The Saltines used their supreme height advantage and athleticism to knock off Team 501 21-11 in a hard fought game.
At the outset, both teams played sloppy basketball, each going scoreless in their first two possessions.
Needing a quick victory in order to finish before a class, the Saltines decided to step up their game.
"We came out slow," said Dan Ott of the Saltines. "But we had a test right after this, so we wanted to finish them off fast."
After falling behind 3-0, the Saltines made three straight before Team 501 was able to answer. Using its superior height and athleticism, the Saltines went on an 8-2 run to end the half.
Although the score at half was lopsided in favor of the Saltines, the play remained competitive and heated on the court. There were a number of hard fouls and a scuffle broke out at one point. The pushing and shoving was quicky broken up by other players and resulted in no ejections.
In the second half, the Saltine players followed the same game plan of using their height to their advantage. They were able to force a number of turnovers, which led to six second-half fast-break points en route to the 21-11 final.
"It was a tough draw for the first round," Team 501 guard Steve Howenstein said. "They have a lot of size and were very athletic. Those guys are going to go far."
Charles Manson Strikes Back 21, Jaredisjake 4
Emerson Epartz and Ben Roesch scored seven points each as Charles Manson Strikes Back slaughtered Jaredisjake in first round at Stepan Courts Thursday night.
Jaredisjake struggled from the field, scoring only four points in the contest. The group of seniors officially ended their Bookstore careers with a record of 1-4.
"We were just out here to have some fun today," said Jaredisjake guard Shane Duba, who scored one point.
Duba said his teammates enjoyed themselves during the whole game, despite trailing throughout.
"We aren't in very good condition. We also didn't rebound, pass, or shoot well." Jaredisjake forward Mark Seiler said.
With those ingredients missing, Jaredisjake found it tough to hang with the fast-paced offense that the Manson team ran through out the game.
Manson, made up of two freshman, two sophomores and a junior, passed well throughout the game. All five players scored.
Manson was able to pick up easy baskets by driving hard toward the hoop and dishing to open teammates as the Jaredisjake defense collapsed. The fancy passing worked well in several instances, but also led to many turnovers.
Roesch said his team will have to improve its consistency before it plays No. 3 The Caged Badgers in the third round.
"We're hoping for at least one more win until we have to play the third ranked team," Roesch said. "But who knows? We could be the next George Mason."
Counter Ballerists Unit 21, MaCCCK Daddies 5
The Counter Ballerists Unit advanced to the second round of bracket play after a big win over MaCCCK Daddies. The experienced seniors exploited their advantage in both size and athleticism to come away with the 21-5 victory.
CBU was led by Steve Colnitis, who sunk the first six baskets of the game. Colnitis finished with 11 points and four assists.
Once it built up a sizable lead, CBU never looked back. It came up with several steals, which were easily converted to fast break buckets.
"We just wanted to work out all the kinks in the first round. It was a good all around effort," CBU guard Dave Kuck said.
Kuck's outside shooting proved to be a valuable weapon for CBU throughout the game.
The slow start hurt the undermanned MaCCCK Daddies, who were gasping for air by the end of Colnitis' hot streak.
"They had five guys and stamina," MaCCK Daddies guard Bill Bordogna said. After trailing 11-2 at the half, the Daddies looked for any advantage they could to try to stop the bleeding.
"We thought the half-time cigarette would get us back on track, it normally calms me down a little," Bordogna said.
Unfortunately, the plan failed , as CBU outscored the Daddies 10-3 in the second half.
