Rumble in the Bronx: The Playoffs
Late Sunday evening, the first round of the Rumble in the Bronx playoffs began. NYC Hoops covered two of the opening round games involving New York teams.
While the Gauchos battled Team Florida on one court, the Panthers played MBR Maine on the other. It would be a joyous night for one NY team and a shocking upset for the other as one team would advance while the other went fishing.
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Gauchos vs Team Florida
Team Florida came out aggressive from the onset with a 7-0 run as 6-foot-9 rising senior Okaro White (16 points) was a problem early. Shane Southwell (10 points) began to heat up late in the half but Chris Bryant countered for Team Florida.
Behind for the entire first half the Gauchos would find themselves down 24-18 to start the second half. Early in the second half, the Florida team extended their lead to 10 points as Keith McDouglad (8 points)was effective driving left or down the center of the lane. Doron Lamb (18 points), who played well the game before against Triple Treat was unusually quiet in the first half scoring only 2 points.
With 10:23 left in regulation, Southwell threw the ball against the wall as he expressed frustration with his teams play. Mohammed Lee (12 points) answered the call and attacked the basket, scoring in sequence. Lamb also stepped up his efforts as well. Unfortunately the Gauchos also needed stops to go along with their renewed offensive momentum and with 6:35 remaining they would be in a 19 point hole.
At the 3:45 mark, a Lee jumper cut Team Florida's lead to 14 points but the guard would catch a cramp and be unable to continue. Without a 30 second clock, the team from Florida would milk the clock and advance, 57-46.
Panthers vs MBR Maine
Panthers pushed the ball early as Boston College bound point guard Danny Lawhorn moved the ball upcourt quickly. Up 11-6 early, JJ Moore (15 points) began to score in transition.
MBR Maine was clearly a perimeter team with Yusaf Inman (22 points) providing most of the offensive production but the Panthers had more and better and would soon be ahead by 20 points as Rod Odom (12 points) chimed in offensively.
Down 38-16 to start the second half, Inman would heat up as the Maine team attempted to make a run. Odom would take up the slack driving and scoring. Still down by 21 early, the team fro. Maine would simply not have the firepower to compete, ultimately losing 67-42
Other teams that advanced in the quarterfinal playoffs along with the NY Panthers and Team Florida are: Juice All-stars, Westchester Hawks, Team Final (FL), California Supreme, City Rocks and Nike Baltimore Elite.
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