Danny’s Boys 61 vs. Wolfpack 52
After seeing Danny’s Boys play, I am impressed. I knew their guard play would be exceptional, featuring Pete Kathopoulos (27 points) but I had no idea they would be so physical. Kathopoulis led all scorers in his debut tonight and added several assists as well. Great debut for one of our league’s best players, already. Dimitri Poulimenos added 11 points and looked fresh and active tonight. Danny’s Boys led from the beginning and controlled the game till the end, despite a few runs by the Pack to cut the lead to single digits. The Boys relied on their defense tonight, which was the highlight for me.
Offensive trouble for the Wolfpack but hey, Rome wasn’t built in one day. Aris Haritonidis led the team with 11 pts, all coming in the second half. Aris uses spin moves and floaters to get into the paint and score effectively. George Vlahos, Chris Voutsakis and Niko Balis were all held to 10 pts each. Niko and George will be the leading scorers on this team, but they need a better performance than tonight if they want to be considered elite. But like I said, it’s only been one game, and this could be a wake up call for the Pack.
Game ball: Pete Kathopoulos
Did you notice? The Wolfpack’s new Uniforms are sweeeeet.
Kings 52 vs. Revolution 42
In a choppy, scrappy game, the Kings pulled through for a double digit win. Led by Foti Giannopoulos with 18 hard earned points. Foti did it on the defensive end as well, with several big blocks and rebounds. All around good game for the best power forward in our league. Lou Sarris Grau and Bill Zonios both finished with 11 pts each. Sarris Grau made his PGBL debut tonight and thrived on the defensive end with a few monster blocks into the bleachers. Look out for this guy when you’re driving to the paint. Bill Zonios had an off night offensively but helped seal the game with free throws, and a big steal and layup with a little over a minute to go. The Kings looked a little hesitant offensively but like I said about the Wolfpack above, Rome wasn’t built in one day. Neither was Athens.
No Vasili Nasis, no Pete Kada. Rev get blown out by the Kings right? NO! These guys are tough! No matter what combination of Revolution players they have on the court, they compete. Tonight they were led by team captain John Skordos with 16 points. John was on fire from 3 point land, sinking 4 threes. If he can continue to shoot like that when King Kada returns, they will be a tough to defend from deep. Speaking of King Kada, he is dealing with a foot or ankle injury it seems like and I don’t know how long he’ll be out but it doesn’t seem too serious.
Game ball: Foti Giannopoulos
Interesting stat: The Rev committed 20 fouls in this game. The Kings only committed 3.
Spartans 35 vs. FOB 19
Jim Kemmerer led the Spartans to victory tonight with 14 points. This was an ugly game with only 54 combined points! But if you’re a Spartan, a win is a win. Doesn’t matter how it happened. All that matters is 1-0. Jim Kemmerer is as athletic as they come, scoring on fast breaks, driving to the basket and some mid range game.
Game ball: Jim Kemmerer