IBA: Legends Beat Ballers in Comeback Win, Advance to Finals

The Albany Legends defeated the Kenosha Ballers yesterday 136-134 and will advance to the IBA Championship.

Although the Legends were down by 7 with three minutes left in the fourth quarter, they came back and gained the lead. Late in the game, with about a second and a half left in the game, the Legends were up by 2 and Kyle Downey was at the line to shoot two free throws. He could have iced up the game, but missed both of them. Luckily, Lloyd Johnson grabbed the rebound at the buzzer and the Legends held on to win the game. The final score was 136-134.

Now that the Legends have won in the semifinals, they will be playing in the IBA Championship today. Their season all comes down to this last game. The Albany Legends (12-5) will play the Kankakee County Soldiers (14-3) today at 5:00 pm Eastern time.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (a game-high 43 points to lead the Legends to the championship)

E.J. Gallup scored 34 points in the win. Josh Jones helped out with 21 points and 7 rebounds.

For the Ballers, Tim Baines scored 27 points. Damon Osbourne finished with 25 points.

Today's final game should prove to be tough for the Legends. The Soldiers beat the Legends in their season series so far 2-1. Plus, the Soldiers also won the IBA Championship last season and Ryan Edwards is the league's leading scorer and reigning MVP. I've seen Edwards play and the dude's a beast. The Legends are gonna have their hands full with him.

But there still is a good chance that the Legends can beat the Soldiers today in what I would call an upset. Here's how: Lloyd Johnson needs to keep up his level of play and try to outplay Edwards. The Legends need to stay focused on defense and on the boards. I would suggest giving more minutes to Zach Bye because of his rebounding skills for his size. I think that Lloyd Johnson will get his numbers as usual, but the x-factor could be E.J. Gallup vs. Ryan Edwards. If Gallup can hit his three's and Edwards can be harassed defensively into having a bad night, the Legends will have a better chance of winning.

I think (and hope) that the Legends will win today and be the 2012 IBA Spring Champions.

Have any thoughts on the Legends beating the Ballers and advancing to the championship? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Legends Beat Capitals 135-105, Advance to Semifinals

The 3rd-seeded Albany Legends beat the 6th-seeded Lansing Capitals in the first round of the IBA playoffs yesterday and the final score was 135-105.

Lloyd Johnson led the Legends with a team-high 33 points. Kyle Downey chipped in with 24 points and Shea Bromirski finished with 20 points. Adam Abdourahamane scored 18 points and E.J. Gallup scored 16 points in the win.

For the Capitals, Terrance Shaw scored 33 points in the loss. David Williams finished with 19 points. Though their season is over, their fans have to be happy with Shaw's play over the course of the season. In my opinion, he was one of the best players in the IBA this season.

I think the key to the Legends winning this game (which could have gone either way) was Downey, Bromirski, and Abdourahmane stepping up in the absence of Tadre Sheppard and Tiki Mayben. Downey and Bromirski combined for 44 points to make up for the loss of Mayben. Abdourahmane, who usually just plays the role of rebounder and post-defender, scored more than usual to help make up for the abscence of Sheppard.

I predicted in my last article on the Legends that they would lose in the semifinals, which will take place later tonight. I'm not so sure anymore though because the Legends will be playing the 7th-seeded Kenosha Ballers who upset the 2nd-seeded Los Angeles Lightning who had a 12-2 regular season record before losing in the first round of the playoffs yesterday. Considering that the Ballers had a losing record during the regular season, I think that the Legends will beat them in the semifinals tonight.

The Albany Legends (11-5) will play the Kenosha Ballers (8-8) at 10 pm tonight. One of the keys to the game for the Legends will be defending Devron Bostick. As of June 13th, Bostick was ranked third in the IBA in points per game behind Lloyd Johnson and the league's reigning MVP, Ryan Edwards. If the Legends can step up their defense and lock Bostick down, they'll have a better chance of winning. Other keys for the Legends include Johnson keeping up his high level of play, Gallup's 3-point shooting, rebounding, and making up for the losses of Mayben and Sheppard.

I think the Legends will win. If they do, they'll play either the Gary Splash or the 1st-seeded Kankakee County Soldiers. If they play the Splash in the championship, I think that they'll win, but if they play the Soldiers instead, it will be much tougher for them. But it's a bit early for talking about the championship right now because the Legends need to win in the semifinals first.

Have any thoughts on the Legends beating the Capitals in the first round of the playoffs? Think the Legends will go all the way? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Legends Beat Redline 143-137 in Shagari Alleyne's Debut

Yesterday, the Albany Legends defeated the Chicago Redline 143-137 on "Legends Love Lewie Night."

I was hyped up for this game. First off, Lloyd Johnson was 18 points away from scoring 1,000 career points as a Legend. The Legends also had two new players, Adam Abdourahmane and Shagari Alleyne. Abdourahmane played with the Albany last season as a role-playing big-man. Alleyne is a 7-3 center from Kentucky, and is now the tallest player to ever play on the Legends (beating out 6-11 center Neil Edwards who played with the Legends in 2010). 

Marcus Snipes and Evan Lane weren't with the team last night. Abdourahmane was wearing Lane's number so I'm assuming that Snipes and Lane were waived. It safe to say that they are being replaced by Abdourahmane and Alleyne. I think that this is a good move because the Legends struggled with rebounding against the Kankakee County Soldiers last series - Alleyne is 7'3" and Abdourahmane was a solid contributor on the boards last season for the Legends. Also, Lane struggled in his return to the Legends and Snipes didn't play as well after getting injured early in the season.

CBA was packed on Friday and there was a much larger crowd than usual. In attendance were Jimmer Fredette's parents and former Albany Legends coach Derrick Rowland.

Tadre Sheppard, Kenny Tribbett, E.J. Gallup, Tiki Mayben, and Lloyd Johnson were the starters for the Legends. Johnson made a 3-pointer as the first basket of the game to put the Legends up 3-0, but the Redline came out strong and developed an early lead. Chicago led 15-9 in the first quarter before Mayben made four 3-pointers in a row and tied the game up at 21-21. However, the Redline went on an 18-5 run to end the quarter and were up 43-29 at the end of the first. 

The Redline continued to pull away in the beginning of the second quarter and led 55-35 when Legends coach John Coffino called a timeout with 8:31 left. A big reason that Albany was down was lack of rebounding and bad defense. The Legends then went on a 36-8 run to end the first half and led 71-63 at halftime.

The first basket of the second half was a 3-pointer by Lloyd Johnson that was his 1,000th point as an Albany Legend. The game was stopped and the crowd applauded and gave him a standing ovation. It was a proud moment in Albany Legends history. Later in the 3rd, the Legends went on a 9-0 run and an alley-oop from Gallup to Sheppard put the Legends up 85-66. Midway through the period, the Legends led 92-75. The Redline cut the lead and the Legends were up 103-97 at the end of the third quarter.

The Legends and the Redline went head-to-head in the fourth quarter, but the Legends had the advantage because they were leading already. The game became close in the end and a Redline layup off a turnover by Gallup cut the Legends' lead to 3 and Albany was up 138-135 with 33.8 seconds left in the game. An off-balance shot by Mayben served as the dagger and put the Legends up by 5 with less than 20 seconds left. After a few free throws by Johnson and Gallup, the Legends won 143-137.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (36 points, 13 rebounds, 12 assists) - He put up another triple-double and became the first Albany Legends players ever to surpass 1,000 points.

Tiki Mayben had a team-high 39 points and made six 3-pointers. E.J. Gallup made only 5 out of 15 field goal attempts, but finished with 19 points in the win. Tadre Sheppard chipped in with 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting and Kyle Downey helped out with 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field. Shagari Alleyne scored 8 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field in his debut with the Legends. He also grabbed some rebounds and had some good blocks.

Tony Bennett of the Redline scored a game-high 43 points in the loss. Antwon Ware finished with 27 points and 15 rebounds. Terry Williams scored 33 points.

Random Highlight of the Game: Shagari Alleyne scores (He is my new favorite player on the Legends now that Guy Dupuy is gone.)



Next, the Albany Legends (9-2) will play the Chicago Redline (7-3) again today at CBA to end their 2-game series.

Have any thoughts on the Legends beating the Redline? Do you think Albany will sweep Chicago? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Legends Beat Soldiers 126-107 and Avoid Getting Swept

The Albany Legends defeated the Kankakee County Soldiers 126-107 on Sunday.

E.J. Gallup, Lloyd Johnson, Kyle Downey, Tadre Sheppard, and Kenny Tribbett started for the Legends while Billy Rush, Anthony Kyle, Ryan Edwards, Stan Chismark, and CeCe Malone were the starters for the Soldiers. Tiki Mayben suited up, but didn't play and Guy Dupuy was nowhere to be found. I'm assuming he was waived by the team after what happened the night before.

Gallup and Chismark traded 3-pointers to start the game. The Legends later went on a 10-2 run and were up 16-9 midway through the 1st. The Soldiers responded with a 9-0 run before John Coffino called a timeout. After a last-second layup by Sheppard, the Legends were up 28-21 at the end of the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, the Soldiers went on a 13-1 run and went up 36-33. Coffino later got a technical foul with 4:13 left and almost got another after telling the ref to "stop having rabbit ears." Later, a 2-point basket by Johnson tied the game at 41-41. The Soldiers led 54-52 at the end of the first half.

The Legends went on a 23-8 run to start the second half and went up 75-62 after an alley-oop dunk by Sheppard off a lob from Gallup. Albany led 86-75 at the end of the third quarter.

The Legends continued to pull away in the fourth quarter and went on a 12-0 run midway through the period. The Soldiers were unable to come back and the Legends won 126-107.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (32 points, 10 assists, 10 rebounds)

E.J. Gallup and Tadre Sheppard each had 27 points. Kyle Downey finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds.

Ryan Edwards struggled on offense and that was a big reason why the Legends won. He finished with only 21 points and made only 6 out 22 field goal attempts. Billy Rush also had 21 points and also shot less than 50 percent from the field.

Highlight of the Game: Josh Jones hits a 3-pointer off an assist from Lloyd Johnson



Next, the 2nd-place Albany Legends (8-2) will play the 1st-place Chicago Redline (7-1) at home on Friday, May 18th. It will be the first of two games in the Legends' last home series of the 2012 season.

Have any thoughts on the Legends beating the Soldiers? Are the Legends better without Tiki Mayben? Will Guy Dupuy's departure haunt the Legends later on? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Edwards Scores 51 as Soldiers Beat Legends 144-140

The Albany Legends have lost their second game in a row to the Kankakee County Soldiers in overtime. The final score was 144-140.

The Legends were looking to avenge their overtime loss the night before. E.J. Gallup, Lloyd Johnson, Tiki Mayben, Tadre Sheppard, and Kenny Tribbett were the team's starters.

The Legends started the game off hot and were up 9-0 with 10 minutes left in the quarter. They continued to dominate and went up 19-2 with 8:10 left. A 3-pointer by Gallup put the Legends up 32-20, but the Soldiers came back and ended the quarter on a 12-3 run. The Legends were up 35-32 at the end of the 1st.

The Soldiers and the the Legends went head-to-head in the second quarter. A dunk by Billy Rush put the Soldiers up 36-35. Midway through the period, Marcus Snipes and John Coffino had a verbal confrontation on the bench. After taking him out of the game, Coffino said to Snipes, "Where were you on that play?" After Snipes talked back, Coffino said, "Take your uniform off" twice. They both cooled off and seemed cool with each other later in the game.

Later in the second quarter, when the game was tied 46-46, Mayben was fouled while going up for a layup and rolled around on the floor in pain. It looked like he hurt his back. He left the gym for the locker room, but checked back in the second half and was productive. The Legends were up 70-60 at the end of the first half.

The Legends maintained their lead in the third quarter, but I didn't pay much attention because I was too busy watching Guy Dupuy. Coffino and Dupuy started arguing on the bench shortly after the second half started. Dupuy left the gym after more unfriendly words were exchanged between them, including Dupuy saying something about it being his "last game." He walked back through the gym a few minutes later in street clothes and talked to Nick Dean, the General Manager of the Legends, in the lobby. Dupuy later returned to the gym carrying a baby and spent the rest of the game in the bleachers with Dean.

The Legends were up 95-86 at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Soldiers jumped out and went on a 7-0 run to start the period. Later, two free throws by Ryan Edwards tied the game at 99-99. The Soldiers went up 107-102 with 5 minutes left in regulation. Edwards had the ball at the top of the key and was being guarded tight by Kyle Downey when I yelled, "Yo Edwards, you got nothing!" He responded by missing an off-balance mid-range jumper.....Yeah, I totally psyched him out.

The game went down to the wire and was tied 115-115 with 1:32 left. A layup by Johnson put the Legends up 119-118 with less than a minute left. Two free throws by Rush after an odd intentional foul by Mayben put the Soldiers up 122-119 with 20.5 seconds left. Johnson tied the game with a clutch 3-pointer and the Soldiers took a timeout with 11.5 seconds left. Edwards missed a long shot off the backboard and the Legends took a timeout with 3 seconds left. Johnson missed a long three at the buzzer and the game went into overtime with the score at 122-122.

Edwards made a 3-pointer to start overtime and put the Soldiers up 125-122. A free throw by Sheppard cut the lead to 1 and the Legends were down 133-132 with less than 2 minutes left in overtime. A free throw by Mayben with 1:10 left put the Legends up 134-133. However, Edwards responded by making a 3-pointer with 57.7 seconds left and putting the Soldiers up 136-134. A free throw by Mayben tied the game at 136-136 with 44.5 seconds left. Anthony Kyle made a pair of free throws with 17.1 left and put the Soldiers up 141-138. Sheppard missed a 3-pointer and Edwards made a pair a free throws with 7.8 seconds left, putting the Soldiers up 143-138. The Legends were unable to come back and lost 144-140.

The Soldiers out-rebounded the Legends by a noticeable margin again (59-40). In a blog entry before the season started, I predicted that lack of size would be a problem for the Legends. These last two games have proved my point. The Legends are really missing Scott Morton right now. Also, the Legends couldn't get defensive stops when they needed them again.

Player of the Game: Ryan Edwards (51 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists)

Anthony Kyle helped out with 35 points and 8 assists and Stan Chismark chipped in with 22 points and 9 rebounds. Billy Rush finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Legend of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (40 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists)

Tiki Mayben also had a great game and finished with 31 points and 7 assists. Tadre Sheppard had a double-double with 26 points and 12 rebounds. E.J. Gallup scored 22 points in the game, but was a non-factor in the second half and overtime.

Random Highlight of the Game: Anthony Kyle to Ryan Edwards for alley-oop dunk



The Albany Legends (7-2) will play the Kankakee County Soldiers (7-1) today at 6 pm at CBA to end the series. The Legends need to win this game to avoid getting swept.

Have any thoughts on the Legends losing their second straight game to the Soldiers? Has Albany seen the last of Guy Dupuy? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Mayben's 50 Not Enough as Legends Lose to Soliders

The Kankakee County Soldiers have handed the Albany Legends their first loss of the season in an overtime thriller.

The first thing I noticed was that Marcus Snipes was back in uniform and was rockin' orange sneakers. I also saw that Evan Lane was back with the team. Lane, who won a championship with the Legends in 2010, is the only Legends player besides Lloyd Johnson to play in all three seasons with the team. Albany had 12 players in uniform - the most all season for them.

Kenny Tribbett, Tadre Sheppard, E.J. Gallup, Kyle Downey, and Tiki Mayben started for the Legends. Johnson wasn't there when the game started and arrived at halftime.

Ryan Edwards scored the first points of the game and the Soldiers went up 2-0. They ended up scoring the first 6 points of the game and led 18-8 with 5:56 left in the first quarter. Mayben then went on an 8-0 run all by himself in a series of plays that included consecutive 3-pointers, a block, and two free throws. That cut the lead to 2 and the Legends were down 18-16. Another 5 points in a row by Mayben put the Legends up 21-20. Another 3-pointer by Mayben put the Legends up 28-26, but the Soldiers led 29-28 at the end of the 1st.

Both teams went head-to-head in the second quarter. The game was tied 31-31 with 10:51 left and then tied again 39-39. The game was tied up again 50-50, but them the Soldiers went on a 10-0 run to go up 60-50 and John Coffino called a time-out with 2:52 left in the quarter. The first half ended with the Soldiers up 63-60.

The Legends and Soldiers continued to battle in the second half. A breakaway dunk by Mayben cut the Soldiers' lead to 1 and the score was 78-77. At the end of the 3rd, the Soldiers were up 99-94.

The game went down to the wire in the 4th. The Soldiers were leading 129-127 with less than a minute left in regulation. The Legends were still down by 2 after a layup by Johnson with 30.3 seconds left. The Soldiers then turned the ball over with 19.2 left. In the clutch, Mayben made a floater and the game was tied 131-131 with 11.6 seconds left. Edwards missed a shot that probably would have won it for the Soldiers and the Legends couldn't get a shot off before time expired. The game went into overtime.



The Soldiers went on a 12-5 run to start overtime and were up 143-136 with 1:46 left in OT. A dunk by Sheppard cut the lead to 3 and the Legends were down 145-142 with 1:10 left. Later, a 3-pointer by Mayben cut the lead to 2 and the Legends were down 147-145. Late in the game, a 3-point play by Sheppard cut the lead to 1 and the Legends were down 149-148. However, the Legends would never come any closer and a highlight dunk by Edwards with seconds left in OT served as the dagger. The Soliders won 153-148 as Mayben missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that wouldn't have mattered.

One of the big differences in the game was rebounding. Kankakee out-rebounded Albany 55-39. Another big factor was that the Legends couldn't get defensive stops when they needed them. Also, the Legends only shot 11 of 39 from 3-point range.

Player of the Game: Tiki Mayben - He scored 50 points (2nd most in Albany Legends history), dished out 14 or 7 assists (Times Union said he had 7 assists, the Albany Legends website said he had 14 assists), and grabbed 6 rebounds on his 25th birthday, but the Legends still lost to the Soldiers in a heart-breaker. He shot 19 of 39 from the field and hit 6 out of 7 free throws.

Tadre Sheppard and Kyle Downey also had great games. Sheppard scored 42 points off of 18-23 field goals and Downey finished with 25 points, a game-high 13 rebounds, and 6 assists. E.J. Gallup and Lloyd Johnson also gave solid efforts. Gallup had 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists and Johnson (who fouled out) finished with 11 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds.

Zach Bye, Marcus Snipes, and Kenny Tribbett combined for 10 points while T.J. Czeski, Guy Dupuy, Josh Jones, and Evan Lane  (who all received limited playing time) went scoreless. I'm not sure Jones even played at all. Lane struggled in his return to Albany and will be looking to bounce back later today.

Ryan Edwards finished with 34 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists (This should come as a surprise to no one who has ever seen him play or follows the IBA). Billy Rush had an even better game and finished with 52 points and 12 rebounds. Stan Chismark, Anthony Kyle, and CeCe Malone also had productive games and all finished with double-doubles.

Random Highlight of the Game: Tiki Mayben throws an alley-oop to Tadre Sheppard.



Next, the Albany Legends (7-1) will play the Kankakee County Soldiers (6-1) today at 7 pm at CBA. The Legends need to win this game in order to keep first place. However, keep in mind that the Legends have never lost a home series before.

Have any thoughts on the Legends losing for the first time this season. Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Gallup Drops 45 as Legends Beat Splash in Comeback Win

Last night, the Albany Legends completed a sweep of the second-place Gary Splash behind 45 points by E.J. Gallup.

Lloyd Johnson, Emanuel Mayben, E.J. Gallup, Tadre Sheppard, and Kenny Tribbett were the starters for the Legends. Meanwhile, the Splash only had 7 players in uniform. The first basket of the game was a layup by Mayben, but the Splash responded with a 6-0 run to go up 6-2. Later, a 3-point play by Mayben put the Legends up 13-12, but the Splash regained the lead. Gary pulled away and led 29-20 at the end of the quarter.

The Splash continued to pull away in the 2nd quarter. They led by 14, but a 3-pointer by Gallup later cut the lead to 10. Then, the Splash went up by 19 for their biggest lead of the game. However, the Legends ended the first half with a bang and cut the lead to 9 and were down 58-49 at halftime.

During halftime, Guy Dupuy did an off-the-bounce, between-the-legs dunk over an intern:



The Legends started the second half with a 14-0 run and went up 63-58. Later, an alley-oop from Gallup to Sheppard put the Legends up 77-67. A 3-pointer by Gallup during the next possession put the Legends up 80-69 and another three by Gallup put the Legends up 83-71. At the end of the 3rd, a Splash player heaved a halfcourt shot that he released after the buzzer and made it. Much to the dismay of the fans and Legends coach John Coffino, the referees counted it and Albany led 85-80 at the start of the fourth.

The Splash tied the game 95-95, but a 4-point play by Gallup but the Legends up 99-95. Another 4-point play by Gallup served as the dagger and put Albany up 115-104. The Legends won 118-108.

Player of the Game: E.J. Gallup (45 points, 12-of-17 from 3-point range)

Lloyd Johnson scored 22 points, dished out 6 assists, and grabbed 5 rebounds in the win. Emaunel Mayben helped out with 21 points and 7 assists. Tadre Sheppard finished with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field and 7 rebounds.

Star of the Series: Lloyd Johnson (averaged 29.5 points, 6 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game in series)

Next, the Albany Legends (7-0) will play the Kankakee County Soliders (5-1), the 2011 Winter IBA Champions, on April 27th.. Their star player, Ryan Edwards, is a scoring machine and scored 57 points in a win against the Springfield Express this season.

Sources: Times Union, http://ibaball.net/kankakee-soldiers, http://ibaball.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/4-20-2012-soldiers-vs-express-box-score.pdf)

Have any thoughts on the Legends sweeping the Splash? Was E.J. Gallup's 45 points last night more impressive than Lloyd Johnson's 51-point performance against the Capitals? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Legends Beat Splash in Coffino's First Game as Head Coach

The Albany Legends are still in first place after beating the Gary Splash 127-114 at CBA on Friday night in John Coffino's first game as head coach of the team.

The undefeated Legends faced up against the Splash, who had the second best record in the IBA behind Albany. Lloyd Johnson, Kyle Downey, E.J. Gallup, Tadre Sheppard, and Kenny Tribbett were the starters for the Legends. A jumpshot by Tribbett, a layup by Johnson, and a 3-pointer by Kyle Downey put the legends up 7-0 to start the game. However, the Splash went on a 17-6 run and were up by 4 with three minutes left in the 1st quarter. A layup by Sheppard tied the game at 17-17 with a 1:30 left and the quarter ended with the game tied 21-21.

The Legends and the Splash continued to go head-to-head in the 2nd quarter. Midway through the period, the Legends led 43-40, but the Splash came back and went up 56-53 at halftime.

The second half started with a 5-0 run by the Splash, but the Legends responded with an 11-2 run and went up 64-63 after a 3-pointer by Johnson. Later, back-to-back baskets by Gallup put the Legends up 77-73. Albany led 89-80 at the end of the 3rd.

The Legends continued to pull away in the 4th quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Gallup put the Legends up 110-93 and they never looked back. Late in the game, an alley-oop from Zachary Bye to Guy Dupuy left a Splash player posterized and the crowd going crazy (Unfortunately, it happened when I wasn't filming). The Legends ended up winning 127-114.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (37 points, 8 steals, 6 assists, 4 rebounds). He has emerged as the team's leader and go-to guy.

Tadre Sheppard also had a great game and scored 33 points and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. He also made 14 out of 22 field goals and shot over 60% from the field. E.J. Gallup finished with 15 points and led the Legends with 7 assists. Kyle Downey had a good all-around game and finished with 16 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds.

Marcus Snipes and Emanuel Mayben were in street clothes and didn't play. Snipes is probably still recovering from whatever injury caused him to miss last series. Mayben was suspended.

I like John Coffino. He seems like a cool guy and I'll think he's going to do well as head coach of the Legends. He's gotten off on the right start by winning his first game with the team. Then again, the Legends have won every game with every coach they've had this season.

Random Highlight of the Game: A missed dunk by the Gary Splash leads to an alley-oop from Lloyd Johnson to Tadre Sheppard.



The Legends (6-0) will play the Splash (8-2) again today at 7:00 pm at CBA to conclude the series. Regardless on whether the Legends win or lose, they will stay in first place.

(Sources: Times Union, http://ibaball.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/4-20-2012-legends-vs-splash.pdf)

Have any thoughts on the Legends beating the Splash? What do you think of John Coffino? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Johnson Dominates as Legends Sweep Capitals and Stay Undefeated

The Albany Legends defeated the Lansing Capitals in all 3 games this past weekend at CBA and are now 5-0.

Game 1 - April 13th, 2012:

I wasn't at this game because I was in New York City watching the Knicks crush the Wizards at Madison Square Garden. However, the Legends continued their undefeated season in my absence and beat the Lansing Capitals 133-126 and improved their record to 3-0.

Kyle Downey played in his first game as a pro. Lloyd Johnson led all scorers with 35 points in his season debut with the Legends. Josh Jones chipped in with 11 points and a team-high 12 rebounds while Tadre Sheppard also helped out with 22 points and 7 rebounds.

Terrance Shaw led the Capitals in scoring and rebounds with 26 points and 18 boards in the loss.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (35 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds)

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Game 2 - April 14th, 2012:

The Legends beat the Capitals again on Saturday 140-132 this time. E.J. Gallup led the Legends with 25 points. Lloyd Johnson scored 21 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, and dished out a game-high 6 assists. Emanuel Mayben chipped in with 17 points and 5 assists while Josh Jones also helped out with 17 points and 8 rebounds.

Terrance Shaw had another great night and led the Capitals in scoring and rebounding again. He finished with 32 points and 15 rebounds in the loss.

Towards the end of the game, Guy Dupuy got in a physical altercation with Will Wright of the Capitals and was ejected from the game. Wright received a technical foul.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (21 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists)

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Game 3 - April 15th, 2012:

Sunday's game was by far the most exciting game of the series and one of the most memorable Legends games of all-time.

The Legends only had 9 players in uniform. Marcus Snipes and Guy Dupuy were in street clothes. Snipes was on crutches and Dupuy was probably serving a suspension for getting thrown out of the game the night before. I walked into the building at the same time he did, 19 minutes before tip-off at 5:41. He had on a Jordan jumpsuit and a backwards Raiders hat. He was showin' some swag:

The Legends led for most of the game until the Capitals went on a run in the 3rd quarter. At the start of the 4th quarter, the Legends were down 93-91 despite leading by 20 points earlier in the game.

Both teams played hard in the 4th and battled until the end. A short jumper by Lloyd Johnson put the Legends up 128-125 with 21.4 seconds left in regulation.


The Capitals answered back with a 3-pointer by Ty Motley and Emanuel Mayben missed a long jumpshot at the buzzer. The game went into overtime with the game tied 128-128.

The Legends and the Capitals went head-to-head in overtime, but a few altercations by Legends players were key. Lloyd Johnson started arguing with the coaching staff after being replaced in the game by Kyle Downey. He exchanged some tense words with both coaches because he didn't want to be taken out of the game.

Almost directly after that, Mayben got in the face of a Capitals player and was issued a technical foul. He responded by storming off the court, taking off his jersey, and throwing it on the ground in Andrew Bynum-like fashion (Think of Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Western Conference Semi-Finals). He stayed in the locker room for the rest of the game. Despite leaving the game in disappointing fashion, Mayben finished with 27 points and 9 assists. Ironically, Lloyd Johnson was put in the game to replace him.

The Legends were up 148-146 with not much time left in OT and E.J. Gallup was intentionally fouled by the Capitals. He could have iced the game up, but made only one of two free throws. The Capitals were down 3 with a few seconds left. They brought the ball up from their backcourt and Ty Motley nailed a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the game to double overtime.

Lloyd Johnson heated up in the second overtime period and rained 3-pointers. The Legends pulled away and won 173-159 in 2OT.

Terrance Shaw had a phenomenal game (47 points and 18 rebounds), but was unable to prevent the Capitals from getting swept. The Capitals are now 3-5.

Player of the Game: Lloyd Johnson (Legends franchise high 51 points, 17-28 field goals, 8 3-pointers

Star of the Series: Lloyd Johnson - He is now the only Legends player to have played in all 3 seasons and wowed the fans at CBA in his first 3 games back with the Legends after playing overseas in Italy.

Tadre Sheppard had a lesser role in these past 3 games than the first 2 games of the season. The return of Lloyd Johnson had a lot to do with it. Johnson carried the scoring burden and indirectly limited Sheppard on offense. However, Sheppard still played an important role in each of the past three wins for Albany and finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds on Sunday. He should continue to be a key player this season for the Legends.

Kyle Downey played his first three games this weekend with the Legends. He didn't put up overwhelming stats, but helped the team and utilized himself well. Downey is replacing Scott Morton on the roster and I think the team will break even with that move. Morton's height, defense, athleticism, and energy will be missed, but I think the Legends should play just as well without him.

Zachary Bye and T.J. Czeski gave solid contributions off the bench in the series. Bye rebounds very well for his size and plays solid on offense and defense. He got some questionable fouls called on him and fouled out in Sunday's game. Czeski will be battling for minutes now that the Legends are stacked at the point guard spot, but distributed the ball and scored well in the series.

Marcus Snipes was on crutches and didn't play in the series. Josh Jones stepped up in his absence and played well.

Next, the Albany Legends (5-0) will play the Gary Splash (8-1) in a two-game series starting on Friday, April 20th. The Legends and the Splash have the two best records in the IBA so far this season.

Sources:
http://ibaball.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/4-13-12-box-score-ny-vs-lansing1.pdf
http://ibaball.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/4-14-2012-box-score-albany-vs-lansing.pdf
http://www.timesunion.com/sports/article/Legends-get-sweep-3484076.php

Have any thoughts on the Legends sweeping the Capitals? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Sheppard's 25 Helps Legends Sweep Knights

The Albany Legends have completed a sweep of the Battle Creek Knights behind Tadre Sheppard's 25 points and won 113-93. The Legends improve to 2-0 while the Knights are now 0-3.

I wasn't at this game because I was too busy helping my rec basketball team win a playoff game and advance to the championship, which will take place later today (I digress).

However, stats don't lie. Sheppard led all scorers with 25 points off of 9-11 field goals. He now averages 24 points per game and is shooting 62.5% from the field in his first two games with the Legends. Can he keep this level of play up? I don't know, but it is clear that he will be a go-to guy and will continue to play a major role on the team.

Zach Bye scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds. He doesn't seem like the type to grab 12 rebounds, but I think that he is doing a great job this season. Bye is trying his best, shooting at a good field goal percentage, and is obviously exerting a lot of effort on the boards.

Scott Morton is a great role player. He led the Legends with 5 assists yesterday, scored 4 points, and shot 100 percent from the field. I imagine that he would be a shoe-in starter if Sheppard or Tribbett got injured.

Emanuel Mayben scored 22 points and made 10-of-19 field goals in the win. I like Mayben and I think that he will continue to do a great job as floor general for the Legends this season.

Kenny Tribbett played a good game and scored 16 points. He shot 6-for-12 from the field and made 4 out of 4 free throws.

Josh Jones and Marcus Snipes struggled last night. They both shot under 34 percent from the field and combined for only 11 points. They both played well in the first game, so I'm not sure why they didn't play as well yesterday.

E.J. Gallup scored 16 points, shot 7-for-15 from the field, and made two 3-pointers. That's about an average game for him.

Guy Dupuy was a non-factor and scored only 2 points. I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that his only basket was a dunk.

T.J. Czeski scored 6 points off of 3-of-5 shooting. I still think that he will be a good second-string point guard for the Legends behind Mayben.

Kyle Downey still has yet to play for the Legends and I don't think Will Pratt is on the team anymore.

Player of the Game: Tadre Sheppard. He led the Legends in scoring in both games and was played a large role in sweeping the Knights.

Since I wasn't at yesterday's game, I didn't film any clips or take any pictures, but I can show you a highlight from the Legends' game on Friday. In it, Tadre Sheppard grabs an offensive rebound off of a missed 3-pointer by E.J. Gallup and lays it in for 2 points. Enjoy!



The Legends (2-0) next play a three-game series at home against the Lansing Capitals (2-1) from April 13-15. I will miss the first game of the series because I will be at Madison Square Garden seeing the Knicks play the Wizards, but I should be at the other two games.

Sources:
http://ucasports.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=190&path=mbball
http://www.albany.com/byesline/2012/03/albany-legends.html
http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Legends-win-again-3450350.php

Have any thoughts on the Legends sweeping the Knights and improving to 2-0? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

IBA: Legends Beat Knights in Season Opener 129-102

The Albany Legends won their first game of the 2012 season last night against the Battle Creek Knights 129-102.

The first thing I noticed was that Will Pratt and Kyle Downey weren't there and Pratt wasn't listed on the roster. According to timesunion.com, Downey had a prior commitment and might not play with the team until their game on April 13th. I still don't have any word on Pratt. I also noticed that Scott Morton, who played with the Legends last season, was with the team and was listed on the roster.

I predicted the starting lineup almost all right with the exclusion of Josh Jones. Emanuel Mayben, Jones, EJ Gallup, Tadre Sheppard, and Kenny Tribbett started for the Legends. The Legends won the tip and a short jumper by Mayben and a 3-pointer by Gallup put Albany up 5-0. A dunk by Tribbett put the Legends up 17-6 and another 3-pointer by Gallup put the team up 20-8. The first quarter ended with the Legends up 22-14.

The Legends kept their level of play up in the second quarter. One highlight play was when Mayben threw an off-the-backboard alley-oop to Marcus Snipes. The score at the end of the first half was 57-47.

Albany continued to dominate in the second half and started out the third quarter with a 15-5 run. The Legends kept pulling away and led 98-72 at the end of the 3rd.

The Legends came out hot in the 4th and led 113-83 with 6:15 left in the game. The Knights were unable to make a comeback and the Legends won 129-102.

Here are some observations I had:

-The Legends led the entire game and didn't look back. It was a very comfortable win for the team.

-During a dead ball in the first, Courtney Smith of the Knights noticeably shoved Mayben and it wasn't called.

-I love Scott Morton's game. He is always taking charges on defense and diving for loose balls. There was also a specific play in which Morton really impressed me. He was hard-fouled by a player on the Knights and didn't try to retaliate or anything. He just got up and shot his free throws. That's good sportsmanship.

-Guy Dupuy doesn't do much else besides dunking. He threw down some good dunks in warmups and in the game, but didn't do much else noteworthy besides making a 3-pointer in the game.

-EJ Gallup's game hasn't changed a bit. He jacked up 12 3-pointers made 5 of them. He finished with 19 points.

-TJ Czeski and Zachary Bye served as good role players off the bench. Neither of them played overly well, but they're both young and should improve over the course of the season. Czeski had a good dunk during the game and I think he will serve as a good back-up point guard to Mayben.

-Josh Jones and Marcus Snipes both scored the ball well and helped the team. I think Ben Smith should start 2 out of these 3 players at shooting guard and small forward: Jones, Snipes, and Gallup.

-Kenny Tribbett, who started for the Legends, played fairly well, but didn't seem to be overly aggressive on either side of the court. He did make a few shots from inside.

Player of the Game: Tadre Sheppard. Sheppard scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Random Highlight of the Game: EJ Gallup hits a 3-pointer off an assist from TJ Czeski.



The Legends play the Knights again today at 1:00 pm at CBA.

Sources:
http://www.fox23news.com/sports/custom/localsports/story/Albany-Legends-Win-Season-Opener-129-102/InXeEl93QUKprJ6xiK-MXw.cspx
http://www.timesunion.com/sports/article/Legends-open-with-a-victory-3448976.php

Have any thoughts on the Legends winning their first game of the season. Do you think they can go all the way this year? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

Albany Legends to Start Season on Friday

The Albany Legends are back for their third season as a franchise and there are some notable changes with the team as they start the season on Friday.

The Legends have switched leagues. They are now playing in the IBA instead of the IBL. I don't think it will be a big factor.

There are also a lot of roster changes. There are only two returning players from last season:

-Emanuel Mayben is a talented point guard who should get more minutes now that Lloyd Johnson is not with the team. He ranked third in the IBL last season with 7.3 assists per game.

-EJ Gallup is a sharp-shooting guard-forward who can make it rain from 3-point range and should continue to get a lot of minutes this season. He averaged 16.1 points in 22 games for the Legends last year.

New additions to the team include:

-Zachary Bye: I couldn't find much information on this guy, so here's everything I know: He's from Scotia, New York, he went to Saint Rose, and is 25 years old. He could be a good 3-pointer shooter like Gallup.

-TJ Czeski: This 6-2 guard from Amsterdam, New York played college ball at Wagner College. In 100 games with the Seahawks, Czeski averaged 2.3 points, 1.3 assists, and 1.3 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game. He is 24 years old.

-Kyle Downey: Downey is a rookie out of Siena College. He averaged 13.5 points per game with the Saints in his senior season that ended this year. He is a 6-2 guard and is 22 years old.

-Guy Dupuy: I had heard of Dupuy before he signed with the Legends. He is a tremendous dunker, has been featured on TeamFlightBrothers, and is well known on YouTube. Besides dunking, I don't know anything about his game.

-Josh Jones: Jones is a 6-4 shooting guard out of Husson College who was waived by the Maine Red Claws of the NBA D-League in November of last year.

-Will Pratt: Pratt is a 6-5 forward who played two seasons of D1 college basketball for Northwestern State. In his senior season (2010-2011), he averaged 17.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 1.2 assists in 32 games and shot 50.8 percent from the field. He played 11 games this season in the D-League with the Sioux Falls Skyforce and put up averages of 8.6 points and 2.1 rebounds while shooting 48% from the field. Pratt sounds very talented and I wouldn't be surprised if he leads the Legends in scoring this season.

-Tadre Sheppard: This 6-7 forward from Texas played 2 seasons of college ball at Central Arkansas and put up averages of 10.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and 1.2 steals in 52 games while shooting 53.5 percent from the field. I have never seen Sheppard play, but I imagine that he will show a lot of energy on both ends of the court.

-Marcus Snipes: Snipes played with the Legends back in April of 2010. He averaged 1.3 points and 0.5 rebounds in 4 games with the team. He is a 6-4 guard.

-Kenny Tribbett: Tribbett played in 5 seasons at Drexel University from 2005-2010 and averaged 2 points and 2 blocks in 94 games with the Dragons. He is 6-9 and from New Jersey. I expect him to be a rebounder and a presence in the post.

Here is what I think the starting lineup will be for the Legends:

PG: Emanuel Mayben
SG: EJ Gallup
SF: Will Pratt
PF: Tadre Sheppard
C: Kenny Tribbett

Key Players NOT Returning to the Legends this year:

-Deandre Thomas: Thomas helped lead the Legends to the championship in 2010 was named the Championship MVP. He was a dominant post player and his size and post-presence will be missed this season.

-Lloyd Johnson: Johnson was a key player with the Legends during their title run in 2010 and led the team in scoring last season with 19.9 points per game. However, I think that Mayben will fill the void at point guard.

-Damone Morris: Morris was an athletic shooting guard and an integral part of the championship Legends squad in 2010 who could get above the rim and make jumpshots. The Legends will miss his scoring this year.

The big problem with the Legends this season is size. Most of the players on this team are guards and it looks like some players will have to play out of position to make up for it. I think that the Legends will finish the season with a winning record like they did their first two seasons. This team could win the championship, but its too early to tell.

The Legends will play their first game of the 2012 season on Friday, March 30th at 7:00 pm against the Battle Creek Knights at home (Christian Brothers Academy). I will be in attendance and will post a blog entry on the game.

Sources:
http://ibaball.net/nyalbanylegends
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000641411096
http://www.sienasaints.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/downey_kyle00.html
http://www.sienasaints.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/031612aaa.html
http://www.sunjournal.com/news/local-sports/2011/11/15/jones-one-maines-own-red-claws-training-camp/1115480
http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/players/89052
http://www.kjonline.com/sports/claws-cut-jones_2011-11-21.html
http://basketball.realgm.com/player/Kenny_Tribbett/NCAA/18543/2010
http://www.drexeldragons.com/news/2011/3/25/MBB_0325112133.aspx
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=209804514
http://www.albany.com/byesline/2012/03/albany-legends.html
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/32860/tj-czeski
http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/players/61381
http://basketball.realgm.com/player/Will_Pratt/Summary/21726
http://www.ibl.com/player_profile.php?playerid=908
http://www.ibl.com/stats.php?year=2011

Have any thoughts on the Legends this year? Think they have what it takes to go all the way? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.