By RotoWire – Zak Hanshew

Hornets Venom GT (7-3) took on Warriors GS (7-3) in a Wednesday battle of top-10 teams. Coming off heatbreaking back-to-back losses, Warriors GS got back in the win column Monday against Hawks Talon GC and looked to make it two straight.

Game 1 was all Warriors from the jump, as the WGS got off to an 18-6 lead thanks to nine points from Gradient and poor team shooting (3-12 FG, 0-4 3Pt) from Hornets Venom GT. WGS went up by as many as 16 in the second half before finishing the first two quarters with a 36-23 advantage. Gradient couldn’t miss and scored seven more points in the second quarter to end the half with a game-high 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting. CB13 totaled 12 points and six dimes, while Hornets Venom GT shot less than 50 percent as a team. The third quarter featured sloppy shooting from both teams, though WGS was able to hit a few key threes to extend the lead to 51-35 heading into the fourth quarter. CB13 doubled his scoring to rack up 24 points before the final frame.

CB13 saved his best for last with a 14-point eruption in the fourth quarter to finish with a game-high 38 points, while Gradient ended with 22. Hornets Venom GT got a well-balanced effort from its starters, including a 17-point, 14-rebound double-double from Zae, though the team couldn’t overcome its shooting woes and the dominant offensive outburst put forth by WGS. Warriors Gaming Squad captured the Game 1 win handily, by a final score of 73-52.
Game 2 was a closer affair through most of the first half, as Hornets Venom GT built a 28-27 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the second quarter. From there, WGS rattled off a 14-point unanswered run to take a 41-28 lead into the break. Just like Game 1, Hornets Venom GT struggled with shooting in the first half, going just 13-28 from the floor, while CB13 stayed hot with an efficient 21-point outing. Hornets Venom GT didn’t fold after halftime, cutting the lead to 55-48 after three quarters. Snubby scored nine points, and Zae went for six points and five boards in the quarter.

Despite the big third quarter, Hornets Venom GT fell victim to another scoring assault from Wizards Gaming Squad, which went off for 34 points in the fourth quarter, including six quick ones in the final 10 seconds. Once again, CB13 and Gradient handled the bulk of the scoring for WGS, going for 30 and 22 points, respectively. Slaughter came away with 14 points and 15 boards. For Hornets Venom GT, Snubby scored 26, ad Zae went for 22 points and 17 rebounds. WGS won the game 89-65 to sweep the series.

Shooting was the deciding factor in the series. Both teams shot the ball exactly 100 times over two games, and while Wizards Gaming Squad made 63 of its attempts, Hornets Venom GT only made 50. Warriors Gaming Squad improves to 8-3 with the win, while Hornets Venom GT falls to 7-4.