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Dramatic Finish Surges Ballerz At T.O.C |
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Written by Andre Whitehead
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Monday, 29 May 2006 |
Ballerz do well at T.O.C
A huge win on Friday night held high hopes for the Mid-State Ballerz Elite as they were set to take the court against the Rising Stars JG from Illinois who boasted the offspring of the greatest player of our time Michael Jordan. The Jeffrey Jordan led Stars defeated the Ballerz 82-70 but all was not lost for the Ballerz. Jewon Long (Liberty) led the way with 17 points followed by his twin brother Antwan Long (Liberty) with 13 and Deveyon Hunter (Hamilton) with 12.
The going was not going to get easier with the New York Panthers waiting in the wings for a chance to advance out of pool play. With the Panthers up by three and at the line preparing for a four point lead with only .08 ticks remaining on the clock things appeared dim for the Ballerz. What happened next is straight out of folklore. The Panthers missed the foul shot and Mid-State was set to shoot for the tie with Long bringing the ball up the court all in attendance thought the leader would hoist the big shot. As he rose to let go a defender jumped him and he tossed the rock to Hunter at the top of the key who pump faked and when his defender came down leaned in and threw up a prayer. The prayer was answered as the ball pierced the hoop with the buzzer sounding and the only other sound heard round the gym was the referee's whistle calling the foul which Hunter promptly dropped giving the Ballerz an improbable 77-76 victory. Long led the way with 23, followed by Hunter with 18 and "Big Boy" Long with 14.
The victory catapulted the Ballerz into bracket play and a date with the Maryland Madness. The Madness played very well in defeating the Ballerz 82-72. Leading the way for the Ballerz was Josh Sain (Liberty) with 12, Hunter and A. Long with 11 and Jeff McClain (Kentucky) with 10.
Great showing for the Ballerz in a very tough pool. Jewon Long played outstanding and was named to the all-tournament team. |
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