WESTMINSTER, CO: Playoff Preview | Things could get ugly

The regular season has come and gone in Westminster. We are down to eight teams, and by Wednesday morning, that number will be four as we find out who will move on to the State Tournament this weekend.

Life Time Legends vs. IMPACT Basketball

3 out of 4 games tonight will consist of a heavily favored team and this game is no exception. IMPACT basketball, led by the duo of Beau Barney and Jimmy Binnie has dominated the regular season and are the clear cut number one seed. Their opponent, The Life Time Legends only have a couple wins on the season and will likely be outmatched. Even with a “perfect” game on the Legends part, it still will be hard for them to pull out the victory this night. The Legends have come a long way this season, but unfortunately they drew the short straw and are getting matched up against a team that has blown out most the competition this season. IMPACT will use this as a game to fine tune their skills and will be thinking ahead to the next round.

OFFICIAL VEGAS LINE: IMPACT -35

Eat, Sleep, Ball, Repeat vs. Long Shots

In the second matchup of the night we have a typical 2/7 matchup . The Long Shots have been quite impressive the whole year and the physical play of Derek Elliot have them the favorite this game. Don’t “sleep” on Eat, Sleep, Ball, Repeat though because they have a lot of talent on their squad and if the 3 ball is going their way, they could easily put themselves in the position to pull the upset. The Long Shots will use their physical play to score easy points and put pressure on ESBR. ESBR will need to stay composed and will need a complete team effort on defense in order to stop Derek Elliot. This game could easily get out of hand quickly, so ESBR will just need to stay composed and stick to their game plan.

OFFICIAL VEGAS LINE: Long Shots -12.5

Purple Cobras vs. The Bad Boys

The Bad Boys are big favorites this week assuming all their players show up. The Cobras have played some good games this season and with a full team effort could compete. The Bad Boys will have the size advantage and will need to use that to dominate the boards and inside the paint. No one is expecting the Purple Cobras to win so it will play to their advantage that they have nothing to lose. If the Cobras can get under the skin of the Bad Boys that could be their best strategy to getting the Bad Boys to play out of their style and possibly hinder their play. With Carlos Matos at the helm however, this team is harder to rattle because he controls the play of his team so well. The Bad Boys are likely to advance and will be a force in these playoffs.

OFFICAL VEGAS LINE: Bad Boys -22.5

Medicinal Mambas vs. Ciroc Boyz

To be honest, this likely is going to be the only game that will be competitive all night. Both teams are evenly matched and have the talent to go far in these playoffs. In their earlier meeting this season, the Ciroc Boyz were able to pull out the win by feeding Chris Morgan who couldn’t be stopped by anyone that night. Since then however, the Mambas have added some serious talent to their squad and knowing the Mambas will likely try to sneak in some other players into this post season. This game really could go either way and could depend on one player from either team that steps up and has a game for themselves. Look for Marquise Scott to be fed often and early in the post, as his game down low simply cannot be stopped by any one player in the league. Ruben Rivas is one player for the Mambas that has the potential to be a huge factor and it will be crucial for the Ciroc Boyz to keep him at bay. This is one game everyone will be watching Tuesday, and has all the signs to make an instant Ultimate Hoops Classic™.

OFFICIAL VEGAS LINE: Ciroc Boyz -4.5