Steelheads Meet Cagerz Twice in USBL's Festival Tournament
June 28, 2007 - United States Basketball League (USBL)
Gary Steelheads News Release
GARY, Indiana (June 29, 2007) - The Gary Steelheads face the Kansas Cagerz Friday and Saturday night as part of the USBL's Festival Tournament in Enid, Oklahoma. The games will be played at the Mark Price Arena.
Originally, the six remaining USBL teams were split into a pair of three-team pools. After each team played the other teams in the pool, a winner would be determined either by record or by a tiebreaker formula. Then, the winner of each pool would advance to the USBL Finals. The Steelheads were pooled with Kansas and Albany. When Albany declined participation in the Tournament, this created a necessity for Gary to play Kansas twice.
The Steelheads finished the regular season with a record of 16-11. Gary played what turned out to be its last regular-season game in Enid, Oklahoma against the Storm on June 13th. The Steelheads won in their only overtime game of the season, 98-95.
During the season, the Cagerz proved the most challenging team on Gary's schedule. In five meetings between the two teams, the Cagerz prevailed in four while the Steelheads won one. That was in the last meeting between the two teams on Memorial Day, May 28th at the Genesis Center, with Gary prevailing 103-97. The rosters of both teams have changed considerably, however, since the early part of the season.
USBL Festival activities began on Wednesday night, when the USBL announced its annual awards at the league's Tip-Off Dinner. The Steelheads' Adam Schaper was named the USBL's Rookie of the Year, while coach Cliff Levingston and General Manager Kevin Spudic were finalists for Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year respectively.
Schaper (pronounced "Shopper") averaged 8.8 ppg and 4.5 rpg, while leading the team in offensive rebounds with 44. He shot a solid .526 from the field and .773 from the foul line.
The 6-foot-10 standout at Bethel College in Mishawaka, Indiana surprised everyone when he not only made the Steelheads' roster, but earned a starting spot on opening night. Schaper paced Gary with 17 points, as the Steelheads defeated the Jackson Wildcats 114-79. He scored in double figures in each of the team's first six games.
Perhaps Schaper's most impressive performance of the season came in a 110-87 victory over Dodge City on June 5th at the Genesis Center. He hit 10-of-14 shots from the field, pacing the Steelheads with a double-double of 26 points and 11 rebounds. In forty minutes, Schaper committed just a single turnover.
"I am very happy and proud of Adam," said coach Levingston. "He knew he had what it took and stayed with it. He did very well in the free agent camps and the veterans camp, which lead him to making the roster and starting for us. That goes to show, you never know as a coach what rock you will find such as a diamond in the rough!"
"On behalf of the Gary Steelheads organization, we are very proud and excited for Adam for all of the hard work and dedication he has shown both on and off the court," said Kevin Spudic. "He is very deserving of this reward, and we look forward to bigger and better things for Adam as he continues his professional basketball career."
The Steelheads will meet the Cagerz Friday night at 5:30PM CDT at the Mark Price Arena, with a rematch Saturday night at the same time. The winner of the pool will advance to the USBL Championship Game Sunday.
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- Steelheads Meet Cagerz Twice in USBL's Festival Tournament - Gary Steelheads
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