No, no we can’t and shouldn’t.
One spot remains in the BBL playoffs as we head into the final week of the regular season. Who will take it? Let’s take a look at the two teams fighting for that final spot.
HSG, 6-7 1609 points
Currently holding that sixth and final spot, HSG has a relatively easy path to the postseason. Win and you’re in. Losers of seven of their last eight, the winning part has been hard to come by recently. With a loss and an Avalanche win, total points might be the nail in the coffin for HSG. Their week 14 matchup? The playoff bound Piranhas. In other words, HSG needs a Misfits win to guarantee a playoff berth.
AVALANCHE, 5-8 1619 points
One spot out of the playoff picture, the Avalanche need a win AND a HSG loss. Unlike HSG, the Avalanche have won five out of their last seven matchups and have a perfect opponent in front of them to pull off a historic turnaround. Currently holding the advantage in points, a playoff appearance seems more than likely. The Avalanche have never wanted the Piranhas to win more than this week.
Meanwhile, the Icecaps and GWW have clinched first round byes, none of which should come as a surprise to the league. The only surprise would be if any of these teams don’t make the championship.
On to the recaps!
WINNERS
GWW, 163.16
Take your league narratives elsewhere! With Josh Allen on a bye and the Dallas defense scoring 0, GWW said ‘watch this’ and still put up over 160. Thanks to Metcalf having a career night (37), GWW can also thank their running back room. CMC, Kamara and Conner each scored over 22. They were even down a QB and were forced to start backup Jameis Winston, who actually scored a point. Credit to that move when Derek Carr was the starter. Clinching a first-round bye, does this team have what it takes to eliminate the Icecaps? Certainly. However, they won’t be able to knock off the Icecaps if they keep dropping Nico Collins type caliber players to the waiver wire. A chance to secure the overall number one seed is on the table when they battle HCTM.
ICECAPS, 154.88
The Icecaps clinched a first-round bye as well with their convincing win over the Avalanche. With the trio of Tua, Hill and Achane combining for 74, an additional 19 from Kyren Williams and that almost equaled the entire total from the Avalanche. The Icecaps have their sights set on a championship and nothing less. Well, they might also be on the lookout for the overall number one seed and the most overall points, but I think they’d rather have a championship. I could be wrong though.
THUNDER, 150.96
Rebounding from last week, the Thunder clinched a postseason berth with their win over the Piranhas. Led by Purdy (37) and waiver wire stud Nico Collins (27), overall it was a solid week. I’d also just like to personally thank Galen for dropping Nico Collins, best $5 spent by far. The Thunder will face the Icecaps this week to see if they have what it takes to battle the league favorites to win it all.
SQUATCHES, 143.44
Winners of three of their last four, where was this at the beginning is the season? Finding their stride at the wrong time, the Squatches are hoping that the BBL forms a playoff committee and decides the playoff teams based on the eye test rather than objective results. They would even like it the league decided that the final playoff spot went to the team with the most points. Until then, the Squatches have a chance to impact the playoff picture yet again this week battling the struggling Sandstorms.
HCTM, 139.92
I’ll tell you what, despite multiple teams being eliminated, they still are finding ways to impact the playoff picture. First the Squatches and now HCTM. Facing a deficit for most of the afternoon, insert Deebo Samuel. Samuel’s 32 along with Jordan Love’s 30 gave HCTM their fourth win of the season. One final chance to impact playoff seeding awaits in week 14 with GWW on the schedule.
LOSERS
PIRANHAS, 137.62
Following up a 190-point performance with a 137 isn’t bad, the Thunder just had a better week. However, they opted to bench Trey McBride instead of David Njoku, which would have added 14 points to the overall score line, putting them at 152. I’m no mathematics major, but that roster adjustment would have resulted in a win. Jordan will have to look elsewhere at the WR position in the coming weeks after losing Tank Dell to a season ending injury. What’s worse is this team traded away Metcalf and Brown, furthering their lack of receiver depth. The Piranhas cannot afford any more receiver injuries. The Piranhas have a chance to eliminate HSG from the playoffs, making this matchup must see television.
SANDSTORMS, 133.76
Well, I’m not sure what to say about this team. Losers of four straight, the Sandstorms should be happy about their fast start. Despite not winning in the last month, the Sandstorms will be in the playoffs based on the rest of the league. After getting 36 points from Geno Smith on Thursday, things were actually looking good. Then Deebo Samuel happened. Seemingly out of the matchup, they were given false hope on Monday night with Etienne and Engram pulling the deficit to within six. I guess we need to work on conditioning here for the stretch run. Facing the Squatches next week, the Sandstorms need any kind of momentum they can get heading into the postseason.
MISFITS, 130.76
No victory poem today, especially when you run into the highest scorer in GWW. Forced to start Bailey Zappe, you probably could have predicted the outcome. Nonetheless, the Misfits still find themselves in a position to impact the playoff picture in a big way. Facing the Avalanche, if the Misfits can win, it would lock HSG into the final playoff spot. To be safe, if you’re HSG, you are big Misfits fans this weekend.
HSG, 121.30
It keeps getting worse for this squad. Going 1-7 over the past two months, Tim is glad the BBL doesn’t have a committee to decide the playoffs because they would be the first team out. Not passing the eye test in the slightest way possible, HSG has averaged a measly 113 points over the last eight weeks. You want to talk about a fluke, look no further. Remember, this team started 5-0. Still fighting for that last playoff spot, HSG MUST win against the Piranhas this week to get in or else the Avalanche can sneak in with a win and the tiebreaker. They need a win in the worst way or else we might be looking at one of the worst collapses in the league history.
AVALANCHE, 103.32
Suffering their second straight setback, the playoff are still in reach, thanks most in part to the flailing HSG. Six starters were in single digits and nothing they could have done would have changed the outcome. Everything hinges on next week, when the Avalanche face the Misfits. Needing a win and a HSG loss, Erk will not only be cheering for his own team, but for the Piranhas as well.
CLOSING
Cheers!
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