Hoops Geared for Drive to the Championship
March 11, 2003 - Continental Basketball Association 2 (CBA 2)
Grand Rapids Hoops News Release
The Continental Basketball Association's Grand Rapids HOOPS are poised and ready for their American Conference championship series with the Rockford Lightning. The best-of-five series is set to begin Tuesday evening at the Rockford MetroCenter at 8:05 p.m. EST.
Grand Rapids (23-25) earned the American Conference playoff berth by winning three of their last four games to hold off the streaking Gary Steelheads. On Saturday night, the HOOPS defeated the Sioux Falls Skyforce 141-104, earning 5.5 quarter points to give them a single quarter point advantage over the Steelheads to secure the final spot.
The HOOPS were led to their second place finish by the scoring combination of Jerald Honeycutt (22.6 ppg) and Alex Scales (19.7 ppg). First-year Head Coach Rod Baker was also able to handle an ever-changing roster with perfection, bringing players such as Immanuel McElroy (11.8 ppg) and CMU-alum Tim Kisner (4.5 apg) from role players early in the season to the starting five. Room also had to be made for former NBA-veteran Olden Polynice, who was signed at mid-season and finished the season ranked third in the league with 11.5 rebounds per game. This season, Grand Rapids set a franchise record with 114.4 points per game, which ranked second in the league behind Rockford.
Rockford (32-16) was the offensive juggernaut of the league this season, averaging a CBA-high 128.3 points per game. The Lightning have the highest scoring tandem in the league in CBA-scoring leader Ronnie Fields (23.2 ppg) and Inkster-native Albert White (22.0). Rockford, who had the best record in the league, held a commanding 8-2 advantage in the season series with the HOOPS. However, due to venue conflict, Grand Rapids holds the home-court advantage in the series.
The HOOPS will return home to host Game Three on Tuesday, March 18 at the DeltaPlex Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. EST. For information on how to get in on the playoff action, call the HOOPS' offices at 616-559-7936.
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Continental Basketball Association 2 Stories from March 11, 2003
- Hoops Drop Overtime Thriller - Grand Rapids Hoops
- Hoops Geared for Drive to the Championship - Grand Rapids Hoops
- Hoops Secure Final Playoff Berth - Grand Rapids Hoops
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