Friday, July 11, 2008

We're Back...In Throwbacks!


Reading, MA - We're back - reporting live from the war room here in Newburyport!!

It was 'Throwback Jersey Night' last night at the Reading YMCA, and OU trotted out on the court with an interesting assembly of outfits and looks. There was Cap'n Mike and James "Stretch" Hogan IV's inagural light blue (slightly ripped and stained) shirts from the 2003-2005 seasons; Danger Dan's muscle-enhancing dark blue sleeveless shirt (which wasn't ever an OU uniform); Chris "Big Country" Johnson's Vandalee Industries (specializing in Latex manufacturing and sale) tee-shirt; And Shu-ter Patel's solid ensemble, which included Umbro soccer shorts from his mid-90's UMass days, a headband, and the OU jersey circa-2006.

All this nostalgia and fun loosened up the OU crew, and helped them get by a depleted China Cuisine 65-50. Overall, the game was competitive, but OU never felt like the outcome was in any doubt. China Cuisine was strapped with only four players, including two guards with good range, a decent mid-range player, and the league's version of "the round mound of rebound". The match-ups were clearly in OU's favor, and the extra sub helped them keep the tempo of the game up and eventually wear out their opponents.

The first half saw both teams getting back into the basketball groove after a bye last week. OU jumped out to a quick lead, only to see China Cuisine players get quickly back into the game with three pointers. OU appeared patient to start the game, moving the ball quickly and finding open shots. Not all the shots were falling, but it was still a good sign for the veteran bunch.

The game started to change with the entrance of Shu-ter "The Microwave" Patel. Patel entered the game and found himself consistently open at the top of the key, where he sank several long range three pointers. This, along with well-spread offense from Danger Dan and Hogan was enough to build the lead to double digits. Also proving to be effective was the low post play of Big Country. When OU was able to get him the ball in the right position, he was easily able to spin and shoot over his thick, yet smaller, defender.

After another Patel three pointer with seconds to play, OU led by ten heading into the half. The second half was evenly played as OU let off the gas just a bit, and China Cuisine tried to keep things interesting. The lead ballooned up to 18 as Fisher became a floor general; driving through crowds and picking out open OU cutters for lay-ups. Several of the passes were highlight reel material. "I bet you had 15 assists tonight," said Big Country to Fisher after the game.

The lead was cut to 10 with about four minutes remaining, but Cap'n Mike finally got his shot together with less than three minutes to play, and sank two dagger long-range jumpers to solidify the win.

With the victory, OU moves to 6-1 on the season. Next up is the Hustlers, who have had an up and down season, but are only two sessions removed from a league championship.

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Not sure where to post this but I wanted to ask if anyone has heard of National Clicks?

Can someone help me find it?

Overheard some co-workers talking about it all week but didn't have time to ask so I thought I would post it here to see if someone could help me out.

Seems to be getting alot of buzz right now.

Thanks

8:31 AM  

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