Raymond’s Road to Rec League Redemption
METROWEST REC: Week 3 Predictions
By Taylor Pettiford | MetroWest League Coordinator
Jeff Raymond’s tenure in the rec league thus far has been underwhelming. Following his successful debut as a captain in the draft league, we expected to see him contend for a rec league championship. Disappointingly, his fall session Hustle team fell far short of that mark and then opened up the winter session with a loss. But in Week 2, his team put forth a great performance and secured a win against a quality opponent. Was this win a flash in the pan? Or the first step on Raymond’s road to rec league redemption? We’ll answer that question and more in this week’s predictions.
7 p.m. – HUSTLE (1-1) vs. UNCLE DREW ALL STARS (1-1)
Our first 7 p.m. matchup features two teams who bounced back in a major way in Week 2. Hustle is a possession away from being 2-0 on the season whereas they lost in the closing seconds of Week 1, but beat up on OGC in Week 2. UDAS, on the other hand, got blown out by the Wildcats in Week 1, but came from behind in Week 2 to score a huge victory over Tapped Out. Ben Lee’s monster stat line (20 points, 33 rebounds) led the way for UDAS and is hopefully a sign of his commitment to attacking the glass and rim. With Jon Waters back in action and Tedi George running the offense, UDAS is a dangerous squad despite their lack of depth. Hustle features a more balanced attack. Jeff Raymond certainly can fill a stat sheet, but this team will win when they feature 4-5 scorers in double figures like in Week 2. So, who wins – UDAS’ big three? Or Hustle’s balanced starting five? We have to go with Hustle here whereas they’ve played better basketball overall. Defending Atit Patel, Roberto Bonilla, John Hang and Lou Hinckley, let alone Raymond, all night is a tall task for UDAS. Raymond’s road to redemption won’t hit a road block tonight.
Prediction: HUSTLE by 6
7 p.m. – OLD GAME CHANGERS (0-2) vs. BALL DON’T LIE (1-1)
BDL was dealt a devastating blow in Week 2 as captain Justin Holohan was out of the lineup in a game against the Wildcats. They went on to lose by 46. Woof! Hope isn’t lost for BDL. They still can compete. But they need to change the way they play…and ASAP. “Live by the 3, die by the 3” has been their MO and we’re not saying to ditch that, but if they want to win, they’ll need to tone it down. The list of shooters in Boston that should be shooting 15 3s in a game is a short one. And while AJ Narayanan and Nabil Sakhat can stroke it, neither of them is on that list. The ball needs to move and Kevin Stone needs more touches! Heading into Week 3, this should be their focus. OGC has a ton of fight in them and with Brendan Connolly at the helm, it’s to be expected. But thus far this season, they’ve seemed outmatched talent-wise. It was encouraging to see Andrew Christopherson (32 points, 6 rebounds) ball out, but they’ll need more help offensively to get wins. Grant Hornung could be the answer, if he can figure out his scoring woes. Until then, though, expect BDL to come out on top of a close contest (provided Holohan is back in the lineup).
Prediction: BDL by 4
8 p.m. – TAPPED OUT (1-1) vs. WILDCATS (2-0)
Tapped Out should be 2-0 right now. They know it as well as we do. They squandered a big lead in Week 2 and dropped to 1-1. So, this should have been the battle of the undefeateds, but instead we now have serious doubts about how realistic a chance Tapped Out has. The Wildcats won by 46 points last week and held their Week 1 opponent to 39 points. What’s more is that they’re out-rebounding opponents 106-48 on the season and Tapped Out has not one player over 6’0. This one could get ugly. What bodes well for Tapped Out is that few teams can match their guard play with Tyler Winder, Chicky Reyes and Scott Lubarsky in the backcourt. But Stephen Dion is essentially the rec league’s version of LeBron James and Felipe Billa is fresh off a 30-point performance. So Tapped Out’s advantage doesn’t seem so daunting when pitted against the Wildcats. Expect huge nights from Tommy Rogers and John Finnerty as Dion and crew breeze past Tapped Out by dominating the glass.
Prediction: WILDCATS by 16
POWER RANKINGS
1. WILDCATS (2-0)
2. HUSTLE (1-1) | Last Week: 4
3. TAPPED OUT (1-1) | Last Week: 2
4. BALL DON’T LIE (1-1) | Last Week: 3
5. UDAS (1-1) | Last Week: 6
6. OGC (0-2) | Last Week: 5