WESTMINSTER, CO: Week 3 Recap | The Kardashians show off their D

Week 3 provided a decent night of basketball at Ultimate Hoops Westminster. There were some good games, and some not so good games. Here's a look at the week that was.

The Kardashians - 80 White Iversons - 79

The Kardashians came in to the fall season with high expectations but had a very rough week two in Ultimate Hoops. They were playing a doubleheader without a few of their key players, which led to an 0-2 night. This week, they had a full squad and were looking to get back on the right track. They were going up against UH veterans the White Iversons, who were playing their first of two games on the night. These two teams couldn't play more contrasting styles of basketball. The White Iversons like to get out and run while The Kardashians play a more methodical style on offense, working from the inside out and relying on ball movement to find the open shot.

This turned out to be one of the best games of the season as neither team could build more than a five point lead at any point of the contest. As expected, the White Iversons had plenty of fastbreak points in the first half while The Kardashians ran the inside-out game with Marcquis Scott and Chris Morgan. The Kardashians went in to the break with a two point lead.

The second half was just as great as the first, as buckets came at a premium. A few clutch threes by Joseph McLain gave the White Iversons a small lead midway through the second half, but in the end, The Kardashians were able to get enough on the defensive end and hold on to the one point victory. McLain led all scorers with 27 points, including 7-12 from beyond the arc, while Morgan led The Kardashians with 22 points of his own.

Eat, Sleep, Ball, Repeat - 101 FireSquad - 97

This matchup featured two teams that like to score a lot of points, but can also give up a lot of points, similar to the Steve Nash-led Suns of the mid 2000's.

Even if the defensive intensity was high in this game, it still wouldn't have mattered in the first half, as both teams were firing on all cylinders on the offensive end as they both were shooting over 60% for the half. ESBR went in to the break with a 56-53 lead.

Both teams decided to step up their defense in the second half, resulting in tougher buckets and harder fouls. ESBR built a six point lead with under ten minutes to play and never squandered the lead from that point. FireSquad had to resort to sending ESBR to the charity stripe, which didn't work, as they were able to knock down their free throws when the game was on the line. ESBR walked away with a hard-fought four point victory, 101-97. Blake Mahler, who had a monster night (more on that later), led ESBR with 35 points while Richard Peterson dropped 27 for FireSquad.

The Bad Boys - 86 The Tropics - 37

There isn't a whole lot to say about this game. One of the most talented teams this season taking on the free agent team. One thing I will say about The Tropics, they never stop playing hard. Neither of their games have been close but that hasn't stopped them from playing all 44 minutes of each game. I've also seen improvement from this squad. If they keep making strides like they did from week two to week three, we may see them get a victory or two by season's end.

The Gladiators - 88 Havoc - 60

A team with hundreds of UH games under their belts taking on a team with less than 20. The Saul Chavira-led Gladiators have been playing Ultimate Hoops since (Teddy) Roosevelt was in office and have the chemistry to prove it. Havoc is still trying to find their chemistry, but have already logged their first UH victory, which is an accomplishment in itself. When push came to shove, the size difference was the factor in this matchup.

Havoc is one of the smaller teams in Ultimate Hoops this season, so The Gladiators decided to turn to 6' 4" UH rookie Parker Stephenson to lead them on the offensive end. Stephenson dominated inside and led The Gladiators to a commanding 36-20 lead in the first half.

When the second half began, Havoc decided to swarm Stephenson in an attempt to slow him down. That led to open guys and easy buckets for The Gladiators, as they finished with a solid 17 to eight assist-to-turnover ratio. The Gladiators have been known to rely on the three point shot, but with the considerable size advantage, decided to change their strategy a bit as they only made three from beyond the arc. Stephenson finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds, and Jake Morin also had a solid night, scoring 18 points and grabbing 15 boards. Jonathon Weins led Havoc with 18 points.

IMPACT Basketball - 87 Purple Cobras - 41

Another game that doesn't need any expert analysis. This one was over as soon as it started. IMPACT jumped out to a 27 point halftime lead and never looked back. It's pretty tough to beat a team when they have 17 assists and only turn the ball over five times. The Purple Cobras look for their first W of the season next week against The Bad Boys.

White Iversons - 105 Eat, Sleep, Ball, Repeat - 95

The final game of the night was the second game for each of these teams, both looking to go to three and one in the early part of the season. Most people would expect a sloppy, low-scoring affair when playing their second game in one night, but this was the complete opposite.

The White Iversons brought their up-tempo pace to the game, racking up early fastbreak points to jump out to a quick lead. ESBR constantly found themselves fighting from behind but wouldn't let themselves get knocked out, and went in to the half trailing by four, 58-54.

In the second half, fatigue really set in for ESBR. A few players started cramping up and that was tough for them to overcome. You would think when you shoot the ball 94 times and grab 19 offensive rebounds, you would be victorious, but the lack of energy proved to be too costly for ESBR, as the White Iversons took home the victory, 105-95.

Derek Elliott had a monster game for the White Iversons, scoring 42 points. I mentioned earlier that Blake Mahler had a huge night, as he scored 41 points and grabbed 19 rebounds in his second game, for a grand total of 77 points and 29 rebounds on the night.