Game 1 Defending Champs

8/13/09

Flying Elephants vs. Duck Down Squad (DDS)

K-Diggs (B-) - lost a couple of grades for continuously arguing with Marc.

NK47 (A-)- Noel was effective with his jumper and did a good job on the boards.

B-Cyrious (B+) - played big and tough. Rushed his jumper at times.

Anicito (B) - couldn't find his jumper but did a quality job on the boards.

Robbie Hart (A) - opened up on fire. fueled the Elephants points productions.

Shories (A-) - excelled on the defensive end and attacked the basket. Forced passes at times and dribbled into trouble.

Buffalo Ant (?) - how does one grade a player who walks in at halftime...

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." - Mark Twain

Last night was the first game of the new season and the Elephants were light on their feet, feeling like champs and knowing that there is a big bulls eye on their trunks. There was a pre-game rendezvous at Elephant HQ as Kenny, Noel, and Brian decided that some Elephants were "hot" and some were "cute" (see the poll and cast your vote). James was a unanimous vote for "hot" as he strolled through the door looking all Richard Greico from If Looks Could Kill, with his suit and neatly combed hair.

Groupies who have been following the Elephants have noticed a new found swagger in their step, a grin in their smile, a sense of entitlement that comes from being the champs. But with great achievement comes great jealously. It seemed as though as the five members walked into the gym there was a hush that waved over the crowd. Marc had a look of disgust on his face while reffing the current game being played, fans had disdain in their eyes, and even the two teams playing stopped and stared. Noel was eye banged by the security guard at the desk after writing in his name in the book, Noel King a.k.a. Sexy Ass JCC Champion.

The maroon team who had been playing before the Elephants took the court decided to stick around and scout the current champs. The game was scheduled to start around 9pm due to Buffalo Ant's request. It seems as though Ant was taking a date to see The Time Traveler's Wife and needed the extra hour. Robbie Hart strolled in two minutes to game time, nothing new but Anthony was nowhere to be found. The Elephants' opponent, Duck Down Squad, aka the Juicebags from Baghdad. The Elephants knocked DDS out of the playoffs in the semi-finals. DDS now had something to prove. With their 12 man roster they might have felt confident that the Elephants were depleted and looked tired. But what they mistaken for fatigue was really comfort. The road to winning the championship last season was a combination of two things. 1. The Elephants were firing on all cylinders. For whatever reason, the team had gelled. This translated into less turnover, easy shots, and stop-gap defenses. Secondly, Kenny made a deal with a six-arm goddess (picture insert) that secured each Elephant's place in purgatory for the chip.

Robbie opened up the game on fire. Hitting his first three threes, DDS couldnt find him on the perimeter. And that is how the night started. James brought the heat on defense swiping away the ball at least four times for steals that translated to fast break opportunities. B-Cyrious was a major factor in contending with DDS's big men, grabbing on to boards and making a great outlet pass. Anicito and Kenny worked the boards and did some of the nitty gritty to make sure Robbie and James had easy shots. Coming off the bench, Noel lit up the nets. His shot was clean, crisp, and went down easier than a glass of milk after a PB&J sandwich.

At half-time the Elephants held an 11 point lead to the chagrin of DDS. The Elephants were feeling great about the game except for the bonehead calls totally missed by Marc and Kenny continuously fighting with him. For no apparent reason Marc started with the team for James not having a shirt with a number. And then there were no calls and after James let the ball hit off his leg on a free throw, he was through. At one point James was literally held by a defensive player going to the basket and Marc didnt make the call.

As the second half was about to begin Buffalo Ant hustled in carrying his quintessential blue sneakers and Under Armour gear. This would only help the team securing rebounds but Ant's shot was way off as he didnt even have a chance to warm up. It didnt make much of a difference however as Robbie shot continued to go down. Kenny helped out with some nice inbound passes. There is also a moment that features Kenny running halfway down the court with his arm up and tomahawk chopped the ball from behind on someone. Although it was clean it was a miracle no foul was called.

Noel continues to gun for Anicito's starting spot. Ciritcs would suggest that tampering with the starting lineup like Larry Brown is never a good thing. Note to Noel: coming off the bench with a successful jump shot is more beneficial than "starting". Get your head out of your vagina! Do you want to be traded 4 times before the season like Quintin Richardson?...No? then shut up!

It was a good win for the champs. It could have been an easy game that got away. It would not have been a way to start off the new season. Next Wednesday the trunks are back in action as they take on the Purple Penis Eaters.