LeRoy Pennysaver & News

LE ROY PENNYSAVER & NEWS - JANUARY 19, 2020 Celtics vs Knicks The first game of the weekend was the rematch of the Celtics vs the Knicks. The last time these two teams played the Celtics ran away with a 52-14 victory. But that was without some big time contributors playing for the Knicks that were available for this game. This time, they were still not fully manned with Eli “Skull” Fortuna missing this match-up. If the Celtics thought they were going to take this team for granted, they were in for a big surprise. The Knicks started the game with grit and determination. Some nice shots by Owen Nichols and Landon “Kacz” Kacznowski gave the Knicks an early lead on the stunned Celtics. The Celtics started off slow, getting some nice looks at the basket by Robert Humphrey and Quinton Ianni but just couldn't get anything to drop for them. Much of that had to do with the Knicks defense led by Preston Heshcke and Lucas Miller who combined to keep the Celtics high scoring offense in check throughout the first half. Mid way through the half the Celtics finally started to put some points on the board once Zack Pocock checked into the game. Ryker “Greek Freak” Vangalio provided the Celtics a much needed spark as well by providing 10 points in the first half, which gave the Celtics a 14-10 lead going into halftime. In the second half the Knicks fought just as hard as in the first. Connor Hanley got on the board with a nice jumper just inside the paint and Thomas “Tommy Guns” Englerth used one of his team leading 11 rebounds for a put back to score as well. The Celtics woke up in the second half as Ben Cashin and Joey Wujcik played lock down defense while Gunner Humphrey alongwith brother Weston Humphrey used their wonder-twin powers to combine for 10 second half points. The Knicks fought all the way to the end with Killian Connolly and Harrison Porter combining for 6 rebounds as they tried to stay in the game. But Brody “Professor” Wilson spun himself all the way around for an open jumper for 2 points as the Celtics pulled away for the victory. The final score was Celtics-30 Knicks-16. The Celtics finish their season against the undefeated Lakers next week while the Knicks play a much anticipated rematch against the Bulls to finish off their season. The leading scorer for the Celtics was Ryker Vangalio with 14 points. Other contributors were Weston Humphrey with 10 points, Zack Pocock, Gunner Humphrey and BrodyWilson with 2 points. The leading scorer for the Knicks was Owen Nichols with 6 points. Other contributors were Landon Kacznowski with 4 points, Thomas Englerth with 4 points and Connor Hanley with 2 points. Lakers vs Bulls The twilight game was a rematch of the Lakers vs the Bulls. The first time these two played the Lakers came away with a 27-12 victory. The Bulls have been playing very good basketball lately and were hoping to be the team to give the Lakers their first loss of the season. The Lakers started the game off with a bang. The silent assassin Dylan Loftus got some early points on the board while Blake Fetzer again continued his consecutive game scoring streak alive for the Lakers. Jackson Hubbard was a force for the Bulls as he led his team in scoring in the first half and the always reliable Cole “Cray Cray” Cray put some points on the board as well. The Lakers are the league's best defense this year and there was no change in that for this game. John Amico did not give his man an inch on the outside while Wyatt “Whip” Whipple had a nice block to lead his team as well. The Bulls defense was out to prove it was just as nasty, as Andrew Sibley had 2 steals and Cam Weber and Dominic DeJesus combined for 4 rebounds in the first half alone. Carter McClurg showed why he’s one of the leagues more consistent scorers as well by adding 2 points for the Bulls. The Lakers’ Blake “Sweet Tea” Biracree who was held in check the first time these two teams met made sure that wasn’t about to happen again. “Sweet Tea” slashed his way through the lane repeatedly for the tune of 10 first half points. The Lakers took a 21-8 lead on the Bulls at the end of the half. In the second half the Bulls tried to use their defense led by Kipton Cone, Logan Corcimiglia and Aiden Weise to stay in the game. The Lakers however, showed why they are the deepest team in the league offensively. Nate Conte scored on a nice jumper while Ben “Benny Buckets” Biracree lived up to his nickname and scored for the 3rd time in as many games. Combine that with the defense of Graham Pawlak and it makes a difficult opponent for any team. Sammy “Little Kobe” Bogue showed why he is the league’s premiere outside shooter by adding to his league leading 3 point total as he made sure the Lakers stayed undefeated on the season. The Lakers take their undefeated record into next week’s game against the 2nd place Celtics for the League Championship while the Bulls face the Knicks in a rematch of week 3. The Lakers leading scorer was Blake Biracree with 14 points. Other contributors were Sammy Bogue with 8 points, Dylan Loftus with 4 points, Blake Fetzer with 4 points, and Nate Conte and Ben Biracree with 2 points each. The Bulls leading scorer was a tie between Jackson Hubbard with 4 points and Cole Cray with 4 points. Carter McClurg also contributed 2 points. Boys Basketball Recaps SCREEN PRINTING