Saturday, October 31, 2009

OU Misses Upset Chance

Reading, MA - You are reading a blog dedicated to the best 2-5 men's league basketball team in organized sports history. Origins Unknown and Intervale played one of the most competitive and well-played games in recent memory, but unfortunately OU came up just short of pulling off the upset and lost in the final minute, yet again.

Intervale brought a sparkling 6-0 record into the game, and with a line-up that has every spot on the floor covered, they are a difficult match-up for any team. OU showed with five out of six full-timers there, missing Danger Dan Fisher - who was sunning his backside in FL.

No one was tired at the tip (even with the 10:00 pm start time) and both teams came out aggressive. Unfortunately for OU, Cap'n Mike was nursing a sore ankle and seemed to be slightly out of sync with the rest of the team. While the Cap'n sputtered, Doubleteam Dan Rasanen and James "Stretch" Hogan IV were on their offensive games. Dan's inside/outside repertoire and Hogan's continual movement around the basket kept OU close throughout the first half, even as Intervale worked their own spread out scoring attack - led by their own power forward and center. Between them, they seemed to hit shots from all angles of the floor and challeneged OU to choose the lesser of two evils all half.

The second half was equally competitive, as OU scrapped minute to minute to keep the game close. Both teams were starting to tire, but Brian Buzz Jonesy was still all over the court, and his pressure kept OU in front. Shu-ter Patel and Cap'n Mike both hit some three pointers, and OU had a big five-point swing when Cap'n got fouled on the way to the basket, and his frustrated defender punched the ball to half court which earned him a technical foul. The three free throws tied the game with ten minutes left, and the teams then continued to punch and counter-punch all the way down to the 2:00 mark.

Down one point, Intervale made their final push and overtook OU in the closing minutes through sheer will. The loss was disappointing for the hard-luck OU bunch, but it was undoubtedly the stiffest test that Intervale had faced all year.

The loss drops OU to 2-5 with three games remaining.

**Fact that might only interest the Cap'n - The Cap'n shot three free throws, three different times - having been fouled shooting three pointers twice, and once for the and-one plus technical foul shots. This might have been a first... I am now done writing in the third person about myself.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Fighting For Respect



Reading, MA - Origins Unknown finally returned to the W column last week with a solid, and hard-fought battle over a no-name team. Seriously, they literally never gave the commissioner a name. The win, after a previous forfeit, vaults OU into SECOND TO LAST PLACE in the Reading YMCA Men's League, with a record of 2-4. OUch. OU has a lot of work to do to gain back the respect of their league peers, the refs - and even their families.

We'll focus for the moment on the most recent game, an all-around team victory against team "I'll Let You Know" or ILYN for the purpose of the write-up. ILYN is made up of former Gordon College kids and players, and included a rangy big-man who stretched the defense with his inside/outside game.
OU started out slowly out of the blocks, and after missing several shots - were down 10-2 only minutes into the game. Cap'n Mike finally let loose on a couple threes (which went in!!) to keep the game tight in the first half, and once OU got their legs under them - the score stayed close. James "Stretch" Hogan IV and "Doubleteam" Dan Rasanen were able to find gaps in the defense during their set offense, and eventually OU got the lead down to a couple after Hogan nailed a end-of half baseline jumper.
The second half saw OU start to pass their young grasshoppers, as Brian "Speedy" Jones turned on the defensive pressure and harassed the ILYN guards into a mumbling bunch of fools. Eventually, Shu-ter Patel shook off the first half cobwebs to knock down a huge trifecta which spread the lead to double-digits. As the game wound down, it was ILYN who lost their cool - generally acting like a bunch of babies. It started to get a bit heated, but no punches were thrown as the game was called.
OU takes on league champ, and current holders of first place - Intervale - Thursday night at the Y.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Cap'n, OU Stumbling Lately

Reading, MA - The blog and the team seem to be falling apart. Bloggin' and Ballin', once a highly regarded weekly stop on the blog roll, now gets updated less frequently than Jason Varitek hitting a home run. And, Origins Unknown, the team at the center of the basketball blog universe is now crawling along at a alarmingly-crappy pace.

Over the past two weeks, OU was able to get themselves into the win column after destroying an out-manned Hustlers team by 33. But, just as quickly as the good vibrations returned to Reading - they were sucked away by a dreadful performance against the Bostonville Grill, losing 67-53.

The loss was especially painful for Cap'n Mike and Big Dan Rasanen - who combined to go 5 for 353 from the field. Cap'n Mike was at a loss for words after the game. "Uhh...ahh...sucky shooting...no idea... don't understand... tough year so far," he said when asked why the shots weren't falling. For their part, BG played well with good inside outside balance, and some bruisers down low. OU played well in the first half, and even took a solid eight point lead in the first few minutes of the second half thanks to some hot shooting by Shu-ter Patel. But, BG hit some big threes to close the gap, and as Cap'n continued to misfire, the gap grew.

The loss moves OU to 1-3 in the league, and makes nearly all games must-win moving forward, if they ever plan to sneak into the playoffs. "Playoffs?!... Playoffs??!" screamed Danger Dan Fisher. "We're just trying to get a win right now! If you ask me a question like that again, I will go Bobby Knight on your ass with this chair."