Week 8 is in the books, as several teams asserted their dominance and picked up key wins in the race for playoff seeding. Read up on all of the action here!
12:30 pm - Celtics 66, Mavericks 63
In a battle of two teams that have been struggling to pick up wins in the K1 League, this contest went down to the wire in a back and forth affair. The key play in the game took place with 7.1 seconds to go, as the Mavericks were trailing by a score of 64-63. Following a missed free throw on the front end of a 1-and-1 by the Celtics' Jonathan Townsend, the Mavericks brought the ball down to the end of the court. Right as a pass to a wide open Patrick Allen under the basket was being thrown, the reigning coach of the year Marcell Hobbs whistled for a timeout. Although the play initially seemed to be broken - hence the timeout call - it left the entire gym stunned as Allen sank what would have been the go-ahead layup. Still with a chance to win the game, the Mavericks threw away the ensuing inbounds pass, and the Celtics' Mendi Naylor hit a pair of free throws to clinch the Celtics 66-63 win against the Mavericks. The Celtics took advantage of the fact that Braijon Thomas did not play at all in the second half due to an injury. Townsend led the way with 16 points and eleven rebounds, while Naylor had 13 points. Walter Hudson had eleven points and Jay Slone added ten points. For the Mavericks, Patrick Allen had 15 points, while Jamir Hinds had 14 points and Jamari Washington had 11 points. The Celtics improve to 3-7 with the win and will take on the Spurs (7-3) next week at 2:30 pm. The Mavericks fall to 1-9 and will take on the Lakers (7-3) next Sunday at 1:30 pm.
1:30 pm - Bulls 79, Suns 37
The Bulls picked up their fourth win in five games on Sunday as they ran past the winless Suns by a score of 79-37. Despite not having leading scorer Benito Munoz in attendance, the Bulls still got what they wanted, led by big man Seth Johnson, who set a K1 League record in rebounding. When the dust had settled, Johnson finished with 22 points and 26 rebounds. Bobby Crivokpaich added 19 points, while Marcell Maiden had his best game as a Bull with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Matt Wells also chipped in ten points. For the Suns, Ferra Johnson was the only player in double figures, as he had 13 points. The Bulls improve to 5-3 with the win, and will have two massive games next Sunday. They begin with the East-leading Bucks (7-2) at 4:30 pm, followed by the Heat (6-4) at 5:30 pm. The Suns loss pushes them to 0-8, as they would be right back on the court against the Spurs at 2:30 pm.
2:30 pm - Spurs 94, Suns 65
The Spurs scored early and often along their way to a dominating win on Sunday against the Suns, 94-65. Dennis Koger led the way his second triple double of the season, as he had 15 points, 12 rebounds, and ten assists. Trey Johnson led all scorers with 28 points and also grabbed 14 rebounds. Chris Green had 15 points, Matt Cunningham had 14 points, and both Marty Bothwell and Ray Lawrence each had 11 points. The biggest difference in this game was on the glass, as the Spurs had a +24 rebounding advantage (54-30). For the Suns, Bryant Jackson had his best game of the season, scoring 20 points. Michael Lonergan Jr. had 19 points and eight rebounds, while Joey Mendoza had 18 points on six three-pointers. The Spurs improve to 7-2 with the win and would be right back on the court against the Warriors in the game of the week matchup. The Suns meanwhile fall to 0-9 with the loss and will take on the Nets (4-5) next week at 12:30 pm.
3:30 pm - Warriors 72, Spurs 55
In one of the most anticipated matchups in K1 League History, Tyree Mosley stole the show, dropping 36 points on some serious sharpshooting, as the Warriors ran away from the Spurs to win 72-55. In a battle of teams that came into the day with identical 6-2 records, both teams knew that the winner would have an edge in the West Division moving forward. The Warriors rode Mosley, and some serious shot making in the first half, to hand the Spurs one of their biggest losses in league history. Outside of Mosley's 36 points, only one other Warrior scored in double figures, as Martavius Laster had 13 points. The big difference in the game was from behind the three-point line, where the Warriors made seven more threes than the Spurs did (12-5). The Spurs had three players in double figures, led by Trey Johnson who had 17 points. Ryan Kvasnicka and Ray Lawrence each had 12 points. Refocusing on Mosley, his performance on Sunday was all too reminiscent of last year's game in which he torched the same team with 26 points on 6/11 from behind the long line. Sunday was even more impressive as he went 10/15 from three point range, setting a record for the most threes hit in a game this season. The Warriors improve to 7-2 with the win and now are in the driver's seat in the West Division. They will take on the Bucks (7-2) next week in a battle of the league's two best records. The Spurs fall to 7-3 and will look to bounce back against the Celtics (3-7) next week at 2:30 pm.
4:30 pm - Nets 87, Bucks 79
With about thirteen minutes remaining in the second half, the Bucks held a 54-43 lead over the Nets. From that point forward, it was nothing but net for the Nets. The Nets, who only had five players in attendance for Sunday's matchup, shot a blistering 65% from the field in the second half, including 8/10 from three point range, to upset the 7-1 Bucks by a score of 87-79. For the Bucks, they came into the game leading the K1 League allowing just 53 points per game. However in the second half alone of Sunday's matchup, the Nets scored 52 points, led by Mook Lawrence's career-high 25 points. TJ Wicks had 21 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks, while Ronnie Jackson had 19 points. Parrish Ward and Maurice Terrell each had 11 points of their own. For the Bucks, they only had six players, but scoring leader Jordan Logan fouled out early into the second half. Jaquan Boxley led the way with 25 points, while Darien Bosby had 23 points. Logan had 13 points, and Caleb Johnson chipped in ten points. With the huge upset win, the Nets improve to 4-5 on the season, and will face the Suns (0-9) next week at 12:30 pm. The Bucks fall to 7-2 with the loss and will take on the Warriors (7-2) next week at 3:30 pm in the Week 9 game of the week matchup, followed by the Bulls (5-3) at 4:30 in a crucial East Division clash.
5:30 pm - Lakers 85, Heat 73
Two 6-3 teams came into Sunday's matchup vying for a seventh win, and bragging rights heading into a potential first-round playoff matchup. A 45-point first half would propel the Lakers to a comfortable 85-73 victory. LJ Harris had 20 points, and the Lakers improved to 6-1 overall with him on the court. Tone Brooks had all of his 18 points in the first half, and the man in the middle - Rob Anderson - had 14 points. Quon shaw would also add 12 points and six rebounds of his own. Despite trailing by 13 points at the half, the Heat continued to claw back, trimming the deficit to single digits on several occasions, but were not able to get within seven points. Octavius Jefferson had 21 points to pace the Heat, while Terrell Hendrix continued his strong offensive play with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Point guard Alonzo King contributed 15 points and four steals. For the Lakers, they improve to 7-3 with the win, and will take on the Mavericks (1-9) next Sunday at 1:30 pm. The Heat fall to 6-4 with the loss, but still have several big matchups over the final three weeks in the race for the East Division. They start by taking on the Bulls (5-3) at 5:30 pm next Sunday.