Kronum League Season 4 – Week 1 Recap

Nimble Jacks 145, Work Horses 97

The Nimble Jacks entered Week 1 action determined to shut down the Work Horses’ leading scorers Phil Cavalcante and Luke Dougan.  With Jacks defenders shadowing those two players, it was up to the rest of the Horses to pick up the slack.  Things started out well for the Horses as they jumped out to a 20-13 lead behind some hot shooting from Matt Kump and a 4-point ring from Dave Slusser.  However, it was all Jacks the rest of the way, as the rabbits went on a 36-9 run to end the period and lead 49-29 after one.  It was more of the same from that point on as the Nimble Jacks continued to score at will, cruising to a 48-point victory.

The Jacks shot a league-high 51.2% as a team, scoring from all over the field as they reached double-digits from each of the four zones.  Seven different players reached double figures for the Nimble Jacks but Ryan Coyne was the main catalyst for the attack.  The veteran ranger shot 66.7% from the field in tallying 44 points, 13 more points than any other league player scored in Week 1 action.  Matt Kump finished with 22 points to lead the way for the Horses.  After both averaged over 23 points per game last season, the Jacks’ shadowing tactics held Dougan and Cavalcante to 12 and 9 points, respectively.

Urban Legends 121, Jet Sets 109

In the week’s most closely-contested contest, the Urban Legends overcame some injuries to edge the Jet Sets.  With one of their top players, wedgeback Kevin Glover, already sitting out the game with a sprained MCL, the Legends also lost ranger Pat Dexter to a broken leg in the first period.  Despite playing short-handed, the Legends fought tooth and nail with the Sets, as the game remained close throughout the first two periods.

Then, although he finished the game shooting just 25.0%, Legends’ leading scorer Kevin Clark stepped up when it mattered most, knocking down an 8-point Kronum to take a 5 point lead with 8 minutes left.  On the next possession, Clark hit a 4-pointer from the cross zone to put the Legends up nine and the team would not look back from there.  Spurred by that 12-point burst, Clark finished with a game-high 31 points.  Teammate Mike Ragan provided consistent scoring throughout the game, finishing with 30 points and 8 assists.  Jeff Regensburg paced the Jet Sets with 23 points and Matt Parsons chipped in 18 points.

Night Owls 108, Throwbacks 80

In the week’s most surprising result, the Night Owls showed off their new swarming defense in blowing out the Throwbacks.  After a sloppy start by both sides with neither team able to earn much of an advantage, the Night Owls went on a 27-6 run to go up 66-45 midway through the second period.  The Throwbacks called a timeout to try and stop the bleeding but Owls’ captain Kyle McGrath hit an 8-point kronum on the Owls’ next possession, effectively serving as the dagger.

Following all their talk about a revamped defense, the Night Owls backed it up on the playing field.  They sported the best save percentage in the league at 54.4%, as well as tied for most blocks and steals.  McGrath and Bob Zane led the way offensively for the Owls; McGrath scored a game-high 28 points, while Zane recorded 23 points on a spectacular 9-10 shooting.  The Throwbacks struggled to score throughout the game, but wedgeback Jim Bradley did record a double-double with 10 points on 62.5% shooting, as well as 10 saves. 

Week 1 Leaders:

Points – Ryan Coyne (44), Kevin Clark (31), Mike Ragan (30)

Assists – Scott Kennedy (12), Chris Von Tanhausen (11), Ryan Coyne (9), Nick DeLuca (9)

Saves – Sean Kennedy (14), Scott Anderson (13), Derek Clouser (11)

Blocks – Shaun Stevens (7), Dan Geiger (5), Chris Von Tanhausen (4)

Steals – Matt Parsons (4), Chris Von Tanhausen (3), Kevin Clark (3)