We got off to a sluggish start to the game, and could not contain the other team's small forward. He was scoring all kinds of buckets on us, pouring in twenty by half time. Turnovers hurt us, as did all around sloppy play on both ends of the court. I was the guiltiest of anyone, committing three turnovers of my own. The referees also call the game much differently overseas, and consequently, I was hit for two travel calls on two attempted spin moves which would not have been violations back in America. Later, I was actually shocked when they did not call a travel on me following a Euro step. Jermaine also struggled with the refs as he eventually fouled out of the game in the 4th quarter. He also picked up a technical, as did Sam (who is the last guy you would expect to get a T) both in the first quarter. Apparently they give T's just for natural reactions of disapproval (without saying anything) like the NBA began obsessing over a few years back. We were frustrated and we were rusty, but my man Larry kept us in it by going 4-4 from behind the arc. Despite poor play, we trailed by only one point at the intermission.
The second half was a completely different story. After feeling like a chump in the first two quarters, I felt in control in the final two stanzas of the game. We shocked many of the fans in the crowd (probably as well as the Ansett players) with a completely different level of play in the final twenty minutes. We jumped on them right from the start of the second half's first whistle, and never looked back. After trailing by one at the half, we flipped the script and won decisively, by 25 points. Yes that's right, we blew their trash-talking booties off the court.We adjusted to the officiating, gained our composure, picked up the intensity on defense, and made plays on offense with tremendous balance. I switched on to the small forward and chased/denied him the entire game. We held him to three points in the second half. On offense, I believe we had four in double figures, and every guy on our team scored. I was the beneficiary of having hustling teammates run the floor for me, so I was able to connect on 11 assists to go with 14 points. My vision, handle, and overall feel for the game felt much better in half number two. While I am definitely happy with a double double in my first game, I still have much work to do in order as far as understanding how the refs call the game over here.
Our team is getting much better at understanding our responsibilities on the hardwood, and seems to be very capable of maintaining a balanced attack on a nightly basis. Jermaine hit one three, but mainly dominated on the boards down low and made his presence felt in the post. The other Matt did work on the wing, hitting a number of outside shots and a couple of step-backs. I love having a 24-second shot clock by the way, because it gives me an excuse to work on my step back J and take the occasional tough shot (in order to beat the buzzer more often). Larry didn't miss a three. Lucci got the award for most floor dives in one game, and Malix and Jake contributed solid statistics and minutes as well. Had our game been recorded by ESPN we might have had a Not-Top-Ten nomination when my boy Patrick air-balled a layup because he couldn't decide whether he should dunk it or finish with a finger roll, and instead of choosing one or the other, he aimed for the air in between him and the hoop. Fortunately, we were up big in the 4th when this took place. Hitting Ansett (who did have one key player injured) with a 25 point loss definitely sent a message to the rest of the league. Let it be known, the Rebels are for real.
In other news away from the court, I have accepted an invitation to move houses. After living with the general manager, Jermaine, and Matt for the past two months, I am now moving into a house on the other side of town with my Filipino teammate Malix and his family. I will not have to pay rent, nor will I have to pay for meals. Perhaps I've been spoiled. Malix is also giving me a car, which definitely helped persuade me to move out. The reason for the move is because our GM is bringing in a female basketball player to come live here as well, which means we would have five people and only four rooms. As a result, I volunteered to move out. I will miss living with Jermaine and Matt, who I've gotten along with quite well. I will still be seeing plenty of them though, and having a car for free is quite tempting. So for me, life is good right now. Essentially I just got a new car. And more importantly, I am now in my element as the the season has officially commenced. Thank you Jesus.
**I forgot to add that I also just got my number switched to #12. I've got my number again. All is well.
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