Round 1, Game 2 Season 36...Oklahoma City at Houston

HOUSTON 85, OKLAHOMA CITY 60
IGUANAS BLOW AWAY LARIATS TO EVEN SERIES
HOUSTON--The Houston Iguanas used a 33-11 second quarter blitz as a launching pad in an eventual 85-60 triumph over the defending champion Oklahoma City Lariats to even up this first-round series.
The decisive Game 3 will take place in Oklahoma City. Both first-round series in this Season 36 Playoff action are going the distance as one might have expected.
The first quarter was defensive-minded and ended with Houston ahead 14-11. Then, to the delight of The Terrarium crowd, the home team exploded.
All-MBA guard T. Kanes Masterson led the way with a game-high 27 points for Houston, winning Game MVP honors and dominating the league's other All-MBA guard, Lemon Jell-o.
Along the way the Iguans tied an all time playoff team rebounding mark of 34 that the Houston franchise set way, way, way-the-fuck back in Season 9 against Milwaukee. League MVP Vic Hitler snared the record-tying carom with 3 time units remaining in the game.
Houston rookie forward Blue "Rondo" Alaturk came up with his second triple-double of the year.
Contributing mightily to the loss for his team was Oklahoma City point guard Walt White, who was as putrid in this contest as he was brilliant in his 31-point Game 1 performance. White missed his first 10 shots, going 1 for 13 in the first half and an eventual 3 for 21 for the game. He was 2 for 11 from beyond the arc, getting 10 points before getting injured in the fourth quarter and being removed from the game.

20-PLUS GVP PERFORMANCES
--Snarkey Comment, point guard for Houston, had 12 points, a game-high 7 asists, 4 rebounds and a steal.
--Houston shooting guard T.Kanes Masterson was high scorer of the game with 27, going 11 for 15, 4 for 6 from 3-Point Land and grabbing 4 rebounds.
--Houston center Sanjay Patel had 15 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.
--Houston's rookie power forward Blue "Rondo" Alaturk's triple-double included 10 points, 8 rebounds and a game-high 5 blocked shots.

NEXT UP
Game 3 decider as Seattle travels to Charleston to see which team secures the first finals spot.

Round 1, Game 2 Season 36 Playoffs...Charleston at Seattle

CHARLESTON 78, SEATTLE 71
MOUNTAINEERS HOLD OFF STAMPEDING HOME TEAM TO KNOT SERIES

SEATTLE--The visiting Charleston Mountaineers, after dominating the first half, hung on for dear life before the banshee screams of the Seattle home crowd to secure a 78-71 victory that sends this break-neck series into a third and final contest.
Charleston led 45-28 at the half, with MVP of the Game, Hall of Fame center Max Payne, exploding for 17 first-half points. At the end of the third quarter, the Mountaineers were still well in control 63-47.
But then the Kiddie Corp. upstarts from Seattle, playing in the first franchise playoff home game since Season 28, began slowly to wear away at the lead. By the time the final quarter was halfway over, a medium jump shot by rookie guard Wimsy Greenfoyle (17 points) pulled the home team to within 7 points, 72-65.
Charleston held them at bay for most of the remaining time until Seattle pulled within 6 points with 8 ticks left. They then got within 4 points after a fast break dunk by rookie All-MBA center Dis Reflexia (16 points) with 3 left. A steal by Greenfoyle and quick feed to Reflexia for a down-low shot was thwarted by Payne. Charleston's B. Quiet (15 points) provided the final margin with a three-quarter court desperation basket at the buzzer.
The teams now head back to Charleston for the final game of the series to determine which of these two worthy teams moves on to the MBA Season 36 Finals.

20-PLUS GVP PERFORMANCES
--Charleston shooting guard Chuckie "Swishcat" Sellegren led all scorers for the second consecutive game with a 19-point performance. He also snagged 3 rebounds and registered 1 assist.
--MVP of the Game was Charleston's Hall of Fame center Max Payne, who waged serious war with Seattle's Reflexia. Payne had 17 points and led everyone with 8 rebounds while assisting once and getting one steal.
--Second-season Charleston forward B. Quiet had 15 points, 3 rebounds an assist and 2 blocked shots.
--The other second-season Charleston forward, Buck Naked, chipped in with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist.
--Rookie shooting guard Wimsy Greenfoyle led his team in scoring with 17 while pulling down 6 rebounds, assisting twice and notching one steal.
--Dis Reflexia, Seattle's 6-7 rookie center, had 16 points on five spectacular dunks as well as 6 boards and 2 assists.
--The old veteran of the Stampede, Smokey Talisker, might have been playing his final home game for Seattle and finished with 14 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot.

NEXT UP: Game 2 in the first-round series between defending champion Oklahoma City and Houston in Houston. The Lariats won the opener in this best of 3.

Season 36 MBA Playoffs Round 1, Game 1 Houston at Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City 90, Houston 81

WHITE'S RECORD-TYING BARRAGE OF 3S WINS OPENER FOR LARIATS

OKLAHOMA CITY -- When Oklahoma City point guard Walt White is on an offensive tear, his Lariats team is tough to beat. And in this playoff opener, the seventh-season veteran was incendiary, going 8 for 12 from 3-point land on the way to a 31-point performance, leading the defending champions to a 90-81 win over the Houston Iguanas.
White experienced his worst campaign this past season, averaging just 10.8 points per game. But in two contests, he sparkled, winning MVP of the Game honors, and Oklahoma City was the victor in each game.
The 6-4 White was MVP in this game, but needed some help from his teammates to secure the victory from a stubborn Houston team.
Houston boasted the league MVP and scoring leader in rookie forward Vic Hitler, as well as the league's fourth-leading in scorer in T.K. Masterson. Both made the prestigious All-MBA team. But with Lemon Jell-o putting the clamps on Masterson and Abe Binder shutting down Hitler, the Lariats were able to stay ahead of the visiting Iguanas the entire game, though the lead was never a comfortable one until the end in this high-scoring affair.
Game two will take place in Houston...a must win for the Iguanas.

20-Plus GVP Performances
-- Houston center Sanjay Patel had a 15-point, 5-rebound game, adding an assist and a blocked shot.
-- Oklahoma City's Walt White added 2 rebounds and 2 assists to his 31-point outburst.
-- Despite fouling out while keeping Houston's Masterson in check, Lemon Jell-o of the Lariats won the showdown between the two All-MBA guards. Jell-o was a perfect 7 for 7 shooting for 16 points, nabbed two of each in rebounds, steals and blocked shots.
-- Rookie forward Reckless Abandon of Oklahoma City celebrated his first playoff outing with an 18-point performance, grabbed 1 rebound and registered 3 assists.
-- Earning a his first start of the season following an 18-point game in the final game of the regular season, Lariats forward Abe Binder held league MVP Vic Hitler to 8 points while scoring 12 himself. Binder was the game's top rebounder with 8 and led everyone with 3 steals.

GAME NOTE
The three players White tied for most 3-pointers in a playoff game are:
**Cappy Gambol of Milwaukee in Season 5 against Houston
**Horn E. Goatweed of Milwaukee in Season 23 against Dallas
**Didger A'doo of Chicago last season, Season 35 against San Jose

The all-time mark of 10 3s in one game (both in the regular season) is shared by Tommy Zoop of Oklahoma City in Season 24 and Cheetos Jones of Philadelphia in Season 31.

NEXT UP;
Charleston, trailing one game to zero, fights for its playoff life on the road against the super kiddie corps from Seattle, which has not lost in five outings. It's win or go home for the Mountaineers in this first round, best of three.

--

MBA Season 36 Playoffs...Round 1, Game 1...Seattle at Charleston

Seattle 81, Charleston 77

SECOND-HALF SURGE BY STAMPEDE STEALS GAME 1

The red-hot Seattle Stampede used a 28-point third quarter to spearhead a come-from-behind second-half effort to win an important road victory to open this best of three playoff series.
Charleston led 40-35 at the half but had no answer for the balanced Seattle attack, which has now won five consecutive games going back to the end of the regular season.
Rookie power forward Sven Marquardt of Seattle shared Game MVP honors with Beezow Bop-Bop of Charleston in this high-flying ballgame.
Both teams shot well from the floor, with the Stampede at 61.4 percent and the Mountaineers a smoking 70.5 percent. But Charleston was limited to just 44 shots, partly because Seattle outrebounded them 18-11.
The only free throw missed by either team came with 3 time units remaining and Charleston Hall of Famer Max Payne at the line to shoot 1 and 1 with his team trailing by four.
Chuckie "Swishcat" Sellegren of Charleston, who led everyone in scoring with 21 points, fouled out with 52 time units remaining in the game and his team trailing 69-65. His counterpoint for Seattle, rookie guard Wimsy Greenfoyle, fouled out with 35 time units remaining and his team ahead 77-69. Neither Garfoyle nor Sellegren could stop the other from scoring.
Seattle thus returns home with a chance to earn a spot in the MBA finals for the first time since Season 28.

20-plus GVP Performances
--Ginger Vampire, point guard for Seattle, led all with 7 assists and 2 steals while scoring 9 points and grabbing 3 rebounds while blocking 1 shot.
--Rookie shooting guard Wimsy Greenfoyle of Seattle registered a 16-point game with 3 rebounds and 1 steal.
--Rookie power forward Sven Marquardt of Seattle was brilliant in his playoff debut with a 20-point game with 4 rebounds and 2 assists.
--Veteran Seattle forward Smokey Talisker had 13 points, led everyone with 5 boards, had 3 assists and blocked 1 shot.
--Point guard Beezow Bop-Bop of Charleston scored 20 points, had 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 blocked shot.
--Veteran shooting guard Chucky Sellegren of Charleston led everyone in scoring with 21, going 3 for 3 from behind the arc, and grabbing 2 rebounds before fouling out.
--B. Quiet, power forward for the Mountaineers, had 19 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal.

NEXT UP: Houston Iguanas travel to Oklahoma City to begin their first round playoff series. This marks the third consecutive season these teams have met in the playoffs. In Season 34, Houston beat the Lariats 3-0 in the finals to win their fourth championship. Last season, Oklahoma City got revenge by eliminating Houston 2-0 in round 1 en route to their first title ever.

SEASON 36 SUMMARY AND POST-SEASON PREVIEW

MBA SEASON MARKED BY SURPRISES, CLOSE RACES
The competition for playoff spots was, as usual, extremely tight, with the surprise team being the defending champion Oklahoma City, which lost Hall of Fame center Max Payne, but retained first in the West. Home teams were never more dominant, winning a record 34 (68 percent) of the games.



MIX OF OLD AND NEW TOP INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS LISTS
Rookies Vic Hitler of Houston and Magnus Dragonhof of Chicago were, respectively, the top scorers and rebounders in the MBA, punctuating the talent influx this season's newcomers had on the league.
In a season replete with superb rookies, Hitler, the 6-7 forward of the Iguanas, was not projected to be a star. But all he did in addition to winning the scoring title with 19.2 points per game, was capture the Rookie of the Year award and the Most Valuable Player in the MBA. He was the sixth rookie to ever win the regular season MVP and the sixth to win a scoring title.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma City's do-everything guard Lemon Jell-o won the steals title for the fourth consecutive season and picked up his first 3-point shooting championship.



FIRST TIMERS DOMINATE ALL MBA TEAM
Two rookies made the first team All MBA squad, just the third time a pair of newbies made the prestigious list. Only L.B. Damned of San Jose has ever made the All MBA team prior to this season.
The MVP vote was a close one, and featured two members of the Houston team finishing in the top three point-getters.





POSITION RANKINGS
Hall of Fame guard Ching-Chong Chung of San Jose showed he can still play in his 11th season, registering the biggest single-season jump in position rankings, going from 16th in the league last season to 7th this season for his new team.
The center position featured half the league starters scoring excellent campaigns, with rookie Dis Reflexia of Seattle and second-year man Naceg Gecan both finishing ahead of 11th season Hall of Famer Max Payne of Charleston. Rookie Magnus Dragonhof of Chicago finished in the upper half, tying for fourth place with steadily improving veteran Wayan Garuda of Sacramento. The cards of the pair who tied for fourth best center are so similar they could be brothers from another mother.


TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL STATS FROM THE FOUR PLAYOFF TEAMS
There are no clear-cut favorites among any of the Season 36 playoff teams. Charleston vs the hard-charging Seattle and Oklahoma City vs. Houston are as close to even matches as we can remember in this league.
Only Seattle, with its three rookie starters, is without a franchise championship in this quartet.
If I had a gun to my head and was told to pick a champion, I would say Charleston. But really, it's anyone's guess.