Two great semifinal games at the Forum tonight. In the first game - Riordan (Anthony Oropeza) hit a 3 at the buzzer to force OT and Jelani Clark scored the last four points in OT. James Chun shot the ball well tonight and was aggressive driving the ball to the hoop. Riordan showed some grit in coming back to win from 10 down or so but are still struggling to find their stride. I hope their transfer will be the missing piece but time will tell since he isn't eligible until January from what I've heard. On the HMB front - Ethan Menzies can flat out play and was the best player on the court IMHO.
The Berkeley vs Mission game was played at a much higher level as Berkeley got off to a quick start but Mission keeps on plugging away and fought back again and again. On the Mission side Ben Knight #15 was unbelievable as he was driving to the basket with impunity as he is clearly under 6'. McBride is also a force on the defensive with his length and timing to block and affect shots inside. Berkeley has two really nice pieces in PG Kyree Brown and wing Ben Baker. Kyree has a smooth handle enabling him to get to anywhere on the court he wants plus he's strong and can finish against the big boys inside and have a nice soft touch and range on his jumper. Ben Baker is an all around stud wing who had nice finishes inside with both hands.
I have Berkeley over Riordan by 15-20 points in the finals and I think that Mission will wear down and turnover the HMB guards big-time and will win easily in the third place game.
The Berkeley vs Mission game was played at a much higher level as Berkeley got off to a quick start but Mission keeps on plugging away and fought back again and again. On the Mission side Ben Knight #15 was unbelievable as he was driving to the basket with impunity as he is clearly under 6'. McBride is also a force on the defensive with his length and timing to block and affect shots inside. Berkeley has two really nice pieces in PG Kyree Brown and wing Ben Baker. Kyree has a smooth handle enabling him to get to anywhere on the court he wants plus he's strong and can finish against the big boys inside and have a nice soft touch and range on his jumper. Ben Baker is an all around stud wing who had nice finishes inside with both hands.
I have Berkeley over Riordan by 15-20 points in the finals and I think that Mission will wear down and turnover the HMB guards big-time and will win easily in the third place game.
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