MOUNTAINEERS CLOSE OUT AMIGOS, CHAMP SHOWDOWN NEXT
SAN JOSE -- For the third time this season, the Charleston Mountaineers easily dispatched the San Jose Fighting Amigos, setting up a powerhouse finals with defending champion Oklahoma City.
This time, Charleston won by 17 points, 97-80, the closest margin of the three Season 41 meetings between these two. The other two wins were 97-78 in the regular season, in the game Naf Naf was injured and scored just two points, and 96-76 in the first playoff game in which Naf went off for 44.
The visitors seemingly did not need the Hall of Fame point guard in this game, with Naf sitting for much of the first half, taking just two shots and scoring two points. No matter, because Charleston was still on a nearly 100-point pace, leading 49-36 at the half.
The Mountaineers showed their versatility throughout, dishing out 20 assists, one short of the playoff record held jointly by Philadelphia in Season 18 and Charleston's last championship squad of Season 39.
The closest San Jose would come was 8 points early in the fourth, but then Naf kicked in and Charleston sped on to their destiny meeting with Oklahoma City.
PLAYER OF GAME
J.J. GARGANTUAN took his game to another level when faced with first-time starter Hunk R. Down of San Jose. Gargantuan was high scorer with 23 points, going 11 for 15, with 4 slam dunks and a 3-pointer for good measure. He pulled down 5 boards, tied for game-high in assists with 4 and registered the highest number of blocks in the contest with 4. Additionally, he tied for the highest number of steals with 2.
OTHER 20-PLUS GVP PERFORMANCES
-- Hall of Famer Naf Naf of Charleston went into the fourth quarter with just 8 points, but emerged with 19 for the game, adding an assist and squelching any comeback hopes by San Jose.
-- Naf Naf's Charleston running mate at guard, Beezow Bop-Bop was his usual steady self, getting 14 points, 3 rebounds, tying for top total in steals with 2, blocking 1 shot and handing out 2 assists.
-- Before fouling out, veteran forward B. Quiet of Charleston pulled down a team-high 6 rebounds, added 10 points, 3 assists and 1 blocked shot.
-- Second-year 7-foot center Hunk R. Down of San Jose had his hands full in his first start ever, going up against the gifted J.J. Gargantuan. But Down put up some nice numbers of his own, scoring 14 points, grabbing a game-high 7 rebounds and blocking a team-high 3 shots while adding 2 assists.
-- Another San Jose youngster, rookie forward Doo-Rag Dripp followed his Game 1 performance of 18 points with a team-high 19 in this loss. He also had 3 rebounds and 1 assist.
Game note: The retiring Bruce Hammer of San Jose finished his career in style. In a very short stint in the second quarter, he came in and did the MBA MOVE, the rarely seen slam dunk off of your own missed 3-point shot. And on the very next possession, he drove the lane and slammed one home. He was then removed to a smattering of applause.
Worth Noting: The top four rated centers in the MBA this season were from the four teams that made the playoffs.
NEXT UP: The best of five showdown between defending champion Oklahoma City (9-1, 2-0), riding an 11-game win streak against Charleston (8-2, 2-0) and the man who led the Lariats to last season's title, Naf Naf.
Game one is in Oklahoma City. Buckle up, people.
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