They were baaaaacccckkkkkkkkkk....!!!!
Walking late into the Eastview gymnasium last night, I was greeted by something that can only be described as bedlam and deafening noise from the capacity crowd there to support our opponents!
They brought the same energy, the same fire and spirit, and they were even louder than I remember the first meeting between these two squads.
In fact, it got so bad that as the overflowing crowd clamored for additional seating rolled out chairs for the masses, only to be told they could not sit that close to the baseline! I was expecting the Fire Warden to arrive and shut down the whole shebang but the officials at the gym kept everything under control off the court!
We had a short bench, missing many of our regulars, but the tight unit we had there pulled together like soldiers in a fox hole -- the spirited voices of our 5 young fans under the age of 10 straining to match the opponents' thundering noise after every basket or highlight for the young college students!!
An early but close lead in the first half was sustained late into the 2nd half as our opponents' main weapons seemed to be three pointers, prolonged screaming, clapping, and yammering at the lone referee!
Their main weapon, who did not miss a three early and probably had close to 15 points in the first half on threes alone, was met by a tenacious and stifling Pubber zone defense in the second half and according to my unofficial memory, was O-FER the entire second half!!! and not shy putting the ball up either!
The Pubbers lost the lead late in the second only to battle back on some tough inside moves, rebounds and free throws - and forced overtime!
The Pubbers - despite the noise and catcalls - managed to go ahead by three with just 10 seconds left in overtime and with an iron fist tightening on defense were able to prevent any good shots by the young opponent as rhe clock wound down!
The Pubbers are now 7-2 and face a week off for school break!
Last night was a defining victory and a turning point for ther Pubbers in my opinion. A loss last night could have set us back dramatically but we proved that we have what it takes to go all the way - game by game - despite our active roster any given game - and we will keep that momentum going through the week long hiatus!!!
Three (3) games remain until the playoffs -- We NEED all three wins and we are going to peak at the exact right time no doubt!!!
Enjoy the week off, Boys and be ready a week from Tuesday to continue the march!!!!
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