE this season.
The game was a blow-out win but setting the BLUE's single game scoring high this season can't go without some mention. Choi was hot right off the bat and kept it going throughout the game to a relatively easy win vs. Yea Boi.
Runner-Up: Kevin Quach (MNK) 18 pts, 6 3FGs
The Sam Lo Award for Hustlers
Anthony Nurse (BOI) 10 rebs 4 stls
Nurse returns to the Sam Lo by way of unbridled passion for the ball. He loves that bouncing orange thing and will do anything it takes to get it.
Runner-Up: Jon Yevin (BOI) 13 rebs, 2 stls, 1 blk
Defensive Player of the Week
Ian Yu (ASN) 4 rebs, 6 stls
In a game they did not lead until late in the 2nd qtr, it was Yu who changed the game, closing off the passing lanes in transition.
Runner-Up: Shion Campbell (ASN) 2 stls, 4 blks
The High-5 Club Jake Choi (NYF) 11-1-3-4-1 Jon Yevin (BOI) 14-13-2-2-1 Rommel Dolar (ASN) 7-8-5-3-1 Ezra Hoover (NYF) 13-6-1-1-1 Ren Hsieh (NYF) 5-3-9-1-1 Dave Jacoby (BOI) 14-8-2-1-1 Garrett James (NYF) 17-3-2-3-1 Len Kamdang (AOD) 1-7-2-1-1 Kareem Merrick (BOI) 8-10-3-2-3 Kevin Quach (MNK) 18-3-2-3-1 Lamar Smith (AOD) 8-4-3-2-2
Discorama Rookie of the Week G. James (NYF) 17.5 ppg, 3.5 spg
James is turning it on as the playoffs near and the Fury have a very solid replacement for (G) Roman Perez. James can fill it up in a hurry.
RU: Ram Parekh (BOI) 16 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2 spg
The "John Starks" Award A. Singleton (ASN) | 0-12 FGs (.000)
Singleton is a shooter and has been known to hit a big shot or two. For some reason, he just couldn't buy one vs. MNK and they needed him.
Dishonorable Mention: Ian Yu (MNK) 2-11 FGs
The "Chris Dudley" Award
Roger Stovall (BOI) | 0-6 FTs (.000)
Stovall hasn't shot well this season and this won't help. You can't help but wonder if the outcome could have been different had he made them. Dishonorable Mention: Ezra Hoover (NYF) 1-4 FTs
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Anthony Nurse (BOI) 10 rebs 4 stls
Ian Yu (ASN) 4 rebs, 6 stls
