Both Teams Vying for Playoff Position
Game: Winchester Storm (4-8) at Bay Area Shuckers (10-4)
Date: Saturday, March 9, 2013
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Kilby Center, Annapolis Area Christian School, 109 Burns Crossing Road, Severn, Maryland
Last Game: The Shuckers blasted the Alexandria Avengers 143-115 on Saturday, February 23rd. The Storm had their biggest win of the season by besting the Brooklyn Firebirds 128-88 on March 2nd.
Common Opponents: Record: Shuckers 4-3, Storm 0-7, Points for: Shuckers 119.28, Storm 105.85, Points against: Shuckers 117.42, Storm 116.71.
Career Series: Shuckers lead series 1-0. Bay Area topped the Storm back on January 5th 128-124 in overtime.
Shuckers Player to Watch: #34 Dennard Abraham (6’9”, 245, Towson), #23 Ameer Ali (6’6”, 250, Morgan State), #1 Jabril Bailey (6’4”, 193, Slippery Rock), #45 F Gus Chase (6’5”, 250, Georgetown College), #5 G Rocky Coleman (6’3”, 180, Towson), #11 G Terry Hosley (6’, 160, Maryland Bible), #15 G Mike McKenzie (6’1”, 170, Delaware State), #21 G Derek Savage (6’4”, 209, Goldey-Beacom), #14 G Lamarr Shorts (6’2”, 205, Bryan College), #24 G Gerald Stansbury (6’2”, 190, Marymount), #33 F Anthony Thomas (6’6”, 212, American International), #32 F Danny Thompson (6’7”, 230, Mount St. Mary’s) .
Storm Players to Watch: G Mouktar Fawehinmi (6’1”, Shenandoah), G Tyler Crawford (6’4”, Georgetown University), F Onyie Onunaku (6’4”, Shenandoah University), Mitchell Dudley II (6’5”, Shenandoah).
Shuckers Snapshot: The Shuckers have won five of their last six games and have gone 7-2 since a 3-2 start. As a result they clinched the Colonial Division title on February 23rd with a month left in the regular season. With the entire line-up finally healthy, with the return of Derek Savage and Dennard Abraham, the Shuckers have been simply dominating. In their last two wins they blasted the Hudson Valley Kingz 143-117 and the Alexandria Avengers 143-115. With 143 points they set the team mark, twice, for most points scored in regulation time. They also established the franchise record for largest margin of victory against the Avengers with a 28-point win. With just two weeks left in the APBL regular season attention is turning to post-season honors. Several Shuckers including Terry Hosley, Gus Chase, Rocky Coleman, and Danny Thompson should be in contention for All-League nods and other recognition.
Storm Snapshot: The Storm started off the season with two losses, rebounded with two victories, but then went on a 1-6 run before winning last weekend. The victory was a dominating performance (128-88) over the Brooklyn Firebirds. The Storm’s four wins came against the Firebirds (2-12), the now-defunct West Virginia Monarchs (1-8), and two victories against the Capital City Express (1-12). Despite that, they played the league’s top team, the Rockville Victors (12-1) tough in two losses before topping the Firebirds.
Outlook: The Shuckers have secured a first round playoff game on March 30th, but still have the opportunity to move up in the Southern Conference seeding before the regular season closes. The Storm is currently ranked seventh in the Southern Conference and seeks to move past the Nova Hawks (4-8) in the standings. The Shuckers will seek to keep their momentum going heading into the playoffs when they play the Storm this weekend and finish the 2012-2013 season at the Beltway Bombers (10-3) on the 23rd.
For more information on the Bay Area Shuckers please visit www.BayAreaShuckers.com.
