By Rotowire

Mavs Gaming Holds on for One-Point Win

Mavs Gaming narrowly defeated Grizz Gaming by a score of 46-45 in Week 1 of NBA 2K League action on Friday evening. This was the first regular season game for both teams.

Both teams started with sloppy play as the squads combined for five fouls and seven turnovers. It seemed fitting then, that the first basket of this game came from a goaltending call against the Grizz. Mavs Gaming eventually found their footing while building an 11-4 lead at the end of the first stanza.

The defense remained stingy from both sides in the second quarter, but the Mavs managed to preserve their lead by a score of 22-15 at halftime. Dimez, the point guard from Mavs Gaming, had six assists in the first half, already topping each of his outings in the TIPOFF, presented by AT&T last week. AuthenticAfrican, the center from Grizz Gaming, was the only player keeping his side in the contest, posting nine points with seven boards at the halfway mark of this game.

Things didn’t really pick up until the fourth quarter, where Grizz Gaming went on a 15-6 run to tie the game with 1:19 left. Their point guard, Vandi, led the run with nine points in that span. He capped off things off with a nifty driving layup to draw even with the Mavs. The Grizz eventually took their first lead when Jayrod drilled a three-pointer with only one minute remaining. Grizz Gaming had an opportunity to preserve that one-point margin, but a turnover on an inbound pass thwarted that possibility. That set up Mavs Gaming to try and win the game with 9.7 seconds remaining. They did exactly that when Dimez found PeteBeBallin for a layup with 1.6 seconds left. The Grizz didn’t have a timeout, and the halfcourt heave from Jayrod rimmed off. Mavs Gaming held on for a 46-45 victory in dramatic fashion.

Dimez led the way for Mavs Gaming with 12 points and 10 assists. PeteBeBallin had 12 points and six rebounds to go along with the satisfaction of making that game-winning basket.
AuthenticAfrican continued to post monster numbers with 21 points and 17 rebounds in the losing effort. Vandi’s fourth-quarter flurry gave him 15 points for the game, but 1-of-7 shooting from distance really hurt the Grizz early on.

Mavs Gaming is now 1-0 on the season, while Grizz Gaming falls to 0-1.

Nets GC Lock Up First Win

Nets GC took home its first win in franchise history with a 74-66 victory over a new-look Kings Guard on Friday.

Sure, Nets GC is one of three new teams in the 2K League but you couldn’t tell by watching them Friday. They dominated the first half, limiting Kings Guard to just seven points in the first quarter. Shooting guard NateKahl put a clamp on Bp, forcing Bp into four turnovers while outscoring him 14-8. Wavy.zay poured in 15 of his own while Shockey put up 10 crucial points. Shockey would go on to be a force throughout the game for the Nets.

Making crucial dunks to swing momentum in Nets GC’s favor, Shockey scored an efficient 16 points on 6-of-8 from the floor to complement his seven rebounds and pair of assists. Shockey’s relatively low rebound number were in part due to power forward Shuttles eating up rebounds, who didn’t score a single point but ended the game with nine rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block while only coughing up one turnover.

Wavy.zay would end with 24, shooting 10-of-12 from the field, and NateKahl’s pure lockdown build put in 19 to go with his three steals. With the defensive synergy of a veteran team and multiple efficient scorers, it’d be a mistake if other teams in the league looked at this rookie squad and underestimate them.

Worthingcolt tallied a 10 point,11 rebound double-double, but the new faces on Kings Guard Gaming struggled once more to pick up their center. One of these new pickups, point guard and 2019 first-round pick, Bp, got his first regular-season minutes ruined by a Nets outfit determined to make him struggle. Bp’s talent was occasionally on display in the first half, especially how well he attacked the hoop once he got momentum, but NateKahl ensured that Bp couldn’t set up on the perimeter and find an open lane. Bp would still finish with 24 points and nine assists. Aside from BallLikeSeem, who finished with 18 points and shot 4-of-8 from behind the line, the rest of Kings Guard couldn’t seem to find the net.

Post Presence Fuels 76ers GC Win

76ers GC continued their early-season dominance Friday night with a convincing 73-54 win over Raptors Uprising GC during Week 1 of the 2K League.

While it was 76ers GC’s first win of the 2019 regular season, it was their sixth straight win this year after they stormed through last week’s The TIPOFF Tournament, sponsored by AT&T. Meanwhile, Raptors Uprising fell for the fourth straight time overall and dropped to 0-2 in the regular season.

Slow starts continue to plague Raptors Uprising, as they were playing from behind from the very start of Friday’s contest and never able to fully recover. Perimeter defense continues to be their biggest flaw, as 76ers GC got any shot they wanted inside in the first half and headed into halftime with a 16-point lead.

Raptors Uprising did, however, come out with some urgency in the second half and rattled off an 18-9 run to close the gap to seven. They had a chance to cut the lead to four with a three, but missed, and that was as close as they would get for the remainder of the contest. From that point, 76ers GC went on a 16-4 run across the third and fourth quarters to put the game completely out of reach for their opponents. This was, again, due in large part to 76ers GC exposing Raptors Uprising’s weak defense inside, with the team shooting 22-of-28 (78.6 percent) on two-point shots.

76ers GC continued to ride on the back of their star point guard Radiant, who has been tearing through the league in the early goings. Radiant finished with a game-high 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting to go along with nine assists, and when he missed, center Steez was usually there to clean up the mess, as the big man went 6-of-7 from the floor on his way to posting 12 points and 10 rebounds. Small forward ZDS also had the hot hand, going 4-of-6 from behind the arc and scoring 18 points.

As for Raptors Uprising, Kenny Got Work continues to be the centerpoint of their offense, with the small forward posting a team-high 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting. Power forward All Hail Trey was close behind with 15 points, while center KingQuai614 posted a double-double with 10 points and 13 boards. Raptors Uprising essentially got nothing out of their backcourt Friday, with Doza and TsJosh combining to score just nine points.

Stifling Defense Aids Kings Guard in Win

Kings Guard Gaming managed to take home the victory over Wizards District Gaming by a score of 59-47 in Week 1 of NBA League play Friday night. The Kings lost their first matchup of the evening, but managed to bounce back with a victory to snap a three-game losing streak.

This contest got off to a shaky start, as both squads committed multiple reaching fouls. The Kings committed a pair of fouls, including a shooting foul, on the first possession of the contest, resulting in an early 2-0 advantage for Wizards District Gaming. However, Kings Guard would answer with points of their own on their first possession and played a decent first quarter of basketball, resulting in a 12-10 lead. The Wizards were lucky to be down only two after turning the ball over five times in the first six minutes of play.

The Kings went on a 13-2 run to begin the second stanza, forcing Wizards District Gaming to commit three more turnovers within the first two minutes. Kings Guard’s stifling man-to-man defense was extremely effective against the Wiz, who continued to make bad passes. The Kings held an impressive 33-16 lead at the end of the first half after getting 16 points from their starting point guard, BP.

Wizards District Gaming kicked off the second half by hitting three shots from downtown, but the Kings continued to demoralize their opponent with easy buckets in the paint. The Wiz managed to cut the deficit to eight at one point, but Kings Guard Gaming carried a nine-point lead into the final quarter of action.

The Wizards made a late push and trailed by only five with one minute left in the fourth, but a late dunk by BP sealed the deal. In the end, it was the Kings’ impressive shooting that propelled them to their first victory of the season. They hit on 22-of-44 shots from the field, including 10-of-21 attempts from beyond the arc. BP led all scorers with 25 points and also racked up seven assists along with three steals and a pair of blocks. Worthingcolt narrowly missed a double-double, tallying 12 points along with nine boards. Wizards District was led in the scoring department by ReeseDaGod, who finished with 15 points and four rebounds.

Nets GC Goes 2-0

Nets GC earned the comeback victory against Magic Gaming by a score of 61-58 in the final game of Week 1. Nets GC managed to secure their second win after defeating Kings Guard Gaming in their first matchup of the night.

The Magic got off to a hot start in the final contest of the evening, outscoring Nets GC 16-8 on 7-for-11 shooting from the field. Nets GC began the contest 0-for-3 from beyond the arc before knocking down their first triple in the second period of play.

Nets GC showed signs of life in the second quarter and managed to close the gap within the first few minutes, and a late run in the final two minutes cut the deficit to just one point at the half. KingCamRoyalty led the Magic with 10 points and five boards after two quarters or play, while NateKahl headed the scoring effort for Nets GC with nine points, although they hit just one of seven attempts from three as a team.

Magic Gaming extended their lead to seven points in the first couple minutes of the third stanza with some stifling defense that lead to easy transition buckets on the other end. The Nets refused to go away, however, and once again went on an impressive run at the end of the quarter. Nets GC carried a 44-39 lead into the final six minutes of play, closing the third period with a 12-0 run. It was more of the same in the fourth, resulting in a victory for the Nets.

After being held to just eight points in the first quarter, Nets GC responded with a pair of 18-point quarters and closed it out in the fourth period for the win. Lav was a big part of his team’s success, finishing with 16 points on 7-for-14 shooting despite beginning the night 1-for-7 from the field. NateKahl also finished with 16 points and Shockey flirted with a double-double in the victory (13 points and eight boards). KingCamRoyalty tallied 21 points and 10 rebounds for Magic Gaming, while Reizey dropped a game-high 22 points and dished out 12 dimes. Magic dropped to 0-2 on the week with a loss to Nets GC.