The Reckers All Americans used a selfless style of basketball to rout The View Tavern on the corner of Niles and Jefferson 21-9 Thursday.
Reckers jumped out to a 3-0 lead after forward Jimmy Small dunked on a breakaway. On that basket, Small cut his hand for the second time. Unfortunately for the members of the View, those cuts didn't slow him down.
After a quick turnaround jumper from the free throw line by The View, Reckers went on a 4-0 run to stretch the lead to 7-1.
Reckers used superior defense, and was able to run the court extremely well.
"We played very aggressive defense, maybe too aggressive at times," Small said. "Because of our defense, we were able to get out and run the court very well."
Reckers rode that aggressive style of play to an 11-4 halftime lead while the View struggled to find its offensive groove.
Down 11-4 at the half, The View missed its first four shots before finally making a short, turnaround jumper.
Meanwhile, Reckers didn't miss a beat. Hitting a number of long-range jump shots and continuing to press the ball going up the court, Reckers quickly increased its lead to 17-6.
The View tried to make a run to get back in the game, but again struggled finding momentum on either end of the floor.
After trading buckets, Reckers was finally able to put the game away on a baseline jumper by Small.
"We lost," The View forward Jeff Mulin said. "That's all there is to it."
Indy Xperience 21, Khakis in the Dumpster 12
Indy Xperience, a team composed solely of executive MBA students, defeated Khakis in the Dumpster 21-12 on the Bookstore courts.
Indy, whose players boast an average age of 38, relied on hot shooting to propel them past the younger, quicker Khakis.
Several times, it appeared as if Khakis was poised to make a run, but Indy was able to thwart each challenge. The win did not come without a price, though.
"We may have pulled some muscles tonight," guard Steve Champlin said. "We'll definitely get over it."
Now, Indy looks ahead to its next matchup - which will probably pit them against a ranked team.
"We may have to play a seeded team, but we have the experience edge," Scott Schreiber said.
Clover Ridge 21, Naked Without Shame 14
Despite looking poised for an upset throughout the contest, Naked Without Shame eventually fell to 21-14 to Clover Ridge Thursday.
Efficient shooting allowed Naked to jump out to a 5-2 lead. The team continued its steady play for the remainder of the first half and held an 11-8 advantage at the break.
"They shot the ball really well in the first half," Clover Ridge captain Paul Hagan said.
Clover Ridge, however, took control in the second half , and quickly erased any hope of an upset.
"We just slowed it down and pressured the ball on defense," Hagan said of the keys to his team's turnaround.
The Clover Ridge size advantage also allowed the squad to wear down Naked toward the end of the game.
The size differential was made evident when Clover center John Carlson threw down a rim-rocking left-handed slam right after halftime.
"We just ran out of steam," Naked guard Andrew Litschi said.
Despite losing the game, the Naked players did not suffer from any self-esteem loss.
"They were the better team, but we were better-looking," Litschi said.
Litschi's teammate Benjamin Currie added a similar opinion about his team's superior appearance.
"In the beginning of the game, we offered to play shirts-and skins but they were too intimidated," Currie said.
Team 433 vs. Team 321
Before the game, Team 321 forward Bill Reimer joked with friends that he was going to score two points. After the game, friends were congratulating him on his eight-point game and a 21-13 victory over team 433.
Both teams started slow, but then quickly found their rhythm.
Team 321 used Reimer's surprising play to jump out to a 4-2 lead.
Team 433 responded behind the play of Nik Rodriguez, holding a 6-5 advantage midway through the first half. But from there, Reimer and team 321 went on a 10-0 run.
Playing from behind, Team 433 did everything it could to get back in the game but failed to finish on the offensive end. The squad missed a number of short lay-ups and jump shots and could not stop Team 321.
"It was a travesty, a sham, and a mockery.....a travshamockery!" Team 433 forward Aidan Fitzgerald said.
Team 321, on the other hand, used an aggressive defense to create a number of breakaway lay-ups to close out the game.
"All our training paid off," Reimer said. "We had a tough game in the first round, so we got out here and worked real hard."
