Fridley Recap for Week 5

Fridley Recap

Another week and another fine crop of Ultimate Hoops games in Fridley this week. The schedule featured a few marquee match-ups and what I’m referring to as the Anthony Thompson Bowl. It is this type of consistent quality that helps Fridley continue to improve as a league and attract some of the best UH Players. Enough chit chat, let’s get to the games:

Hand Down…Man Down 64, Respect the Game 92

This was the third match-up between these franchises in the last two seasons, which apparently is not good news for HDMD. They have lost to RTG in each of the 3 games by over double digits, with 2 of them being embarrassing 28 point defeats. With Sarak Chea apparently out for some time, this franchise better get their act together so they can make a late season push for another playoff birth. As for RTG, another week and another win for the elder statesmen of UH. They are now 4-1 and have three very winnable games to finish the season. They are serious contenders for a 7-1 record and an easy automatic bid.

RTG showed some serious teamwork this week and the box score showed it. They had 6 players in double digits, while also racking up 30 assists. As for HDMD, Helmy and Jacobson both has solid games but it clearly was not enough. Helmy must have used Izzy’s personal insults as motivation (I’m paraphrasing), because he had 18 points against a really tough RTG front line.

Up next for HDMD is a game against the newly surging Greenhorns, although I’m not sure you can call a team with a one-game winning streak surging. That should be an excellent test for both teams and both really need a win to get back to 500. As for Respect the Game, they get a week 6 match-up against the 2-3 Yung Gunz. Can you say 5-1???

Player of the Game: DeAngelo Purnell 13 pts, 11 reb, 6 asts, 4 blks, & 1 stl

Ninja Turtles 83, Noisy Withdrawal 57

Noisy’s horrendous schedule continued this week as they got the opportunity to be victim #5 for the Ninja Turtles. The Turtles were without both Keilon Riddley and Pat Magnuson, but apparently those two would have just been icing on the cake for this one. The Turtles dominated the first half and took a 20 point lead into the break, then coasted in the 2nd half to a 26 point victory. The Turtles could have easily looked past Noisy and had their minds on the week 6 match-up against J-Moore, but that is not what the Turtles do.

The Turtles really featured a balanced attack this week, with 5 of their 6 players scoring in double figures. Bryant Marmol led the way with 20 points, but this game featured solid play from pretty much everybody. Noisy had 4 players in double figures, but had no one over 12 points on the team. What did Noisy in on Thursday was their poor field goal percentage, which was a paltry 36% against the Turtles.

Up next for the Ninja Turtles is their big match-up against the Celtics. These two franchises are easily the two most storied in the history of Fridley, so hopefully that game next week lives up to the hype. As for Noisy, they get a battle against the once lowly Nets. Last season this would have been an easy W, but Walter, Sonny and Parris are going to make them earn it this year.

Player of the Game: Bryant Marmol 20 pts, 10 reb, 3 asts, & 2 stls

Greenhorns 75, Bulls 67

While it certainly lacked the hype of the Unpredictables/DY Nasty game, this one ended up being the game of the night. The Bulls were knocking down shots with ease in the first half, although they clung to only a 2 point lead at half time. In the 2nd half, the Greenhorns improved the defense and the Bulls went cold from deep finishing 12 of 43 from downtown. This was a huge win for the Greenhorns after last week’s debacle versus the Nets.

Leading the way for the Bulls was Roderick Powell, who now must be guarded the second he crosses half court. A few of his 28 points came from about 30 feet out, but unfortunately the team didn’t quite give him enough help. The Greenhorns had 5 players score in double figures, with Tom Harkman’s 19 leading the way. Nate Weaver also had a double-double, scoring 10 points and hauling in 16 rebounds.

Up next for the Greenhorns is another must win game, a battle against 2-3 Hand Down…Man Down. As for the Bulls, they get another tough test in a match-up against the Avengers.

Player of the Game: Tom Harkman 19 pts, 1 reb, 80% from 3.

Celtics 63, Cobra Kai 47

After watching this game, I’m very glad I’m not a member of either team. This did not look like a basketball game, but rather a violent reenactment of the movie “The Running Man”. There were 33 fouls called in this game, but I counted another 74 that were missed by letting the players play. In the end the Celtics had too much offense, but this one was pretty competitive throughout.

Leading the way for the Celtics were Marcus Marshall and Ryan Samuelson, who combined for 35 points and were 15 of 16 from the line. What is scary for the rest of the league is that Justin Samuelson only shot 4 times and the Celtics won by 16, I think we’re all in trouble. As for Cobra Kai, Dupont, Sontowski and Schlichte all scored in double figures but need a lot of shots to do so. They went a combined 12 of 40 and Cobra Kai as a team finished the game shooting 23% from the field.

Up next for the Celtics is that big match-up against the Ninja Turtles. The winner has the inside track at the overall #1 seed, while the loser falls from the ranks of the unbeaten. I can’t wait!! As for Cobra Kai, they get a game against 3-1 DY Nasty. I heard a few dirty rumors that Dustin Dupont was going to be gone next week, so this one could end up being pretty good.

Player of the Game: Ryan Samuelson 18 pts, 6 asts, 3 reb, and a few sweet drives.

Yung Gunz 62, Avengers 83

After watching Respect the Game knock of the Avengers last week, I bet the Yung Gunz were liking their chances at accomplishing a similar feat. Yeah, that’s not going to happen two weeks in a row to the boys in Orange. They dominated the game and appeared to be going through the motions in the second half, winning this game easily by 21 points. They did all this without standout rookie Zhao Lee and fellow Blue Chip Sam Halverson.

Leading the way for the Avengers was Chris Maher and Derek Batiste, who combined for 45 points and 18 rebounds. Ben Martancik pitched in 16 points, while Noe Mendez had 12 assists in the big win. As for the Yung Gunz, Steve Ellis and Adam Wright both had good games but the overall field goal percentage left something to be desired. The Avengers are not necessarily known for their defense, but had no problem holding the Yung Gunz to 39% from the field and 26% from three.

Up next for Derek and his band of superheroes is a fun match-up against the Bulls. I’m looking forward to seeing Roderick Powell single-handedly take on 6 of the best shooters in UH. As for the Yung Gunz, they have a tough game versus Respect the Game. They have to start thinking about the playoffs now and will probably need to beat somebody decent to get in. Wins against the Secret Agents and Unpredictables are not going to impress the committee, trust me I’m on it.

Player of the game: Chris Maher 23 pts, 9 reb, & 1 ast.

Nets 92, Secret Agents 72

I would like to personally congratulate Lance Buscher for ending his 83 game losing streak this week, while doing so in impressive 20 point fashion. The Nets have now won two games in a row, leading the UH world to ponder the location of Brandon Laurencot. Did he get kicked off his own team? Will he be there next week? Do the Nets need another small guard? All rational questions in response to the franchise’s first two wins, both being by double digits.

Leading the way for the Nets was Walter Power and his 42 points. He took twice as many shots as his next closest teammate, but at least they won the game. Parris Curren pitched in with 19 rebounds and 7 assists, while Jordan Jensen also had 18 in the win. The Secret Agents held tough again in the first half, but had their doors blown off in the second once again. Nawang Dorjee had 28 points but also needed 28 shots in the loss for the Secret Agents.

Up next for the Nets is a tough game versus Noisy Withdrawal. The Nets clearly lack size, so we’ll if they can once again overcome a huge height deficit like they did against the Greenhorns. As for the Secret Agents, they get their best chance for a victory this season…a match-up against the 0-5 Unpredictables.

Player of the Game: Lance Buscher 22 pts, 5 reb, & win #1 (Congrats Again!!)

Unpredictables 68, DY Nasty 79

Not sure if anyone knows the back story, but a young man by the name of Anthony Thompson made this game quite interesting. After suiting up for the Unpredictables for the first 3 games, he left to join the boys at DY Nasty. This week, the two teams got to play each other in the Anthony Thompson Bowl. Unfortunately for the Unpredictables, they were not able to get their revenge against Anthony and his new squad. This was a pretty close game, but DY Nasty had a few too many open threes and that ended up making the difference. Kevin Becker is only going to hurt you if you leave him open, which is exactly what the Unpredictables did for the entire second half.



All 5 starters for DY Nasty finished with double figures, lead by 22 points from Devin Stensrude. It’s funny watching some players fall in love with the NBA three, because it completely distracts them from doing anything else offensively. Devin is usually one of those players, but he made some great drives to the hoop in this game and needs to do that more frequently. With Campbell gone, DY Nasty cannot afford to have too many one-dimensional players. As for the Unpredictables, all the starters but Johnny Goods finished in double figures. Eric Hawkins had a very efficient 16 points, while also showing some range I didn’t know he had. Turnovers and missed defensive assignments ended up killing this team’s chances, but they did put up a good fight.

Up next for DY Nasty is a tough game against Cobra Kai. I’m not sure if Dupont will be making an appearance, but either way this is a good test for Devin and the team. As for the Unpredictables, they have a must win game versus the Secret Agents. If they let that one slip away, 0-8 is a realistic possibility.

Player of the Game: Devin Stensrude 22 pts, 2 reb, 2 stls, & 1 ast