Dallas 58, Sacramento 55
DEMONS FINISH A HELLACIOUS 15-0
DALLAS -- Led by Chip Battoe, inarguably one of the top 5 MBA players of all time, the Dallas Demons completed an unprecedented perfect season with a 58-55 defensive triumph that was not decided until the final tick of the contest.
Sacramento had the ball with two time units remaining, trailing by 3, when Chip Battoe knocked it away from a driving James "Cherry Challenge" Payne. That sent the game's two centers, Tree Fiddy of Sacramento and GoToo Grot of Dallas, scrambling for the loose ball, which was recovered by Fiddy beyond the 3-point arc. The veteran R-Dog let fly just before the final buzzer sounded, and the unblemished season for Dallas became reality when Fiddy's attempt went off the front rim and fell limply to the floor.
Pandemonium immediately followed as the defending champions and their fans celebrated Satan's Kingdom.
This was another defensive struggle in Game 3 by the league's top two defensive units; even more intense than the 69-61 taffy pull of the previous contest. For the third game in a row, Sacramento had a lead at halftime, and for the third game in a row they were trailing by the time the third quarter was completed. This time the River Dogs slogged their way to a 10-point third quarter as compared to 18 for Dallas.
The big stat was the paltry 39.3 percent shooting by Sacramento, which came into the game sporting a 61 percent accuracy rate in the playoffs. A lot of that sorry percentage can be attributed to the shot-blocking of Battoe, but there were too many misses by River Dogs guards that could have made the difference.
The championship for Dallas is the second in a row and fifth overall for Country Slaughter's team.
Their perfect campaign can be equalled, but never beaten.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
The only player on either team to exceed 20 GVP in this titanic defensive scuffle, Dallas Hall of Fame forward CHIP BATTOE was the obvious difference in the contest, and, for that matter, the Finals. He led everyone in scoring with 19 points on 9 of 14 shooting (1 for 1 at the foul line), grabbed 2 rebounds and garnered 1 assist. But his 9 blocked shots, which tied a playoff record, rejected Sacramento's shooters like a vending machine spitting back bad bills. His 9 blocks ties his own playoff record, which was set three previous times (twice last season against Sacramento and originally against Los Angeles in the Semifinals of Season 45). We'll just come right out now and say he is the MVP of the Playoffs for Season 47...the second season in a row he has captured that award. And in getting that honor, Battoe finished a campaign in which he won every major award (including All Star Game MVP) for which he was eligible...All Star, All-MBA, MVP, Playoff MVP and championship ring.
NEXT UP: Playoff stats leaders.
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