EVEN A FOOTBALL CAN SWISH
It's that time of year again where good ol' American Football comes to an end, Spring is on the horizon and hoops is in full swing! While we Santa Fe Swishers never take a break (because ball is life), we hope you get the chance to decompress this Sunday with friends and family to watch Super Bowl LX.
Seattle vs New England. Boring? Maybe? As good as a vintage 505 Unit vs Mob matchup? Perhaps? That's the beauty of sports. You just never know the outcome or if that mega parlay is going to hit. Buffalo Thunder here we come!
Enough of the fluff, let's get to it. Quick shoutout to Monday night Open Gym sessions, it's been super fun fellas. The pick up runs have been great, from vintage TEMU Drip collaborations, to new pick up legends, to Cumbia bangers coming from the speaker -- we appreciate all you guys adhering to the rules and playing the right way. Even some young bucks from Capital High have trickled over from the Chavez Center to challenge some Swish studs and grizzled vets. It's also a great way to recruit future teammates! Keep that in mind when you come to play Monday nights.
Onto the week 16 games:
Tuesday kicked off our Comp league and in the six o'clock contest we had the game of the week! A bizarre defensive timeout at the end of the game gave Silent Storm (5-2) a chance to tie the game or take the lead with a three ball. Bailey Lozada did his best Bryce Drew impersonation, going full court and hitting a one-legged money ball at the buzzer to give his Silent Squad a one point victory over Degenerates (4-5) 60-59. Lozada finished with 13 pts, 8 boards and 5 steals (active!). Wilford "Goof" Troup finished with 15 pts while "Super Mario" Archuleta for the Degenerates stuffed the stat sheet per usual with 25 pts and 7 boards.
In Game 2 we had a clash of Killer B'z (6-3) and Team Nuevo (5-3). Nuevo was too much in the second half behind big man Manos Guerro, who went for 14 pts, 16 glass cleaners and 2 big boy blocks. Marcos Aragon was everywhere, playing super tough D and contributing 18 pts, 5 boards and 6 dimers. Dom Baca was money as well, 19/5/5. For the B'z Jacob Roybal continued his stellar play with 21 pts and 6 rebs while Luis Alvarado chipped in with 15 pts and 8 rebs.
Game 3 was tight as well, with Crazies (1-8) up against Lethal Injection (4-5). Gabe Serrano filled it up from deep, going for 31/9/6 and 2 steals while Alex Gutierrez went off for 31 pts and 15 rebs to provide the lethal dose intravenously. Q Watts was impressive in the loss putting up 30/5/4 and 3 steals.
Onto Wednesday night Rec league where we had two clashes of mediocrity. The first in a tight one between Dad Bods (4-4) and Hooperz (5-3). Larry Morina had 26 points while Diego Ortiz had 30/15/5 for the depleted Hoopers. With only five running and no subs, the svelte Dad Bods were too much to handle. Jeremiah "Reezy" Jacquez went off with 24/14/7 ala Jokic, finishing with both hands around the cup on that smooth spin cycle. Jacob Roybal was a problem with his length and crafty game, dropping 22 pts, 5 rebs and 4 assists.
In the final game, we had Blakes Lotta Buckets (6-2) ordering up the W. They properly cooked the Kings, Medium well. For the Buckets Isaac "Adonis" Shanley and Eli "Gonzaga's finest" Dawson went 34/7 and 22/12 respectively. Adan Lopez and Alan Loya hung tough for the Medium Kings (3-5), Adan had 18 pts and 8 rebs while Alan the marathon man from Boulder going for 11/7/4 with 4 steals.
Shoutout to Joe Cole who reffed the Wednesday night games solo as your's truly had to play with the Hooperz, then felt spry enough to go solo in game two. No games this week for the Champions Tour aka the old man league as that will kick off come March along with the madness. Get your teams registered if you haven't already! 35+ League Registration
A quick shout out to the homie and OG Ben Ellsworth, who with his vision and passion for basketball gives us all a chance to satisfy that competitive itch. No matter the age or the skill level, we get to play in a bad ass league in Santa Fe, NM. Next time you see him say a quick thank you.
Have a great weekend and we'll see you basketball lovers next week!
Your valentine,
Nicky aka Nick Williams
Respect the game, Santa Fe Swish