Game Summary
The Green Dot Ballers are roaring into their second decade of excellence with a second consecutive championship. This one was a classic all around Green Dot Ballers performance in a 62-44 thumping of number one seed Good Old Titans in the City of Alexandria Summer Session Championship game. The Ballers used a 15-0 run over the course of 4 crucial minutes in the first half to take a 19-6 lead that would not be threatened the rest of the game. The win secures the seventh title in 12 years for the Ballers and makes them the defending champions of the Winter League (2020) and Summer League (2022).
Finals MVP Kyle Welty turned in a monster double double with 18 points and a franchise record 18 rebounds. Cam Wade showed his championship mettle with an incredible shooting display on his way to 16 points on 6 of 7 makes from the field. Keonte Dennis was a late activation from the Ballers reserve roster and did a picture perfect impression of Will Harris (absent - travel commitment) with a double double of his own (13pts, 10 reb).
Headlines
4 Minutes of Excellence - After a choppy first few minutes of the game, Green Dot grabbed the game by the throat. Down 6-4 at the 16:55 mark the Ballers combined a stingy defense that created contested shots, turnovers and misses with hustle and execution on the offensive end that turned into a cascade of baskets. Five different Ballers scored during the highlighted by Welty, Wade and Larson fast breaks, a Dennis drive and then the exclamation point - a Danny Abatemarco three pointer that would force a Titans time out with 12:55 showing on the clock and a 19-6 GDB lead showing on the scoreboard. It was a demonstration of championship level basketball that the Titans could not meet. Abatemarco then added another three pointer a couple of minutes later for good measure. The lead would not fall below 12 the rest of the game.
DEE-FENSE - The Titans could not solve an extended 2-3 defense that flexed out to all of their three point shooters and allowed Dennis and Welty to control the paint. The Titans went cold from three and showed little interest in attempting to penetrate the zone. The Ballers took advantage of the strategic decision and combined it with extreme discipline on offense (just 4 turnovers in the first 30 min) and active hands leading to each Baller with a steal on the night. When Captain Chris Larson had a steal and score at the 7:37 mark of the second half the lead stood at a game high 21 points and the only question left is what the final score would be.
Gritty Gutty Effort - A series of absences plagued the roster for this championship game. After finally finding success in the summer league semis last week after 7 straight summer league playoff losses over the last seven years, the Ballers were staring a difficult Finals matchup against a team that had swept the regular season series. GDB Captains Mike Reamy and Will Harris were out due to previous travel commitments and Winston Tracy and Ryan Demagistris were out due to illness. Even frequent roster call ups Yoon Ji (travel) Jon Whitacre (work) were not available. Add to that, Chris Larson was in the process of clearing Health and Safety protocols, it was unclear whether the Ballers would even be able to field a team. But a negative test result for Larson combined with Avery Medlar's activation and Keonte Dennis being called up provided six Ballers ready to grab the title. An all around team effort resulted in the win and the title.
Long time coming for summer success - The original Green Dot squad was formed for Summer League 2010 and after heartbreaking last second losses in the summer and winter leagues, finally broke through in the summer of 2011 with their first title. Little did they know it would be 11 YEARS later to secure another summer crown!!!
MVP
Kyle Welty - As mentioned above, Welty recorded a franchise record 18 rebounds in an incredible job manning the back line. He was key to the defense holding the Titans to one shot on most possessions. He also found the time on the other end to serve as the games leading scorer with 18 points. He was also the consistent performer providing 11 points and 10 rebounds in the first half and hitting a couple of shots in the second half when the Titans were trying to put a run together
Up Next
Fall Session!! Can the Ballers complete the Trifecta and hold all three titles at the same time? The last time they had the chance was Summer 2018. They had won the Fall League in 2017 and the Winter League in 2018, but fell in heartbreaking fashion to the Durangos in the Summer League semi final. An eight point lead with 2 min left somehow evaporated and a try at the buzzer to win the game just fell off the rim. Can they finish the job this time???
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