By RotoWire – Jeff Edgerton

T-Wolves Gaming and NetsGC are both trying to claw their way up the standings to remain playoff-viable, and they’re both on the bubble. A win for one of the teams in Week 8 would represent a huge boost to their postseason aspirations, so the stage was set for a hotly-contested matchup in remote play Thursday. The Nets have dropped some games after winning four straight contests, while the T-Wolves entered Friday coming off a 2-0 series blowout at the hands of Kings Guard. In a battle featuring two of the league’s best point guards, the Nets ultimately prevailed in a 2-1 series sweep, winning the last two games by a wide margin.

The first quarter of Game 1 wasn’t a disappointment, as the game script indicated that this could be a barn-burner. The tangle between premier point guards was on full display early, as Choc (sporting a Top Gun look in the remote box) and JMoney helped spur their teams on early. The 2019 league champs took a 20-15 lead going into the second quarter. The Nets closed the gap in the second quarter due in large part to Choc, whose eight first-half assist count demonstrated his ability to find playmakers and get the ball out in transition. With a 36-35 lead at the half, the Nets were also effective in keeping the T-Wolves from driving to the basket and making plays in the paint. Early in the third quarter, JMoney wanted to put his two cents in during this point guard battle, and his scoring and ballhandling helped the T-Wolves string together a bit of a run. The Nets also found themselves in foul trouble, as Randomz committed his fifth foul, putting the team dangerously close to technical foul territory. JMoney and Feast continued to connect in the paint and the T-Wolves pulled out to a six-point lead heading into the final frame.

The score tightened up in the fourth quarter, making the closing minutes impressive to watch as the two teams fought through lead changes to the end. With the Wolves up by three, Choc sank two free throws to close the lead to one, but then Big Saint drilled a key three that proved to be the eventual difference-maker. The Nets pulled off a fast break, but couldn’t find a shot in the final second, and with no time outs, the clock ran out and the T-Wolves took Game 1, 70-68. BearDaBeast came through with a fabulous game for the T-Wolves, as he led the squad with 25 points and drilled some key shots down the stretch. JMoney dished out 11 assists on the way to a 21-point double-double. On the other end, Choc led all scorers with 29 points and 11 assists, and Shuttles pulled down 15 rebounds in a losing effort. Chess, who joined the team after Rando’s suspension, continued to play well with 12 points.

The beginning of Game 2 was just as tight as the previous game, with no team gaining a severe advantage in the first six minutes. It was evident from the first game that these two teams were very evenly matched, and that continued to be the trend, as they battled to an 18-18 score to end the first frame. Interior play played a bigger role early on in this game, as both Shuttles and FEAST were heavily involved on both sides of the ball. In the second quarter, Choc led the charge to put some distance between them and the T-Wolves, and at one point stretched their lead to eight points after a big three from Chess. The T-Wolves were relentless, however, and refused to let the game get away from them, and after some exchanged baskets and free throws by Choc to end the quarter, the Nets entered the locker room with a 36-29 lead at the half.

The T-Wolves looked a little out of sorts to begin the third quarter, as they allowed the Nets to go on a 7-0 run to begin the stanza. They stopped the bleeding with a shot to end the streak, but the Nets defense kept pressing while the offense continued to pad their lead. Behind some strong play from Randomz, the Nets led by as much as 15 but settled into an 11-point advantage going into the final quarter. Choc was averaging around five assists per quarter at this point, which put a rare 20-assist stat within reach. He began the fourth with two quick assists right away as the Nets began to pull away. Even though FEAST was providing plenty of second chances on offense, the T-Wolves struggled in getting shots to fall, but some key baskets from the corner by Big Saint kept the game from getting too out of hand. As the minutes dwindled, it became clear that the Nets were not going to allow the T-Wolves to get back in it, and to no one’s surprise, this extremely competitive series went to a third game thanks to a 77-65 victory for NetsGC. Randomz was absolutely lethal for the Nets, scoring 31 points and shooting 74 percent from the floor. Choc almost got that assist milestone, but he still finished with an excellent 17 points, 18 assists and six key steals. JMoney had an off-game, but FEAST, BearDaBeast and Big Saint picked up the slack, with FEAT providing a 16/17 double-double.

Although the Nets jumped out to an 11-5 lead in the first quarter of Game 3, the T-Wolves made a run to keep them in this series, and after a key steal and basket in the final seconds, they were able to tie things up at 15 to end the frame – a mirror image of what transpired in Game 1. BearDaBeat also heated up again, scoring eight of the Wolves’ 15 first-quarter points. Defense was the hallmark of the second quarter, as the two teams combined for only five points in the first two minutes. The T-Wolves scored all of them, and that streak resulted in an 8-0 run before the Nets finally scored after a two-minute drought. The Nets then managed to pull themselves together and get on a small run of their own, closing the T-Wolves’ lead to one point with a minute to go. Randomz completed a layup to give them the lead again, but the score ended up deadlocked, 29-29 at the half. Choc ended the half with 17 of the team’s 29 points.

A problem that plagued the T-Wolves for the entire series was the ability to penetrate inside and slip the seal while finding a high-percentage shot at the same time. This was apparent in the second half, as the Nets remained resilient in protecting the edges. A turnover followed by a missed shot resulted in two straight transition shots for the Nets, and we saw the first glimpse of what was to come – a lopsided lead for the Nets. They put on the gas and broke free to a 51-36 lead going into the final frame, and it would take a serious charge from the T-Wolves to make up the difference. Ultimately, that comeback never materialized, and the Nets kept pouring on the offense throughout the final six minutes. The eventually put the game out of reach and won Game 3, 78-58. Both Choc and Randomz tallied 30 points in the game, and Choc pulled off a double-double with 12 assists. Although Shuttles scored only two points, he grabbed an eye-popping 24 rebounds in the contest. The T-Wolves only shot 50 percent from the floor, committed nine turnovers and were utterly outmatched.

NetsGC (5-4) will take on Bucks Gaming next week, and the T-Wolves (6-5) will square off against Hornets Venom GT on July 8th.