Tempers Will Flare

METROWEST DRAFT: Week 5 Predictions

By Taylor Pettiford | Metrowest League Coordinator

SEASON PREDICTIONS: 12-4 (.750)

Storied pasts, friends turned foes, talking trash, playoff woes. Our 8:00 hour will be flooded with the aforementioned as we see four teams with plenty of history (on and off the court) match up. We’ll break down each of tonight’s matchups and see if we can make it two straight perfect weeks:

7 p.m. – REBELS (2-2) vs. HUSTLE (1-3)

The Rebels are in must-win territory. With third place in the league and a first-round bye up for grabs, they can’t afford any more losses. Hustle’s in a different position where their wins will most likely dictate whether they play on the Monday or Tuesday night of the opening round. So expect a sense of urgency from the Rebels. But regardless of the far-off seeding factors, the game between the lines is an interesting matchup.

Hustle can score points in a hurry and have a mismatch in center Tomas Morales. But it's the other side of the ball where they may lose this game. Who covers Shane Coleman? The rookie is averaging 30 ppg on the season and torched Buckets Galore last week for 43 points. Despite inconsistency, don’t forget he’s got a pair of snipers alongside him in Taylor Pettiford and Aaron Anniballi along with jackknife Micah Duarte and solid Tiler Balboni. Expect a rebound win from the Rebels in Week 5.

PREDICTION: REBELS

7 p.m. – STAMPEDE (2-2) vs. WARRIORS (0-4)

If only Octavio Cruz would show up, we’d have a better reading on just how good (or bad) the Warriors are. With a full lineup of Cruz, Sam Longwell, Guy Pistone and John Iarussi, we may actually see this team pull off the W in Week 5. But we’re not confident we’ll see a full lineup and even if we do, how will they gel?

Stampede, on the other hand, is over their chemistry woes and winners of two straight. Tommy Hubbard is making a case for Ultimate Player and Jasper Landrum and Wally Callam are adjusting to their roles. Also expect high energy guard Niko Whitehead to wreak havoc against the team who traded him.

PREDICTION: STAMPEDE

8 p.m. – BLACK MAMBAS (2-2) vs. CLASSIC BARBERSHOP (4-0)

Rewind a season ago and Arch Mitchell bailed on the summer season sinking Jay Resto’s and Classic Barbershop’s championship hopes. Resto’s summer teammates, Devon Frye and Kenny Dennis, have joined Mitchell and Black Mambas. Adding to the storylines, Jay Resto’s arch-nemesis, Jose Roman is also a Black Mamba. Get your popcorn ready. Trash will be talked and tempers will flare. Classic has taken the league by storm starting off 4-0 and announcing their return to Metrowest supremacy.

Meanwhile, the Black Mambas started off 0-2, but have since brought their record back to .500. Though Roman, Frye and Mitchell have been playing stellar the past couple weeks, it will be tough for them to match up with Resto, Patrick Luckett and Keyon Armstrong. Jimmie Melton (Classic Barbershop) and Kenny Dennis (Black Mambas) is an interesting matchup in the front court as is Emerson Portillo (Classic Barbershop) and Kenny Seitz (Black Mambas). But considering the frontcourt battles a wash, we give Classic Barbershop the edge on both sides of the ball in what should be a close one.

PREDICTION: CLASSIC BARBERSHOP

8 p.m. – BUCKETS GALORE (4-0) vs. BALLAHOLICS (1-3)

If there’s anyone in the league who knows how to grind Yemi Ajao’s gears, it’s Michael Perreault, the mastermind behind Ajao’s state tournament meltdown in June. Though Ajao has taken care of Perreault in head to head matchups since, expect there to be a lot of trash talking entering this matchup. Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that both Perreault and his teammate Kevin Johnson were on Roland Millien’s summer team that lost in the championship to Ajao’s team.

In the infamous “jersey off” incident that resulted in a Kevin Johnson technical with his team only down three points and .57 seconds still left on the clock, Millien may have a score to settle with the Ballaholics point guard. Ballaholics can shoot lights out, but they’ve been out of rhythm so far this season. If they can muster up a net-torching night, we give them a fighter’s chance. Otherwise, Ajao, Millien and Jude Valmeus will bring an undefeated record into Week 6.

PREDICTION: BUCKETS GALORE