Blazers Pick Up Critical Win

By RotoWire – Juan Pablo Aravena

Blazer5 Gaming has been one of the premier franchises in the NBA 2K League and that was proven once again in this matchup against Mavs Gaming, at least when it comes to Game 1 on Wednesday. They quickly grabbed control of the contest in the first quarter and, led by their star player Mama Im Dat Man, the Blazer5 jumped to a five-point lead after the first six minutes of action. Blazer5 Gaming didn’t step foot off the gas, though, and they won the second quarter by 12 points, putting themselves up by 17 points (49-32) at the break.
Mavs Gaming tried to mount a comeback in the second half, but they didn’t have enough weapons to compete with Blazer5, a team that didn’t have problems winning the remaining two quarters in comfortable fashion just like they did in the first half. In the end, Blazer5 Gaming proved to be too much for Mavs Gaming and won Game 1 by an expressive 98-63 score.
Mama Im Dat Man thrived in Game 1 and finished with 31 points and 21 assists, once again proving he is an elite threat offensively. MaJes7ic chipped in with 20 points, Hood added 18, and OneWildWalnut contributed 21 points, 15 boards, and four assists. Sherm was the best player for Mavs Gaming since he ended with 29 points and five assists, although he also committed four turnovers.

Blazer5 Gaming started Game 2 with the same intensity they showed in Game 1 and quickly jumped to a 21-13 lead in the first quarter; it seemed they were on course to complete the sweep but Mavs Gaming woke up right when they needed it the most. They flipped the script in the second quarter and grabbed the lead at halftime thanks to a 22-9 second quarter.
Mavs Gaming knew they had a chance to pull away further after the break and won the third quarter as well, 18-14. As a result, Mavs Gaming went up by nine points ahead of the final six minutes of action, particularly due to strong performances from their backcourt duo of Sherm and Dimez. They combined for 41 points in the first three quarters.

Blazer5 Gaming attempted to turn things around and were up by one with 13.6 seconds left, but a costly foul doomed their chances of securing the sweep and the Mavs went up by one after converting both free throws. Mama Im Dat Man had the ball in his hands for the final shot of the contest but he kicked it out for a Hood open three that bounced off the rim. As a result, Mavs Gaming earned a hard-fought Game 2 victory by 62-61.

Sherm finished with 22 points for Mavs Gaming, while Dimez added 23 points to pace Mavs Gaming. Mama Im Dat Man finished with 28 points despite falling short on the comeback. OneWildWalnut added 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Game 3 saw the Mavs dominate early on and they quickly jumped out to a 16-12 lead following the first quarter. However, Blazer5 bounced back just before the break and won the second quarter by a 23-17 score, setting themselves up by two points (35-33) at halftime. Led by Mama Im Dat Man, who racked up 11 assists once the third quarter ended, Blazer5 Gaming took control of the game and never let it go. They won the third quarter, 16-9, so they entered the final six minutes of action up by nine points.

The final six minutes of action saw a Mavs team that came close to a comeback, but the Blazer5 didn’t let their lead slip away and secured the win thanks to a strong performance on both ends of the court. The final game of the series ended with a 68-60 victory for Blazer5 Gaming.

Mama Im Dat Man had 23 points and 12 assists, while WildOneNut added 21 points with nine boards. Sherm was Mavs Gaming’s best player with 26 points and five assists, but he also committed three turnovers. Dimez added 15 points but shot 5-of-11 from the field.