Pistons GT Fall to Knicks, Cavs
April 29, 2019
Knicks Gaming closed Thursday’s game against Pistons GT in dominant fashion on their way to a 62-48 victory in the 2K League.
With the win, Knicks Gaming earned their first win of the regular season after a tough two weeks. But Thursday’s victory didn’t come easy, as while Knicks Gaming did open up a six-point lead after the first quarter, they came out flat in the second and allowed Pistons GT to go on a 16-5 run over the course of the first three minutes. Ultimately, they lost the quarter 19-9 and trailed 29-25 at half.
That certainly didn’t deflate Knicks Gaming, however, as they remained competitive in a second half that was full of runs. After Knicks Gaming opened things up with a 7-0 run to retake the lead, Pistons GT countered with a quick 6-0 spurt of their own. From there, teams traded baskets and Knicks Gaming ultimately took a one-point lead into the final period.
And it was all downhill from there for Pistons GT, as Knicks Gaming was relentless on both ends of the floor on their way to opening up a 10-point lead with just over two minutes left. And while Pistons GT did manage to cut it to six points, Knicks Gaming small forward OriginalMalik’s fourth three of the game was a dagger, as it put his team up nine with just 50 seconds left, burying his opposition.
OriginalMalik ended up with 19 points, which was tied with his teammate G O O F Y 7 5 7, who was dominant in a terrific all-around performance. G O O F Y 7 5 7, the team’s center, posted 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor, 15 rebounds, eight assists and three blocked shots. Shooting guard Hazza2K missed just one shot Friday night on his way to scoring 13 points.
For Pistons GT, small forward Jaacko looked to be on his way to a monster game, as he hit a barrage of threes as part of his team’s run in the second quarter and had 11 points in the first half. However, he’d finish the game with just 14 points and went 4-of-12 from three and just 5-of-16 from the field overall. His poor three-point shooting was contagious Friday, as Pistons GT as a team shot just 5-of-18 from deep.
Cavs Legion put an end to their three-game losing streak Friday with a 70-60 victory over Pistons GT in the 2K League.
Friday’s contest featured two teams in desperate need of a win, with Cavs Legion losing three straight after starting the season 2-0, and Pistons GT looking to avoid creeping closer to the bottom of the 2K League standings.
The desperation from both teams was evident, as they traded blows and were scorching hot from three-point range in the first two quarters. Separation in the matchup finally hit in the third quarter, however, as Cavs Legion came out with a sense of urgency in the second half that the team hadn’t shown over the course of their three-game losing streak. After allowing Pistons GT to tie the game at 37, Cavs Legion rattled off a quick 9-0 that was capped off by back-to-back steals that both resulted in fastbreak dunks. Overall, Cavs Legion’s run blossomed to 21-3, and they ultimately went into the final quarter with a 15-point lead.
From there, Pistons GT was able to make a little bit of a run, but they never got the deficit lower than eight points and that was with only a minute left in the game, so they ultimately just ran out of time.
It was a terrific all-around performance from Cavs Legion as a team, with four of their five players reaching double figures. Center Sick x 973 led the way with 23 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals while shooting nine-of-13 from the field, while power forward oLARRY also put together an efficient shooting performance, going 6-of-7 from the floor en route to scoring 16 points. Shooting guard GODDDOF2K and small forward Strainer each added 13 points, with Strainer also dishing out a game-high seven assists.
Pistons GT, meanwhile, did most of their damage from behind the three-point line, going an impressive 10-of-16 from behind the arc. However, turnovers and poor interior defense ultimately caused the game to get away from them, as Cavs Legion ended up shooting 69.2 percent from the field as a team. Power forward Joseph led the way with 18 points on 4-of-5 from behind the arc, while small forward Jaacko was close behind with 16 points of his own. Center May added a double-double, posting 10 points and 12 rebounds in the contest.