Rotowire

NetsGC opened its season Friday against the upstart Mavs Gaming, who came into the contest with a 4-2 record. Game 1 began with a 15-14 Mavs lead after the first quarter and a 39-30 lead at the half. MGC extended its lead to as much as 51-36 midway through the third quarter, before a 14-8 run cut the lead to single digits early in the fourth. From there, it was a sprint to the finish, with both teams scoring handily until the final buzzer. Mavs Gaming ultimately held on to capture Game 1, 71-68. NetsGC’s Choc paced all scorers with 32 points (including 5-of-8 triples), and Shuttles posted a full stat line with 14 points, 10 boards, four assists, four steals and three blocks. Mavs Gaming utilized a balanced scoring attack, with four players scoring in double figures, including Sherm’s 30 points and nine dimes and PeteBeBallin’s 11 points, 15 boards and five rejections.

Game 2 was an even more tightly contested affair, though Mavs Gaming had to come from behind in this one to take the win. At halftime, NetsGC led 30-28, and the team kept that lead heading into the fourth 47-46. Mavs Gaming notched it up midway through the final frame, and the teams were tied 54 apiece with two and a half minutes to go. For nearly 90 seconds no points were scored, until Dimez drove to the basket and connected on a layup to break the tie and give Mavs Gaming a 56-54 advantage. From there, a steal and outlet pass to Sherm on the break put MGC up 58-54 with just under a minute to play. Chess scored quickly for NetsGC, and some solid defense on the other end gave the team the ball down 58-56 with a chance to tie. Shuttles brought the ball up court and had it stolen, leading to an intentional foul and two crucial Spartxn free throws that essentially put the game out of reach for NetsGC. Dallas took the win and swept the series thanks to solid play down the stretch.

It was all-hands-on-deck for Mavs Gaming once again, with Sherm going for 16, Dimez knocking in 14, Spartxn delivering 11 (including his two big shots from the charity stripe) and PeteBeBallin stuffing the stat sheet with 20 points, 16 boards and five swats. Scoring for NetsGC was a one-man show, as Choc scored 37 on 23 shots. No other player scored more than six, and additional contributions in the box score were few and far between for the losing squad.

Mavs Gaming improves to 5-2 and remains a top-10 team in 2K League play after Week 4. NetsGC got a less-than-ideal start to the season, but the competitive nature of both games against one of the league’s best is certainly encouraging. Due to its late start to the season, NetsGC will get plenty of chances to rectify the loss with a loaded four-game slate in Week 5.