Summer League hoops is quickly coming to a close. After a great set of games on Monday night, Thursday night will be the final night of pool play. Some teams are looking to solidify their positions for the tournament that starts next Monday while others are trying to get themselves a better seed so they get better matchups that could take them to a championship.
Here is what to look forward to on Thursday night at the Omaha Sports Academy:
Game of the Night:
7:45 p.m. Court 1: Regulators (3-2) vs. UNO Alumni (3-2)
The Battle of Omaha takes place as the Regulators, full of Bellevue University graduates, takes on UNO Alumni in a game that could have some interesting seeding implications with a loss by either team putting them into a potentially lower half seed. Nine teams have 3-2 or 2-3 records, but this one is only one of two games pitting two teams with these records up against each other. Both teams were on the losing side last week so both will be hungry for a win.
For UNO Alumni, they are the defending MBL champs. If they want a good position to repeat, they will need to win this game and get that favorable seed. Close games has been their challenge this summer almost giving away a couple of games late and playing with house money. If you aren’t pulled away by a few other intriguing 7:45 games, this one you will want to watch.
Bluejay Games:
8:45 p.m. Court 2: OFWF (2-3) vs. NEBHSSPORTS.COM (5-0)
Bluejays to Watch: Justin Patton, Khyri Thomas, Antoine Young, Toby Hegner, Davion Mintz
Despite OFWF’s record, they will definitely take it to NEBHSSPORTS.COM as they are the last undefeated team in the league this summer. On Monday, OFWF was shorthanded with Toby Hegner and Austin Hennings unavailable. If they are able to play this week, they will hope to stop the duo of Creighton’s Justin Patton and Khyri Thomas. No one has really been able to stop them and they will get their points and rebounds. The key is if they have a third player that can step up to fill in the void left by KJ Scott. NEBHSSPORTS.COM has a lot of options as Kevin Metoyer, Mitch Hahn, or even former Creighton point guard Antoine Young could get hot and complement Patton and Thomas.
A fun matchup might be incoming Creighton freshman Davion Mintz going up against Khyri Thomas. If OFWF wants to have a chance, Mintz will need to setup up on offense and defense. If that can happen, then they have a chance to upset the last undefeated team.
7:45 p.m. Court 2: Bank of Nebraska (2-3) vs Going Vertical (4-1)
Bluejays to Watch: Devin Brooks, Justin Carter
Devin Brooks was not available on Monday and Bank of Nebraska struggled to field a team. Hopefully that was an anomaly since the game was on Monday night and not the usual Thursday.
However, Going Vertical may not care who they are playing against as they are really coming together as a team. They also experienced winning a close game when they played Narmi Group @ Baird on Monday. UNO’s Tra-Deon Hollins and Tre’Shawn Thurman have been a delight to watch this summer. Fans in the metro area should plan to go to one of their games this upcoming season. With a win Thursday, Going Vertical could be anywhere in the 1-3 seed for the Tournament.
7:45 p.m. Court 3: Judd Knispel Insurance (1-4) vs. BD (4-1)
Bluejays to Watch: Marcus Foster, Kaleb Joseph ?
Marcus Foster had a game on Monday night pouring in 39 points for the 20+ point win. Watching his precision should get Creighton fans very excited about what he can do here this winter for the Bluejays. Between him and Wayne State’s Matt Thomas, the ball keeps going in the basket for them.
However, the chances for win #2 for Judd Knispel will be that much harder on Thursday. BD suffered their first loss of the summer on Monday. They will have a little more athleticism and will be able to guard the Judd Knispel players than OFWF could do on Monday night. In the loss, BD had chances, but some of the shots that normally go in went in and out they were beat off of most contested rebounds and 50/50 balls. I fully expect James Parrott and Jelani Johnson’s crew to fight for rebounds this week and position themselves to be at least the #2 seed heading into next week.
8:45 p.m. Court 1: Air Force (0-5) vs. Narmi Group @ Baird (2-3)
Bluejays to Watch: Ronnie Harrell, Tyler Clement, Jahenns Manigat, Taylor Stormberg, Matt Dorwart
The pretty much all-Creighton player team should be getting looked at more than they are. Each of their games, despite their 2-3 record have been all very close. They lost by 4 to UNO Alumni in week 1, beat the Lopers in week 2 by 10, lost to Winning Mentality by 1, won by 2 to Apex Foster Care, and on Monday night lost by two. In a sense, Narmi Group was only 7 points away from being undefeated right now. They have a great opportunity against the Offutt Air Force team to move their record to 3-3 and surprise some people in the tournament next week. Air Force will be hungry for their first win, so expect this to be a very competitive game.
8:45 p.m. Court 4: Lopers (2-3) vs. EQ School of Hair Design (0-5)
Bluejays to Watch: Maurice Waton Jr.
The Lopers broke a three game losing streak on Monday with a big win over Offutt Air Force Base. They have a great opportunity against EQ School of Hair Design to keep that momentum going. EQ will need more than Maurice Watson to get their first win of the summer and have success in the end of the season tournament. However, as Marcus Foster had a great game on Monday night for Judd Knispel Insurance to get them their first win, Watson may be able to do that as well to get EQ on the board.
Others:
7:45 p.m. Court 4: Apex Foster Care (2-3) vs. Rooferees (3-2)
The Rooferees are on a roll now with a solid roster that can compete with anyone in the league. Grant Gibbs was a huge addition last week however, it is expected that he won’t be playing with the Rooferees anymore because of “The Basketball Tournament” and the team he is on for that. However, the combination of Andre Smith’s all around play, Jason Dourisseau’s abilities to drive to the basket and Derek Fletcher’s outside shooting, it wouldn’t be a surprise if league organizer Jason Isaacson’s team can get the win and position themselves for a nice seed heading into next week
Apex Foster Care (Peru St.) has been up and down all summer long and has been close in every loss they have had. There are some pretty good athletes on there that could make an impact in the game and help carry them with some momentum heading into the tournament.
8:45 p.m. Court 3: Shanks Law Firm (3-2) vs Winning Mentality (4-1)
This game may be at the bottom of this preview, but in reality it is a very important game for both squads. Winning Mentality has been on a tear through the league winning four straight after losing the summer opener to BD by 29 points. They have been able to regroup and position themselves to get one of the top 5 seeds going into next week if they get a win on Thursday night.
Shanks Law Firm (Nebraska Wesleyan grads) have had their own success lately including Trey Bardsley’s 11 three-pointers and 35 points in their victory over Bank of Nebraska on Thursday. Get a win here and they will finish in the top half of the league and could definitely be the surprise of the league in the tournament.
Check back with White and Blue Review on Thursday night and Friday morning for recaps of the games. Keep updated by visiting the MBL Summer League mini-site, and following things on Twitter @OMAMetroLeague.
