REGULAR SEASON: Columbus, Wilkes-Barre, Eugene (Twice), Columbia, Salt Lake City, Ocala, Roswell
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Olympia (Consolation Game 1)
REGIONAL TOURNAMENT: Dallas (Consolation Game 2), Brunswick (Consolation Game 4)
REGULAR SEASON: Asheville, Olympia (Twice), Roswell, Salem, Carson City, Tucson
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Salt Lake City (Round 1), Roswell (Consolation Game 2)
REGIONAL TOURNAMENT: Biloxi (Round 1), Starkville (Consolation Game 3), Frankfort (Consolation Game 5),
Alexandria (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 156
I inherited a Long Beach team that had qualified for the National Tournament under computer control in Season 25. The "Peabody Softies" as they were called then marched through the Conference Tournament as a #4 seed and won the automatic bid. Long Beach was a #15 seed in the Big Dance, and got hammered by the Camden Black Knights, but regardless, I had high expectations for this team at the start of the season.
However, Season 26 for the Predators was marked by maddening inconsistency. Long Beach had three of Conference 31's top six scorers, it's second-leading rebounder, and it's leading assist man, and yet the team only managed a pedestrian 11-13 final record. After Tremaine Hubbard, the lack of height hurt the team badly in the rebounding department. The starting lineup was very young, and there was little depth on the bench.
Things started off wrong in the very first game when Long Beach laid an egg against the Asheville War Beagles, a computer-controlled team that lost 17 of its next 23 games. After rebounding with wins over lower-tier teams in Columbus, Wilkes-Barre, and Conference 31-doormat Eugene, the Predators lost two winnable division games against the Olympia Melanomas and the Roswell Lone Rangers.
Undersized PF Madden Bullock played valiantly against C31's Player of the Year Walker Kohan of Olympia, but the Preds simply never got their offense on track in that 78-72 loss. The run-and-gun Lone Rangers of Roswell proceeded to run Long Beach off the floor in a six-point win two nights later.
Everything looked back on track after the seventh game, in which Long Beach defeated the Columbia Morfus, at the time the 8th-ranked team in the entire league. The Predators scratched out a one-point win, and gave signs that their early season losses were a fluke.
But two very bad conference losses to Salem and Carson City later that same week erased those conceptions quickly. The Predators came out astonishingly flat in both games, losing by a combined 46 points.
A big win over the defensive-minded Salt Lake City Gryphons followed, but the Predators fell back into their bad habits just two nights later, dropping a 79-72 decision to a very beatable team from Tucson. Long Beach made it back to 7-6 after beating up Ocala and Eugene, two of League 2's bottom feeders. But again, the Predators were unable to sustain their winning ways, botching a second-half lead and losing another winnable game to Olympia.
The Predators finished the regular season with a wild 107-102 overtime win over Roswell, putting them at 8-7 overall, but giving them only a 4-6 conference record, good enough for only sixth place. The Predators then fell flat on their faces in the Quarterfinal round of the Conference Tournament, not even coming close in an 81-65 loss to Salt Lake City. The Gryphons had scored 80 points against only two other teams prior to that game.
Tucson, the #7 seed, upset both Olympia and Salt Lake City before losing 96-72 to top-seeded Carson City in the Championship Game. The Kingmambos took home both the regular and postseason conference titles.
The Predators finally got the Olympia-monkey off their back, beating the Melanomas 96-82 in a Consolation game, but promptly laid another egg against Roswell two nights later to drop to 9-9.
Long Beach was relegated to the Regional Tournament as a #5 seed, behind five Conference 31 teams that reached the PTT or higher. Oddly enough, all eight teams in the Conference lost in the first round of their respective tournaments.
Even in the RTT Long Beach couldn't muster up a sustained streak, as the Predators lost to the Biloxi Hoseheads, 88-86. The Long Beach fans and coaching staff were absolutely seething after losing that game to an inferior team. With only two higher seeds winning in the opening round of the entire Southeast Region (and the #8 seed reaching the "Final Four"), the Predators could have made a good run had they gotten past Biloxi. The Consolation games offered up more of the same. The Predators beat Dallas and Brunswick handily, but were absolutely dreadful in a loss to Starkville, and were torched for 57 points by the Frankfort guards alone. To top it all off, Long Beach blew an 8-point halftime lead in the finale against Alexandria, after being outscored 48-29 in the second half.
Two Long Beach players got showered with the individual awards announced after the 21st game. Freshman wonderkid Aron Hilbert was not only the easy choice for Conference 31 Freshman of the Year, he also made the All-Conference First Team in his very first season of college ball. Madden Bullock, despite playing out of position at Power Forward, also garnered enough votes to make the All-Conference First Team. Those accolades were very well deserved, but the coaching staff felt that Senior Gavin Bonn got snubbed by not even making it on the All-Conference Second Team, while marginal players such as Jonah Stark of Carson City and Tremaine Dennis of Olympia did get those honors.
The big oddity in the National Tournament was that all four #5 seeds reached the Elite Eight, while none of the top seeds managed to make it to the fourth round. However, only one of those #5 teams reached the Final Four.
The only #5 to reach the fifth round was Hot Springs A & M out of the Northwest Region, which defeated the 11th-seeded Lansing Lackeys 93-74. Lansing had eliminated perennial powerhouse Plainview in the third round. The second-seeded Oxford Bayou Bengals made it out of the Northeast Region with a win over the Orlando Huskers, while last year's finalists, the Daytona Bobcats and the defending champion Augusta Penguins, made it out of their regions as #2 seeds. Augusta took down Yonkers 87-82, while Daytona eliminated St. Martinville 75-68.
Some new blood then reached the National Championship Game. Both Augusta and Daytona were beaten in the Semifinals, with Hot Springs edging out the champs 74-72, and Oxford cruising past the Bobcats 84-62.
Oxford then cruised to a surprisingly easy 82-62 demolition of Hot Springs in the title game. The Bayou Bengals claimed their second League 2 championship, along with their title won in Season 21.
Long Beach graduated only one starter, Small Forward Gavin Bonn. Bonn averaged nearly 16 PPG for his career, and was a very dependable player who consistently shot the ball well from the field. The other graduates were 6'5" Madden Bond, a poor rebounder who played all 24 games for me, but hardly any under the team's previous coaches. Farleigh Shackleford sat on the sidelines his entire Senior season, although he did play two full seasons for the team.
REGULAR SEASON: Alexandria, Biloxi, Eugene (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Dover, Salt Lake City, Tucson,
Allentown
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Tucson (Consolation Game 1), Roswell (Consolation Game 2)
PROVINCIAL TOURNAMENT: Macon (Round 1), Los Angeles (Round 2), Dearborn (Consolation Game 5)
REGULAR SEASON: Nashville, Olympia (Twice), Salem, Carson City
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Salt Lake City (Quarterfinal)
REGIONAL TOURNAMENT: Waterloo (Round 3), Chicago (Consolation Game 4), Corpus Christi (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 60
The Predators scored very nicely in recruiting, landing a class ranked 73/137, as I ended up landing 3 of my 4 targets. We won a 1/1 tie on 6'1" Ricky Madden, a slick shooting PG from Flagstaff. He doesn't enter college with the ratings that I'd hoped for, but we'll probably start him from Day 1, and monitor his progression very carefully. Long Beach also snagged our two clear leads, 6'1" Fenton Kelley, a hometown boy, and 6'3" Braxton Badgett out of Carson City. Neither are spectacular players, but both are very smart ones who should be able to produce nicely coming off the bench.
Long Beach literally blazed through their three exhibition games, outgunning three higher-ranked teams from Season 26. Scoring, a big problem at times last season for the Preds, was not an issue here, as Long Beach scored at least 82 points in all three practice games. The up-tempo offense actually worked rather well, as the Predators held their ground in the rebounding department, and absolutely shot the lights out in the second practice game against Carbondale.
The Long Beach Athletic Director intentionally scheduled games against the Alexandria Sparker and the Biloxi Hoseheads, two teams that defeated the Predators in last season's Regional Tournament. The Preds would beat them both in the rematches during the first week of Season 27. The team's offense wasn't anywhere near as prolific as the exhibitions against Alexandria, and the complete effort wasn't really there, but the Predators managed to scrape and claw their way to a 71-70 opening day victory over the Sparker. Alexandria SF Jarrod Chesser missed a long shot at the buzzer. At the end of the week, Long Beach's fast offense was simply too much for Biloxi to handle, and the Predators beat the Hoseheads 90-77. Four Predators scored at least 14 points in that game. But while the "revenge" games went well, the Predators didn't look great in the middle game against the Nashville Lions, as an inability to contain the Lions' hot shooters led to the team's first loss.
The Predators would easily win their first division game of the season, obliterating the lowly Eugene Tigers by a score of 103-58. However, the offense completely vanished against the previously winless Olympia Melanomas, as the Predators shot a dismal 25 for 69 from the field. This game was the Long Beach team's 18th loss in its last 21 meetings against Olympia. But then, with Aron Hilbert out with injury, the rest of the team stepped up in a big way, as the Predators would knock off Roswell in a 98-87 shootout.
Hilbert's return in the following game proved crucial, as the Sophomore shooting guard torched the Dover Northern Lights for 32 points as the Predators held off a late surge to win the non-conference game by nine points. However, the rest of the week turned sour, as the Predators were beaten badly by both Salem and Carson City for the second straight season. The Predators shot very poorly in both games and for some reason weren't on top of their game either night.
The Predators would open the following week with a very important 77-69 victory over Salt Lake City. The team's shooting touch returned, and it was enough to get past Salt Lake's plodding offense. Long Beach would drop 100 points on Tucson in the next game, and forced 21 turnovers in a blowout win over the Goz. A 96-84 non-conference victory over Allentown finished the week, a game in which Madden Bullock tied the team record for rebounds in a game with 18.
Aron Hilbert was held out of the next game to completely heal him from injury, and the Predators beat 1-11 Eugene by a score of 97-83 without him. Long Beach seemed to get a little complacent against this team, but all five starters finished in double figures. However, in a season-defining game against Olympia, the Predators would blow a twelve-point lead in the last ten minutes, and fall by a score of 93-92. Long Beach did nearly everything right, with the exception of a staggering 25 fouls, giving the Melanomas a huge edge at the free throw line. The stunning loss would extinguish the Preds' chances of earning the #2 seed in the conference tournament. All was not lost though, as the Predators rebounded with a 106-92 shootout win over Roswell, the team's second victory over the Sacramentos on the season. Hilbert's 36 points was huge after his bad outing in the previous game.
Long Beach finished the regular season at 10-5, and with a little help in the last game, ended up with the third seed in the Conference Tournament. However, Long Beach would perform terribly in the first round of the Conference Tourney for the second straight season, once again getting smothered by the strong defense of Salt Lake City in an 81-68 loss. The Gryphons totally shut down the Predators' high-scoring attack, as Long Beach scored fewer than 70 points for only the third time all season. Two straight seasons the Predators dominated Salt Lake in the regular season game, but fell flat on their faces in the Tournament game that counted.
The Predators would rebound with wins over Tucson and Roswell (the third of the season over the Sacramentos) to finish the regular season with a 12-6 record, and earning a spot in the Provincial Tournament, the second tier of the four. Long Beach dominated their opening round game against Macon, but in a surprising change of pace, won the game more with defense, holding the Savage Twits to just over 30% from the floor, and holding them to only 61 points. The Predators would flash some more defense in the second round, holding Los Angeles to a dreadful 29 for 71 shooting performance, and beating the Big Ballers 81-68.
The PTT run would finally end in the third round, as Long Beach fell in a marathon double-overtime game against Waterloo by a score of 97-92. The much taller Sultans dominated on the glass (51-34), and were, for the most part, able to shut down the Preds' high-powered attack. Leading scorer Jamison Fuson fouled out early in the first overtime, and Long Beach simply ran out of gas. Waterloo eventually went on to win the entire Provincial Tournament.
The Predators would finish strong in their remaining consolation games, even though they lost two of the three. Long Beach lost a 107-96 shootout against Chicago, and were torched by a hot shooting Corpus Christi team in the season finale, 108-99. The Predators handily defeated Dearborn in the second-to-last game by 25 points, even though All-League First-Teamer T.J. Harned scored 32 points for the Premium. The Preds held a whopping 45-18 rebounding edge in that game.
Long Beach dominated the Conference 31 season awards, with four of the ten honorees. Madden Bullock was named to the All-Conference First Team for the second straight season, while Aron Hilbert and Tremaine Hubbard were both selected to the Second Team. Hilbert had made First Team the previous season, and Hubbard finished as the league leader in rebounds. And Jamison Fuson was not only named to the All-Conference First Team, he was also named Conference Player of the Year. A much deserved honor for the conference's leading scorer.
In the National Tournament, three #3 seeds reached the Final Four. Sacramento came out of the Southwest over fourth-seeded Fresno, perennial powerhouse Plainview knocked off fourth-seeded Daytona in the Northeast, and Stamford upset top-seeded Spokane in the Southeast. Defending national champion Oxford came out of the Northwest as a top seed, handily defeating second-seeded Camden.
The Bayou Bengals of Oxford made it back to the title game, knocking off Sacramento by 12. Five-time champion Plainview would be their opponent after scratching out a 64-61 win over Stamford in the other National Semifinal. Plainview proceeded to earn their sixth League Two championship, crunching Oxford by a score of 89-70, denying the Bengals a repeat title.
The Predators graduated a class that only included one starter, but was ranked 95/95 in the magazines. The biggest loss would be 6'6" Jamison Fuson, who won the Conference Player of the Year award and lead in the Conference in scoring in his final season. Fuson was also selected 55th, a late second round pick, in the SIMBA Draft. The Predators also said good-bye to Colby Sego and Shea Gates, two undersized career backups, but two guys who could shoot the ball pretty well, and who added a nice veteran presence off the bench.
REGULAR SEASON: Grand Rapids, Morgantown, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Carnegie, Salem,
Carson City, Tucson, Jefferson City
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Eugene (Quarterfinals), Roswell (Semifinals), Olympia (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Ft. Lauderdale (Consolation Game 2), Independence (Consolation Game 5)
REGULAR SEASON: Minneapolis, Salt Lake City
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Peoria (Round 1), Rochester (Consolation Game 3), Baton Rouge (Consolation Game 4), Norfolk (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 30
I was expecting to win at least one of my three max ties in recruiting for Season Twenty-Eight, but the one I did win wasn't the one I was expecting. The big catch of this class was 6'8" Jawan Kelty, a solid all-around forward with good scoring touch and a strong defensive presence, giving us something we didn't have the past few seasons, a true power forward. 6'5" Franklin Padgett came in as expected with solid ratings and should make the Preds' bench quite a bit better. The third recruit, 6'8" walk-on Kip Prewitt doesn't have flashy numbers or ratings, but he does put a big body on the bench, which should give the team some better matchups when the reserves come into the game. All in all, the class is ranked a nice 70/82 by the magazines.
Long Beach was invited to the Twonament, League Two's first annual preseason tournament. The Predators were seeded 17th of the 20 teams, and matched up with some strong opposition in their group, with the #4 seed Providence, #7 Athens, and #14 Twin Falls. Providence suffered some big losses to graduation, but this was still a team that had only lost seven total games in the last two seasons, so it was an absolutely huge victory when the Predators opened the tournament by beating the Zammos 77-69. However, Long Beach was quickly humbled in the following game, as the Predators were completely shut down by Athens in a lopsided final score of 86-61. And then Twin Falls stuck one to us as well, outgunning the Predators by a score of 88-73. Long Beach only earned one win in three games, but the quality competition would prepare the team well for the coming season.
The opening game of the regular season was slowed to a snails' pace, but the Predators stiffened the defense and had just enough offense to scratch past Grand Rapids by a score of 63-49. Then we knew we had our hands full with the Minneapolis Gramophones, one of League Two's perennial powerhouses. The Predators were able to go toe-to-toe with Minneapolis for most of the game, down by only two points with two minutes to play, but the Gramophones, who made 27 of 31 free throws, converted from the line late and snuffed out any chance of a comeback, and Long Beach went down 102-91. Long Beach finished the non-conference week with a dominating performance against Morgantown, taking down the Jetplanes by 26 points thanks in large part to a 43-17 rebounding edge.
The Predators opened conference play with a 95-78 victory over an improved Eugene team. Long Beach started slowly and only lead by five at halftime, but a balanced attack featuring six players in double figures allowed the Preds to pull away in the second half. But the biggest win of the young season would easily be the first matchup against arch-rival Olympia. First, Tremaine Hubbard, who had never sunk a three-pointer in his career, hit a long-ball in the dying seconds of the second half to force overtime. And then, after Olympia hit two free throws to take a one point lead with eight seconds left in the extra period, the stage was set for a hero. And that hero was Freshman backup Center Kip Prewitt, who only played six minutes in the entire game, but he nailed the winning shot with one second to go, lifting the Predators to a stunning 90-89 win. The Predators started a bit slow in the following game against Roswell, but again used a strong second half to defeat the Sacramentos by 18, thanks to a 32-point performance from Aron Hilbert.
Long Beach needed to crank up the defense in the non-conference matchup against Carnegie, and they held the Swingers to 34% shooting in a low-key 16-point win. Then with conference play resuming, the Predators raced out to a huge early lead against Salem, and were on cruise control the rest of the way in an 86-74 victory. The next game against Carson City was definitely not our best effort, but Long Beach managed to hang on for a 75-72 victory, making it halfway through the conference schedule without a loss.
The seven-game winning streak came to an end against Salt Lake City, as the Gryphons once again managed to take the Predators completely off their game, and hang on for a 64-61 win. Tremaine Hubbard got into early foul trouble and was dominated on both ends of the floor, and Salt Lake's far smaller lineup held a 43-34 rebounding edge. It was the first truly bad performance by Long Beach on the season. However, despite a slow first half in the following game, Long Beach would get back on their feet in a huge matchup against second-place Tucson, as the Predators pulled away late for an 87-73 win. The Goz were held to just 27 second half points, and only one player managed to score in double figures. The victory gave Long Beach a two-game cushion for first place heading into the final week of division games. But first, the Predators got a bit of a gift in their final non-conference game on the regular season schedule, hammering hapless Jefferson City by a score of 104-79, to pick up win number ten on the season.
Long Beach had no trouble at all once again with Eugene, crushing the last-place Tigers by a score of 101-67. Aron Hilbert's 28 points lead the way, while the Preds shot over 57% from the floor and outrebounded Eugene 51-21. The Predators then came out with perhaps their best game of the season, CLINCHING THE REGULAR SEASON CONFERENCE TITLE after smashing arch-rival Olympia in the mouth by a final score of 87-68. Jawan Kelty finally had his breakout game, scoring 20 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 2 steals. The Long Beach defense held the Melanomas under 40% shooting, and the Preds lead by 17 points at halftime. The regular season championship brings along with it the team's first NTT berth in the three seasons since I took control of the team. In the finale against Roswell, the Predators needed a huge second half comeback to win the game, outscoring the Sacramentos 39-20 over the final ten minutes to erase a ten-point deficit. Madden Bullock had 19 points and 14 rebounds to make up for 6 turnovers, and the Predators made up for 20 turnovers with 26 free throw conversions. Long Beach finished the regular season at 13-2 with the victory, and 9-1 in the conference.
The Predators breezed through their Quarterfinal matchup with Eugene, easily defeating the Tigers 93-62. Madden (23 pts), Hilbert (22), and Bullock (22) all had big offensive games, and the Preds pulled down 50 rebounds to just 28 for the Tigers. Hubbard had 10 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 3 steals without anyone to challenge him in the paint. The Semifinal game against Roswell was a lot closer, as despite generating a 15-point halftime lead, the Predators had to stave off a furious late rally to hang on and beat the Sacramentos 101-95. Aron Hilbert was unstoppable, leading all scorers with 35 points, while Madden Bullock was equally stellar with 29. Long Beach blocked 9 shots, and played just enough defense to win despite 12 turnovers and Roswell's slim edge on the boards.
The Predators WON THE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, staving off a late rally by Olympia to win the title game 81-69. Long Beach had taken a 15-point lead into halftime, but the Melanomas had closed the gap to just one with five and a half minutes to play. From there though, Long Beach finished the game on a 13-2 run, and took home the school's second championship in four seasons, the first one for me as the coach. Hilbert lead the way with 22 points, while Madden and Bullock both had 16.
Unfortunately, the Predators' NTT run would not last long. The Long Beach defense was completely decimated by the 10th-seeded Peoria Golden Calves, who scored 56 points in the first half enroute to a 15-point lead at the break. Long Beach would not threaten from there, and the Calves won the game 85-74. It was a completely disheartening performance for Long Beach as the Predators only shot 43% and committed 21 fouls. The Calves had five players in double figures, and their two gunners, Trent Eve and Roland Kidd, combined for 41 points. Other than Hilbert's 23 points and Hubbard's 14 rebounds, not much went right at all for the Preds. Long Beach would end up winning two of the five remaining consolation games, grabbing victories over Ft. Lauderdale and Independence, while falling rather easily to Rochester, Baton Rouge, and Norfolk.
A number one, a number two, and two number four seeds reached the Final Four of the National Tournament. The Spokane Varmints were the only top seed to survive this far, slipping past seventh-seeded Madison in the Northwest Final. The Providence Zammos, the Southwest's number four seed, upset second-seeded Honolulu in double overtime. The Decatur Gilbert Grapes, the number two seed in the Northeast, coasted past thirteenth-seeded Daytona, and Hot Springs A & M, the fourth seed in the Southeast, reached their second National Semfinal in three seasons after upsetting the second-seeded Athens Straits.
Spokane squeaked into the Championship Game, defeating Providence by 1 point in overtime. Hot Springs would make their second trip in three seasons to the title game, knocking off Decatur 87-82. Hot Springs would make up for their title game loss in Season Twenty-Six, leading pretty much the entire game in a 78-68 victory over the Varmints for the title. A & M won their first national title in school history.
For the second straight season, the Predators dominated the conference awards. Following in the footsteps of Jamison Fuson, Aron Hilbert was named CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE YEAR, just barely edging out Carson City's Harry Neumann for the honor. Hilbert also made the All-Conference First Team for the second time in his career, and was joined by Madden Bullock, a First-Teamer for the third year in a row, and Tremaine Hubbard, who notched his first First-Team honor. Also, Ricky Madden earned his first career All-Conference award after being named to the Second-Team.
The Predators would graduate an extremely good class of seniors. Madden Bullock was a terrific all-around player who established himself as one of the stars of the team by his Junior year. Tremaine Hubbard lead the entire league in rebounding in his Junior year, and finished third in his Senior year. He also leaves with school records in rebounding and blocked shots. And last but not least, Monty Kohler leaves as the school's all-time assist leader, despite playing in a backup role for his final two seasons.
REGULAR SEASON: Eugene (Twice), Fort Wayne, Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Little Rock, Olympia
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Tucson (Quarterfinals), Olympia (Semifinals), Carson City (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Greensboro (Consolation Game 3), Pasadena (Consolation Game 4), Chicago (Consolation Game 6)
REGULAR SEASON: Tampa, Yonkers, Lincoln, Olympia, Roswell (Twice)
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Decatur (Round 1), Sioux Falls (Consolation Game 2), Norfolk (Consolation Game 5)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 64
Despite losing out on our top target in recruiting, the Predators still landed a class ranked 83/39 by the magazines. 6'9" Aaron Reagan won't contribute much on offense, but he's a defensive terror who should help replace a lot of the rebounds the team lost to graduation. 6'6" Damian Sears came in as a nice surprise with good hands and a decent defensive presence. Sears will compete for the starting SF spot. And 6'7" Cory Dilard didn't really deliver much in terms of his upside, but he will add depth to the bench.
Long Beach was once again invited to the Twonament, the second annual preseason tournament. This time the Predators would be the ninth-seed in the twenty-team field, matching up with Providence, Fort Worth, and Greensboro. And this time, Long Beach was a lot more impressive than the first go-around. The Predators won a pair of overtime games, as Ricky Madden's buzzer-beater defeated Fort Worth 80-78, and Aron Hilbert not only hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer at the end of regulation that forced overtime, he also came up with a steal in the final seconds in a 72-71 upset win over Providence, the second time in as many seasons the Preds upset the Zammos in this tournament. But in the middle game, the Predators dropped a 90-85 shootout to Greensboro, which would come back to haunt them because the Red Storks won the group based on that head-to-head win. Even though the Predators failed to advance past the first round again, this team had a much better showing in the preseason week than last season's team.
Unfortunately, the start of the regular season would turn out to be a disaster. The Predators came out flat in the opener and lost a very winnable game against Tampa 72-67. Long Beach only shot 45% from the field and only 2 for 10 from long range. A very disappointing start losing to a team that finished 6-18 the season before. Things weren't much better in the next game as Long Beach dropped a 91-87 shootout to Yonkers, a game that the Shadows won with a 35-23 rebounding edge and 11 three-pointers on 23 attempts. The terrible week concluded with a 77-70 loss to Lincoln, a game in which Lincoln blocked 12 shots and the Predators only grabbed 22 rebounds. This was the first 0-3 start in my four seasons as coach of this team.
The Predators snapped the early skid with an 81-65 win over Eugene in the conference opener. Despite being outrebounded by a terrible team, the Long Beach defense clamped down and held the Tigers to just 35% shooting. Aaron Reagan had a nice game with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks. But thanks to two starters fouling out in the second half, the Predators ran out of gas against Olympia in the second conference game, falling by a score of 91-83 despite holding a slim halftime lead. The Melanomas had their way on the boards (37-27), and Charlie Markwell won the battles of the SG's, outscoring Aron Hilbert 26-17. The 1-4 start put the Predators at #183 in the initial power rankings, a huge free fall from the previous season. Long Beach proceeded to finish the week with a stunning overtime loss to winless Roswell. Hilbert fouled out with six minutes left in the second half, and Damian Sears couldn't seal the game from the line late. The Sacramentos forced the extra period, and desperation threes by Ricky Madden and Aaron Reagan both missed the mark. A stunning loss to the 251st-ranked team, thanks in large part to 26 fouls that gave Roswell 27 points from the line.
However, the team's fortunes in the third week drastically turned. Long Beach finally won a non-conference game, drubbing Fort Wayne by 24 points, as Hilbert tied the team record with 37 points, and for a change, the Predators dominated on the glass, holding a 41-20 rebounding edge over the Magic. The Preds kept the momentum going with conference play resuming, racing out to a big halftime lead against Salem and downing the Huskies by 15. Damian Sears had the best game of his short career with 18 points and 7 rebounds, and Long Beach dominated on the glass again (42-27). And to cap it off, Long Beach surprisingly cruised past Carson City by 11 points, handing the Kingmambos only their second loss of the season. Hilbert had another monster game with 35 points and the frontcourt held the conference's leading rebounder to just 2 rebounds in the entire game.
The Predators made it four in row after narrowly escaping Salt Lake City with a 77-75 win. The Gryphons never led in the game, although Raphael Diemer nearly forced overtime with a last-second shot that clanged off the rim. Long Beach didn't fare well on the boards, but only turned the ball over 3 times against a defense that had wreaked havoc on our offense the past few seasons. Two nights later, the Predators raced out to a 20-2 lead in the first ten minutes of the game, and cruised past last-place Tucson 80-64. Reagan had a big game with 10 rebounds and 7 assists, and Hilbert scored 30 of the team's 80 points. Then 58% shooting from the field shot down Little Rock 89-71 to end the week with a sixth straight win. Jawan Kelty stood out with 18 points and 7 rebounds, while Rance Hutchins had a nice game off the bench, and Hilbert dropped in 27 more points.
Long Beach crushed last-place Eugene to start the second division swing, 102-72. Hilbert exploded for 32 more points, and Reagan scored a career-high 17. The Predators forced 18 turnovers, and only gave it back once. The win brought the Preds into a three-way tie at the top of the conference standings. The Predators then won a mid-week thriller by knocking off Olympia 85-77. The Melanomas did not get a single lead in the second half, and Hilbert managed 25 points for the game despite picking up three fouls in the first three minutes. Long Beach kept it close on the boards, only turned the ball over 7 times, and held Olympia to a dismal night from beyond the arc (7 for 28). Unfortunately, the eight-game winning streak was halted by Roswell in the finale, as the Sacramentos dismantled the Long Beach defense for an 87-84 upset, the second time that the Preds got ambushed by their division rivals. The only consolation for the disappointing loss was that Carson City had already clinched the regular season conference title, and Long Beach had already clinched second place, even with the loss. Even after their terrible start, the Predators managed to finish 9-6 in the regular season.
The second-seeded Predators advanced to the Semifinals of the conference tournament by winning the opener over Tucson by a score of 94-77. Jawan Kelty dominated on both ends of the floor with 19 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Hilbert was up to his old tricks with 26 points, and after establishing a double-digit lead by the half, the Goz were simply unable to catch up. The Predators advanced to their second straight conference championship game, knocking off rival Olympia 80-69, in a result that was only a one-point difference from the score of last season's title game. Hilbert put up 28 points despite more early foul trouble, and Long Beach was on fire from the floor, shredding the Olympia defense with 58% shooting. Charlie Markwell was held to just 15 points, and the Melanomas were terrible at the free throw line.
And then the turnaround was complete. The Predators captured their SECOND STRAIGHT CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, scratching out an 80-77 victory over top-seeded Carson City in the title game. Hilbert lead the way again with 24 points and Aaron Reagan pulled down 13 rebounds to help offset a big night from CC's Harry Neumann, who was on fire with 29 points. Trent Riehl's three-pointer at the buzzer would not fall, giving the Predators their 12th win of the season, another conference title, and punching their ticket back into the NTT.
Long Beach drew a 15th-seed in the Big Dance, and their run once again did not last long. It was a tall order against the 7th-ranked Decatur Gilbert Grapes, a Final Four team from a season ago. Long Beach native Garett Land torched the Predators' defense for 37 points, but Long Beach surprisingly hung tough, and even had the game tied with 9 minutes to play. But the Grapes woke up and scored 30 points in those final nine minutes, leaving the Predators in the dust, 97-81. The sixteen-point margin of defeat doesn't show just how well Long Beach played in this game, highlighted by an other-worldly performance from Aron Hilbert. The leading scorer in Long Beach history scored 46 points in this game on 20-31 shooting. Aaron Reagan pulled down 15 rebounds in one of the better games he played all season. Unfortunately, the Grapes just had too much firepower, and the Predators' bid for the huge upset came up short. Long Beach would close the season with 15 wins, beating Greensboro, Pasadena, and Chicago in consolation games.
For his remarkable season, Aron Hilbert was named Conference Player of the Year for the second season in a row. He was also named to the All-Conference First Team for the third time in his career, and he capped off his Senior season by being named Fourth Team All-League. Tremendous honors for an outstanding player. Overshadowed by Hilbert was Ricky Madden, who was named to the All-Conference Second Team for the second season in a row.
Four heavyweights reached the Final Four of the NTT. The Decatur Gilbert Grapes, the Northwest's second seed that had eliminated Long Beach in round one, defeated Arlington (#5) by a dozen to win the region. The third-seeded Sacramento Slugs made it out of the Southwest with a narrow one-point win over 9th-seed Detroit. The Northeast's top seed, the Spokane Varmints, reached another Final Four after plowing past third-seed Canton. And the Fresno Bulldogs, the Southeast's top seed and the number-one ranked team, slipped past sixth-seed Honolulu.
Decatur's mighty offense was held in check by Sacramento, but the Gilbert Grapes still beat the Slugs by 10 to reach the championship game, and Fresno denied Spokane a second straight shot at the final with a 75-63 win in the other Semifinal contest. In the championship, Fresno managed to contain Decatur's high-powered offense, and barely hung on to win their first title, 77-74.
The departure of Aron Hilbert would be a huge blow to the Long Beach program. He leaves as the team's all-time leading scorer, and was decorated with numerous awards, including an all-League Fourth Team selection in his final season. He carried the team on his back in his Senior year, and will be greatly missed. The other losses were Rance Hutchins, a surprisingly solid backup guard, and Jaron Newkirk, a reserve guard who never made it into the lineup in his final two years.
REGULAR SEASON: Jackson, Eugene, Olympia, Roswell (Twice), Keystone, Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Carson City (Semifinals), Olympia (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Bakersfield (Consolation Game 2), Baltimore (Consolation Game 3), Augusta (Consolation Game 4)
REGULAR SEASON: Chicago, Cleveland, Gainesville, Eugene, Olympia
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Trenton (Round 1), Rochester (Consolation Game 5), Ocala (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 48
It was a down year in recruiting for the Predators, losing out on three players who would have made an immediate impact and added an instant spark to the offense to replace the departed Aron Hilbert. The new class was ranked 185/228, the first truly bad luck Long Beach had in my fifth season as coach of the team. 6'4" Axel McGee played center in high school and his numbers weren't awe-inspiring, but he looks like a relatively solid player who might get a chance to nail down a regular starting job. 5'11" Barry Swan could eventually become the team's starting point guard, but 6'2" walk-on Calvin Buck looks like a career twelveth man who might never play a game in a Predators' uniform.
Despite the losses and the apparent glaring lack of offense, Long Beach was back in the Twonament for its third season, and made another strong showing. The tournament started with a very narrow four-point loss to Naples, a game that went back and forth pretty much the entire way. The Predators upset Twin Falls by two on Axel McGee's winning shot, and then barely held on to beat Shawnee by a single point in the finale. Long Beach failed to score more than 74 points in any of the three games, but did not give up more than 74 in any of the exhibition games either. The Predators were eliminated in the opening round with a 2-1 record for the second straight season, but the team made a big statement that all hope was not lost playing against quality competition.
Unfortunately, Long Beach would start the season again with a resounding thud. Chicago rode some incredible shooting (61%) to cruise to an 81-69 victory over the Predators in the opener. Long Beach was down by as many as 20 points in the second half, got outrebounded by 9, and missed 8 free throws. The only bright spot was that Jawan Kelty's 22 points put him over 500 for his career. The second game turned out a lot better, as the Predators survived a 33-point night from opposing SG Cade Silliman to beat Jackson 74-67. Long Beach did a nice job containing the rest of the Sentinels' lineup, and got big games out of Kelty (23 points) and Axel McGee (20 points). But poor shooting would doom the Predators against Cleveland, falling to the Krushers 80-70. Cleveland's bench erupted for 32 points, and with neither McGee nor Kelty on target for most of the night, Long Beach simply didn't have enough offense to keep up.
Conference play began with an ugly 66-44 win over Eugene. The Predators only shot 43%, missed 7 free throws, and had 8 turnovers, but the Tigers only made 14 shots on 50 attempts, a stunning 28% mark from the floor. Aaron Reagan had a nice game with 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 steals. The offense still hadn't reappeared by the following game, but a stellar defensive effort turned away Olympia in a hard-fought contest that ended 71-63 for the Predators. Long Beach only shot 45% and missed 10 free throws, but the Melanomas only shot 42% from the floor, and stud SG Charlie Markwell only scored a paltry 4 points in the game. Olympia also only made 3 of 16 three-point attempts. Franklin Padgett came up huge for Long Beach off the bench with 13 points and 7 rebounds, helping to place the Preds at number 84 in the first power rankings of the season. Long Beach concluded the week by barely finishing off a three-game division sweep, hanging on for a 68-64 victory over Roswell. The Sacramentos only shot 38% on the night, and Kelty sealed the game late with a pair of free throws, giving him 17 points (along with 10 rebounds) in another strong effort from the team's top player.
The Predators picked up their fourth straight win, albeit in another sloppy performance, knocking off lowly Keystone to start week three by a score of 72-52. Long Beach only shot 41% and Damian Sears was the team's leading scorer with 14 points off the bench, but the Preds held a 41-22 edge on the glass and made 26 free throws to just 8 for Keystone. Then Long Beach needed overtime to settle things against Salem with the intra-conference matchups starting up, outlasting the Huskies in another ugly offensive game, 71-63. Axel McGee had a couple of chances to win it at the end of regulation, but the Preds outscored the Huskies 12-4 in the extra period. Ricky Madden had 19 points, while Jawan Kelty scored 15 and had 9 rebounds. The Preds' defense stepped up as well, holding Salem to just 32% shooting on the night. And to cap off the week, Long Beach made it halfway through the conference schedule without a loss, downing Carson City by a score of 71-61. The Kingmambos only shot 40% with their star player (Harry Neumann) out of the game with injury, and they only made 4 free throws in the game. The Predators sank 18 shots from the free throw line and played some stellar defense with 10 blocks and 7 steals.
Long Beach not only ran their surprising streak to seven in a row, but they also finally cracked the 74-point barrier for the first time in the entire season with a hard-fought 78-69 victory over Salt Lake City. The Predators shot 57% from the floor in the game, and were led by Cory Dilard's season-high 20 points. Kelty added 19 points and 8 rebounds, while Ricky Madden scored 12 points and dished out 6 assists. Two nights later, the Preds had to fend off a spirited challenge from Tucson, pulling away late to win the game 78-65. The Iron Men were red hot from the floor early and scored 40 points in the first half, but Long Beach was able to keep up with the early flurry, and clamped down to hold Tucson to just 25 second half points. Arlis Bailey scored 31 of Tucson's 65 points. For the Predators, Aaron Reagan finished with 11 points and 15 rebounds, while Jawan Kelty scored 16 and grabbed 11 boards. Long Beach held a 45-30 rebounding edge, and Tucson finished shooting just 33% from the field. But the 8-game winning streak finally ended with a 71-61 OOC loss to Gainesville. The Predators had an off night from the floor, and the Rogues picked apart the Long Beach zone with 54% shooting and draining 6 of 11 three-point attempts. Gainesville also dominated on the glass, with four starters grabbing at least 6 rebounds in the game. It was also the first time since the Cleveland loss back in the third game of the season that the Predators allowed more than 70 points.
With a chance to clinch the regular season conference title early, Long Beach played their absolute worst game of the season, getting pasted by Eugene by a score of 63-43. The Predators only made 18 baskets in the game (36% shooting) and turned the ball over an astounding 19 times. Jawan Kelty only scored 2 points in the entire game on just 2 shots. The Predators held a big edge on the boards and held the Tigers to just 19 second-half points, but were done in by their awful offensive performance. It was a mirror image of the teams' first meeting three weeks prior, in which the Tigers' dreadful shooting only netted them 44 points in that game. This was the team's first loss to Eugene in over 5 seasons. The Preds started the next game already scoring 39 points in the first half, but faded late in a 72-61 loss to Olympia. Long Beach had no answers for Charlie Markwell in the first half, and none for Dwayne Blakely or Andre Harrell in the second half. The Predators were outrebounded 35-23 and outscored 36-22 after halftime for their third consecutive defeat. But not only did the Predators snap the three-game skid in the finale, they finally clinched another Regular Season Conference Championship with a 75-62 victory over Roswell. Ricky Madden lit a fire under the Long Beach offense, knocking down 8 of 12 shots and finishing with 21 points. Aaron Reagan had an outstanding defensive game, and the team didn't get hurt by 9 missed free throws but the Sacramentos also missed 9. The Predators clinched a berth in the NTT for the third straight season.
Long Beach took care of Roswell again three nights later, cruising to a 79-61 victory in the Conference Quarterfinals. Axel McGee dropped in 17 points as the Predators set a new season-high for points in a game despite once again failing to reach 80. But everything was going the Predators' way in this one, forcing 14 turnovers, outrebounding the Sacramentos by 7, and holding Roswell to just 42% shooting to once again advance to the Semifinals. The Predators scratched and clawed their way back into the championship game with a narrow escape of Carson City in the Semifinals by a score of 71-67. The Kingmambos got another stellar performance from Harry Neumann and started the game on an 18-4 run, but the Preds came back to take a 10-point lead with 8 minutes to go and hung on for the victory. Damian Sears provided the spark for the Predators in this game with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Long Beach won the battle of the boards, forced 12 turnovers, and dished out 19 assists as a team.
And finally, despite nearly blowing a 10-point lead in the final 10 minutes, the Predators hung on to defeat Olympia by a score 72-69 to capture their THIRD CONSECUTIVE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP. Ricky Madden, who finished with 12 points, 6 assists, and 3 steals, hit two big free throws with less than 10 seconds to play, and the Long Beach faithful rushed the court for the third straight season after desperation three-pointers from both Charlie Markwell and Dwayne Blakely failed to go through the net. Damian Sears was the hot hand on offense again, leading the way with 16 points, but had three of his teammates in double figures along with him, as the Predators break the hearts of the Melanomas, knocking their division rivals out of the running for the NTT.
Long Beach drew a 16th-seed in the NTT, and it was a real long shot that the Predators were going to beat Trenton, the number-one team in the league at the time, but the Preds still looked bad in rolling over in the first round game by a score of 66-44. Long Beach only shot 33% from the floor, making only 19 shots in the game. The Woopigs dominated on the glass, while Sears and Kelty combined to shoot 4 for 23. It was an ugly way to exit the tournament in the first round for the third straight season. The Preds would rebound and surprisingly win three straight games against tough teams from Bakersfield, Baltimore, and Augusta before getting shredded by hot-shooting Rochester and Ocala to finish the season with 16 wins and 8 losses.
It wasn't a statistically awe-inspiring season for the Predators, but Jawan Kelty, the team's only standout player, was named Second Team All-Conference. Kelty had several standout performances in his first tour of duty as the team's go-to threat.
The rest of the NTT produced a few surprises, but featured plenty of familiar faces in the Final Four. The Decatur Gilbert Grapes made it back to National Semifinals as a 5th seed in the Northwest bracket, taking out two-seed Peoria in a close regional final game. The Sacramento Slugs came out of the upset-riddled Southwest bracket as an 8th-seed, needing to defeat cinderella Pensacola, the 15th-seed. Honolulu, the number-two seed in the Northeast, crushed defending champion Fresno on the other side of the bracket, and would face fifth-seed El Paso out of the Southeast, after the Federalists handily defeated 6th-seed Stamford.
Decatur found a spot in the championship game for the second season in a row, edging out Sacramento, 80-76. The Gilbert Grapes would meet up with El Paso for all the marbles, as the Federalists eliminated Honolulu in the other semifinal by 15 points. Then, remembering the sting of losing in the finals last season, Decatur erased a big early lead and stunned El Paso 89-83 for their first national title in school history. The Gilbert Grapes did not take their first lead until the final three and a half minutes, shredding one of the best defensive teams in the league with everything on the line.
Ricky Madden headlined the departing class of Seniors. A 4-year starter at PG, Madden never put up earth-shattering numbers, but steadily improved as an upperclassman, cutting his turnover numbers in half from his first to his last season in a Long Beach uniform. Braxton Badgett was a decent backcourt backup for four years, while Fenton Kelley was another decent role player in the backcourt, although he only played 23 games for his career.
REGULAR SEASON: Riverside, Jefferson City, Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Salem, Carson City, Tucson, Eugene
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Carson City (Quarterfinals), Olympia (Consolation Game 1)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Shawnee (Consolation Game 2), Knoxville (Consolation Game 4), Harrisburg (Consolation Game 6)
REGULAR SEASON: Madison, Eugene, Nashville, Salt Lake City, Reading
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Salem (Semifinals)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Dallas (Round 1), Rochester (Consolation Game 3), Louisville (Consolation Game 5)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 77
Long Beach once again failed to win any recruiting ties, but still pulled in a solid class ranked 64/81 by the magazines. 6'2" Gil O'Reilly was the biggest catch of the group, coming out of high school having averaged nearly 19 PPG on 48% shooting in his senior season. He should be an immediate starter. 6'4" Kellen Wantland isn't very offensively gifted, but has solid hands and plays good defense, which will give him an opportunity to earn a starting job. And last but not least, 6'3" Sebastian Durst is another non-offensive-minded player, but he is outstanding defensively and should improve the quality of the reserves.
The Predators entered into the preseason Twonament for the fourth season in a row. But after two straight solid performances in this tournament, the fourth time was not a charm. A lifeless offense doomed the Preds in a 59-49 loss to a tough Athens squad, and Long Beach blew a 16-point lead in the final 10 minutes in a two-point loss to Fort Worth. Finally, 14 turnovers and 35% shooting were the story in an ugly 60-54 loss to Pueblo. It was the first time the Predators failed to win a game in this tournament.
The opening game of the regular season wasn't pretty by any stretch of the imagination, but the Predators did pick up the win, knocking off a bad Riverside team by a score of 56-44. The Long Beach offense wasn't in rhythm again, shooting only 44% and getting only 16 combined points out of Jawan Kelty and Gil O'Reilly, but the defense came up big, outrebounding the Falcons 35-25, and holding Riverside to just 16 baskets in the game (36% shooting). Two nights later the offense finally awakened, as the Predators shot 55% from the floor and blazed past Jefferson City, 87-65. Kelty exploded for 32 points, and O'Reilly had the best game of his short career with 21. Aaron Reagan also had 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists. Long Beach dominated the lowly Argyles in all facets of the game. But the Preds couldn't make it a perfect opening week, getting completely shut down by the Madison Madness, 63-45. The Long Beach offense was completely lost against the quality Madison defense, hitting only 16 shots in the game and turning the ball over 12 times in an ugly loss reminiscent of the preseason games.
Long Beach took another hit at the start of conference play, suffering a rare loss to Eugene, 64-57. The Predators were without the injured Gil O'Reilly, and only shot 46% on the night as a result. His fill-in, Axel McGee, only scored 2 points, while the team coughed the ball up 15 times, and got outscored 33-24 after halftime. But O'Reilly returned in the next game, took over the PG position from Barry Swan, and scored 21 points as the Predators took down Olympia, 69-60, to pick up their first conference win. Long Beach missed 9 free throws and turned the ball over 10 times, but won the game with some excellent defense, holding the Melanomas to just 39% shooting on the night and forcing 10 turnovers back their own way. O'Reilly also added 5 assists and 2 steals without a single turnover in his first game at the point. The win put Long Beach in the middle of the pack (#130) in the first power rankings of the season. The Freshman sharpshooter was hot again at the end of the week, scoring 21 more points in a 69-55 win over Roswell. Franklin Padgett and Damian Sears also had 14 points each, and the Predators' defense rang up 9 steals and held the shorthanded Sacramentos to 37% shooting on the night.
Week three began with a narrow 64-58 non-conference loss to Nashville. The Predators got the game tied at 50 with six minutes to play, but were outdone by the Autobots down the stretch. Guards Gil O'Reilly and Franklin Padgett were ice cold from the floor (combined 8 for 30), and the whole team only shot 35% on the night. Long Beach quickly recovered though two nights later back in the conference, a far cry from the Nashville game, getting a career-high 20 points from Padgett (and a perfect 8-8 from the floor) in an easy 86-57 rout over Salem. The Predators jumped out to a 17-point led at halftime, and blitzed the Huskies with 55% shooting for the game and a huge 41-24 advantage on the boards. Damian Sears, Jawan Kelty, and Gil O'Reilly all had 15 points each to compliment Padgett's big night. The Huskies only shot 37% on the night, and the Preds made 24 free throws to just 8 for Salem in the dominating victory. And then despite a subpar performance against Carson City to close out the week, Padgett hit the game-winning shot with four seconds remaining as the Predators slipped past the Kingmambos, 63-62. Despite shooting only 42% from the floor, missing 8 free throws, and committing 11 turnovers, Long Beach had just enough to squeeze out the win, getting 17 points each out of O'Reilly and Kelty. The win moved the Predators back into their familiar position of first place at the halfway point of the conference schedule.
But the four-game conference winning streak would be halted by Salt Lake City by a final of 94-84. The Gryphons simply could not miss all night, and shredded the Predator defense to pieces with an astounding 61% shooting mark, sinking 14 of 26 three-point shots, and nailing 22 of 25 free throws. The Long Beach offense wasn't that bad in response, making 7 more shots overall and making 12 free throws of their own, but the Gryphons simply had too much from the outside for the Preds to even make it close at the end. This was the first game all season that the Predators allowed even 70 points in a game. Salt Lake already had that with 14 minutes still to play. But instead of falling to pieces, especially against an 8-2 team two nights later, Long Beach scratched and clawed their way to a 92-87 overtime victory over the Iron Men of Tucson. Damian Sears forced the extra period with a desperation three-pointer as time expired, and Jawan Kelty's three free throws in the final 36 seconds were enough to seal the win. Kelty tied his season-high with 32 points on the night to go along with 8 rebounds, while Gil O'Reilly scored 22 points to go along with 6 assists and 3 steals. Sears only had 7 points on the night, but contributed 8 rebounds and 7 assists in addition to his hail mary shot at the end of the second half. The week ended with another narrow OOC loss, as the Preds fell this time to Reading by a score of 58-57. Sebastian Durst missed the go-ahead shot with a minute to play, and then had to ball stolen away in the final 10 seconds to seal the defeat. The loss overshadowed a 23-point night from Jawan Kelty.
The final division swing began with a 73-57 victory over last-place Eugene, avenging an earlier loss to the Lone Rangers. Neither offense could be stopped in the first half, but the Predators' zone finally started taking its toll after the intermission, as the Rangers only scored 18 points in the second half, allowing Long Beach to pull away and win comfortably. Jawan Kelty led the way again on offense with 18 points, and Franklin Padgett was right behind with 17. This was followed by an outstanding effort in a huge 66-53 win over Olympia, sweeping the season series from the Melanomas for only the second time in six seasons. The Predators' zone absolutely shut down Olympia's usually high-powered attack, as Dwayne Blakely only managed a paltry 4 points, and Charlie Markwell only scored 11. Gil O'Reilly had an outstanding game with 21 points, 9 of which came from the free throw line. A big key to the game was that Gil got both of Olympia's PG to foul out in the second half. This was the big setup victory for a the 72-50 clincher over Roswell in the finale that sealed the team's THIRD Regular Season Conference Title in the last FOUR seasons. The Preds jumped all over the shorthanded Sacramentos early, and were never threatened in coasting to another first place finish. Gil O'Reilly had a very nice game with 18 points, while Franklin Padgett added 17 points to go along with 10 rebounds, and Aaron Reagan finished with 9 boards and 6 blocks. Roswell shot a dismal 31% on the night. The Predators clinched their fourth consecutive NTT appearance.
Long Beach breezed through the conference quarterfinals with an easy 68-43 win over last-place Carson City. The Kingmambos couldn't get out of their own way, shooting a horrendous 27% from the floor, and only making 2 free throws on just 5 attempts. The Predators got their best efforts from Aaron Reagan (11 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks), and Gil O'Reilly (24 points, 5 assists, 0 turnovers). But a fourth straight conference tournament title would not be in the cards, as a lackluster effort cost Long Beach in the Semifinals, a 64-62 loss to 4th-seeded Salem. The Predators only shot 43% from the floor, got manhandled on the boards, and Gil O'Reilly missed 4 key free throws that would have been the difference in the game. The Huskies scored just 2 points over the final six minutes, but the Predators only scored 4 points over the final five and a half minutes, in addition to missing all 9 attempted three-point shots. All this against a team that the Preds had beaten by 29 points in the regular season. The loss was even more bewildering after Long Beach made short work of Olympia two nights later in a consolation game, 80-58. The Predators smashed the Melanomas by 22 for a three-game season sweep of their arch-rivals, shooting 53% as a team and getting 46 combined points out of Padgett and Kelty. This would send the Preds into the NTT with a 12-6 record despite losing out on the chance to defend their conference title.
The Predators were given another low seed in the NTT (15th), and bowed out in the first round again, but not after putting up a decent fight. Long Beach was right with second-seeded Dallas all the way through the first half, but the Invaders pulled away late and won 81-64. O'Reilly and Kelty both had nice games with 17 points, and the team shot 55% from the floor. But Dallas shot 53% themselves and dominated on the boards (31-20) while also sinking twice as many free throws (16-8). It was another disappointing NTT showing, but it was a much better effort than the previous season's first-round flop against Trenton.
Long Beach finished the season strong once again, knocking off Shawnee, Knoxville, and Harrisburg in low-scoring thrillers to finish the season at 15-9.
Gil O'Reilly was named Conference Freshman of the Year for his stellar first season of college ball, and he also earned a spot on the All-Conference Second Team for his efforts. And departing Senior Jawan Kelty was also named to the All-Conference Second Team for the second season in a row.
The NTT's Final Four featured four annually strong teams making it into the National Semifinals. The Twin Falls Tricksters ran through the Northwest bracket as the top seed, eliminating surprising number-two seed Boston in the regional final. The El Paso Federalists continued another strong run as a top seed in the Southwest, defeating the 6th-seed Hialeah. The fourth-seeded Independence Peanuts in the Northeast bracket were the lowest ranked team to get this far after taking down both of the top seeds in their region (Augusta and Laredo). And the defending champions, the Decatur Gilbert Grapes, amazingly reached their fourth consecutive Final Four, making it as the number-three seed in the Southeast, defeating Honolulu, one of the tournament's big favorites, in overtime in the regional final.
The championship game would be a rematch of last season's final, as Decatur and El Paso would both oppose each other again. The Gilbert Grapes made it into the title game for the third season in a row after outgunning Independence 95-88, and the Federalists would get another shot at them after downing Twin Falls by 11 in the other semifinal. And this time El Paso would have their revenge, coming from behind to beat Decatur in overtime, 97-90. The Federalists forced the extra period with a long basket at the buzzer, and outscored the defending champs 18-11 in the overtime period. This was El Paso's first national championship.
The Predators would be disappointed to lose 4-year starting PF Jawan Kelty at the conclusion of the season. Kelty's career numbers weren't awe-inspiring, but he was a very solid player who led the team in scoring in each of his last two seasons. The Preds also lost Franklin Padgett, a very dependable backup for three seasons before filling in admirably as the starting SG in his final season. And walk-on Kip Prewitt played 72 games in a Long Beach uniform coming off the bench.
REGULAR SEASON: St. Cloud, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Lubbock, Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Carson City (Semifinals), Tucson (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Raleigh (Consolation Game 4), Louisville (Consolation Game 6)
REGULAR SEASON: Spokane, Arlington, Hialeah
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Plainview (Round 1), Aberdeen (Consolation Game 2), Stamford (Consolation Game 3), Chicago (Consolation Game 5)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 49
Recruiting was a bit of a puzzle for Season 32. The Predators snagged a couple of solid local players, Eugene PG William Barrera and Long Beach native Aaron Miller. Barrera should team with Gil O'Reilly in the backcourt for a long time, and Miller will get a chance to start at PF in front of the hometown fans. The interesting part is that neither player's attributes matched what the stat sheet said they should, especially on offense. The third recruit was Salem SG Johnny Spoon, who should make a very solid backup and spot starter off the bench.
Long Beach started the Twonament slowly with a disappointing 11-point loss to Spokane, but rebounded by knocking off the strong Trenton team with a blistering offensive performance, and then barely hung on to clip Pueblo by a single point to gain a little revenge for a Twonament loss to the Fire Water Burn last season. Gil O'Reilly finished as the tournament's fifth-leading scorer with 65 points over the three games. And at long last, after five invites to this tournament, the chips finally fell right for the Predators to reach the playoff Quarterfinals. Long Beach would get in as the 8th-seed, the final wildcard qualifier. But the Preds were decimated by the defending tournament champions from El Paso in the Quarterfinal round by a score of 86-63. The Federalists shot 53% and made 24 of their 25 free-throw attempts, while also outrebounding Long Beach 29-15. This was way too much to overcome, but this was still the team's most successful Twonament despite the loss.
The Predators nearly got revenge on Spokane in the regular season opener, but were stifled after halftime in a 62-56 defeat. Long Beach managed only 23 points in the second half after leading by five at the intermission. The team shot only 39% and turned the ball over 11 times. Lots of offensive rebounds and 22 free throws were enough for the Varmints to come away with the win despite making only 19 baskets in 40 minutes. The first win though would come two nights later, a dominating 82-61 victory over St. Cloud. The Predators were narrowly outrebounded, but made 4 three-pointers, sank 16 free throws, and forced 18 turnovers to pull away in the second half. 4 starters all scored in double figures, topped by Gil O'Reilly's 23 points. Aaron Miller had a very nice game with 18, and Johnny Spoon got 15 in his first career start. Aaron Reagan also pulled down 11 more rebounds. Then the first week ended with a hard-fought 63-57 loss to a strong team from Arlington. The Predators couldn't get their offense in sync again in this game, shooting only 42%, getting outrebounded 35-28, and turning the ball over 12 times. Johnny Spoon was stellar again in his second start, leading the team with 18 points. Gil O'Reilly only scored 8 points on 3-12 shooting, but did swipe 4 steals.
Long Beach started strong in conference play with a 76-60 victory over Eugene. Johnny Spoon's 15 points led the balanced attack, as the Predators were able to shoot an even 50% for the game, and dominated the Lone Rangers on the glass, 41-25. Aaron Reagan had a strong performance with 10 points, 11 boards, and 4 blocks, while Axel McGee had a surprise game off the bench with 10 points and 8 rebounds. Aaron Miller shot 5 for 6 before fouling out in just 25 minutes. The Predators drubbed long-time rival Olympia two nights later, dominating the whole night in an easy 77-48 victory. The Melanomas struggled mightily on offense, shooting only 34% for the game and giving the ball away 16 times. Long Beach also had their way on the glass, and won the free throw count 22-5. O'Reilly was the standout in this one with 17 points, 4 assists, and 4 steals. Damian Sears grabbed 10 rebounds, and Aaron Miller chipped in 14 points. The victory started Long Beach at a respectable 85th in the first power rankings with a 3-2 record. The Predators would then finish the divisional sweep by pulling away from Roswell in the second half to defeat the Sacramentos, 77-54. O'Reilly had 20 points and 4 assists, and Reagan had an extremely good game with 13 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 4 assists.
The Predators would pick up their second OOC victory, albeit an ugly one in a 60-55 win over Lubbock. Long Beach was lifeless in the first half, did not take the lead until there were eight minutes remaining, and blew numerous chances to pull away in the last few minutes. But Johnny Spoon got 10 of his 16 points at the free throw line to help lift the Preds to victory even though the team only made 19 baskets, got outrebounded 32-26, and missed 8 free throws. The defense played a large role, limiting the Stuckeys to just 19 baskets of their own, and 5-20 shooting from three-point range. Spoon would lift the offense himself two nights later with 23 points in a 77-63 win over Salem back in C31 play. O'Reilly added 15 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals, and four starters pulled down at least 5 rebounds. The Huskies shot just 46% from the floor and gave the ball away 16 times as they fell behind early and could not catch up in the second half. Long Beach then finished the week with their best offensive performance of the season, scorching Carson City by a score of 89-68 to push their overall record to 7-2 and remain undefeated in conference play. Five players scored in double figures, led by Johnny Spoon's 19 points, and Axel McGee had an excellent game off the bench with 14 points on 6-7 shooting in just 9 minutes of playing time. Damian Sears grabbed 12 rebounds to go along with 15 points, and the team ended up shooting 57% for the game. The Kingmambos hit just 5 of their 20 three-point attempts in reply.
An awesome performance by Gil O'Reilly stretched the Preds' winning streak to seven after a narrow escape of Salt Lake City, 74-72. O'Reilly scored 27 points on 13-23 shooting, but perhaps more importantly, held Gryphons' superstar PG Rich Hartlage to one of his worst games of the season, 12 points on just 3-12 shooting. The hot-shooting Gryphons only shot 44% from the floor, and while they were able to keep up because of 19 free throws, Hartlage missed the potential game-tying shot as time expired to seal the win for the Predators. Damian Sears and Aaron Reagan both pulled down 9 rebounds, Aaron Miller added 14 points and 8 boards, and Johnny Spoon sank 8 of his 12 shots to tally 17 points. Then, thanks to the best game of Miller's short career, the Predators were able to take full control of the conference with an 88-77 victory over second-place Tucson. Miller scored a game-high 22 points on 8-12 shooting, and O'Reilly added 17 more points as the team shredded the Iron Men defense with 54% shooting for the game. Long Beach made 19 free throws as opposed to just 3 for Tucson, and the team's bench stepped up as well, as William Barrera drained 4 of 5 shots for 8 points, and Kellen Wantland pulled down 7 rebounds. The win put the Predators at 7-0 in the conference, two games ahead of the Iron Men for first place. The conference looked to be well in hand, but the Preds' eight-game winning streak finally came to an end against Hialeah, fading late in a 76-68 loss. Long Beach did not score in the last 2:38, and allowed the Aces to score the final 11 points of the game. The Predators were dominated on the glass and gave the ball away 16 times. Johnny Spoon had another nice game though with 17 points.
The Predators rebounded nicely from the Hialeah loss, dominating throughout in an easy 76-52 victory over Eugene. This win, combined with Salt Lake City's overtime upset over Tucson, handed Long Beach their fourth regular season conference title in the last five seasons. This game also turned out to be my 100th victory as head coach of the team. Johnny Spoon led the offense with 24 points, and the defense frustrated the Lone Rangers all night, holding them to just 18 baskets and 36% shooting on the night. Aaron Reagan and Gil O'Reilly were big reasons why, as Reagan grabbed 14 rebounds while blocking 3 shots, and O'Reilly swiped 5 steals to help lock up the Predators' fifth consecutive trip to the NTT. The Predators were then on cruise control the rest of the week. Absolute dominance in the paint and 54% shooting got the team past Olympia, 68-56. Reagan had 10 of the team's 37 rebounds, while the Melanomas pulled down only 18 for the game. O'Reilly, Spoon, and Aaron Miller all scored 12 points each to lead the offense. The Predators capped off the regular season by destroying Roswell by a score of 83-50, a win that completed a perfect 10-0 conference record for the first time in team history. Spoon had an excellent game with 22 points and 10 rebounds, and O'Reilly added 18 more points. Reagan also grabbed 10 boards, as the team outrebounded the Sacramentos 45-19. Long Beach finished with a 12-3 regular season overall record.
Long Beach got off to a bit of a slow start in the conference Quarterfinals, a rematch with Roswell from three nights before, but a career-high 34 points from Gil O'Reilly and a stiff defense that allowed only 21 points in the second half allowed the Predators to cruise down the stretch to an 80-64 win over the Sacramentos. O'Reilly also had 5 assists while shooting 15-23 from the floor, and Johnny Spoon also had an excellent game with 20 more points of his own. Aaron Reagan also dominated the post again with 9 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 4 steals. The offense was in high gear again in the Semifinals, as the Predators shredded the Carson City defense once again with 61% shooting enroute to an 84-67 win to get the team back into the conference championship game. It was a very balanced effort on offense with 18 points for Spoon, 16 for O'Reilly, and 15 for Damian Sears. Long Beach also dominated on the glass, and Carson City's high-scoring starting backcourt only combined for 20 points. And finally, the Predators' conference dominance was complete, defeating Tucson by a score of 92-79 to win the CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP for the fourth time in the last five seasons, and capping off the team's first ever perfect 13-0 conference record. The Iron Men were helpless to stop the Long Beach offense, as the Preds shot 51% for the game and made an astounding 30 of 33 free throw attempts. Spoon led the charge again with 26 points (12 from the line), with O'Reilly's 18 points and Damian Sears' 16 not far behind. Tucson was denied a second straight conference title and a return trip to the NTT. The Predators scored 256 points in the three conference tournament games.
Long Beach earned a 10th-seed in the NTT, their highest bid in four seasons. But it was the same old story, as the Predators once again came up dreadfully short on the league's big stage. Long Beach shot only 34% and made only 18 baskets against the 7th- seeded Plainview Prussians, the winningest team in league history, going down by a score of 75-43. The Preds managed just 15 points in the second half, and Axel McGee's 11 points off the bench was the only offense to speak of on the whole team. The Prussians ended up shooting 55% and dominated on the glass. It was yet another embarrassing showing and another disappointing ending to the season, the team's fifth straight first round NTT loss. The Preds did manage to win 2 of the remaining 5 consolation games to finish the season at 17-7, the team's best record in four seasons.
Johnny Spoon's surprising season earned him Conference Freshman of the Year honors, the third Long Beach player to do so in the last seven seasons. Oddly, he did not get a spot on one of the All-Conference teams, but backcourt mate Gil O'Reilly did, taking home his second All-Conference Second Team award in as many seasons.
The El Paso Federalists headlined the Final Four teams, as the defending champions had little trouble reaching their third straight National Semifinal, largely cruising through the Northeast bracket as the top seed, capping it off with a convincing win over 7th-seed Plainview, the team that took down Long Beach in round one. The Honolulu Nobhill Trojans made another appearance as well as the 4th-seed in the Southwest, upsetting two-seed Kansas City in the Regional Final. The Twin Falls Tricksters also reached another Final Four as the 3rd-seed in the upset-riddled Northwest bracket, taking out 8th-seed Hialeah in the Elite Eight, the Aces' second straight Regional Final defeat. And lastly, the 3rd-seeded Dallas Invaders pulled off an upset of the Southwest's number-one team, Independence, to make it to the last four.
El Paso reached their third straight championship game by dispatching Honolulu, and they would meet their conference rivals from Dallas, after the Invaders upset Twin Falls by one in the other National Semifinal contest. El Paso then claimed their second straight title, erasing a 17-point second half deficit to beat Dallas by one, 66-65.
The Predators graduated a solid class that included a pair of four-year regular starters. Aaron Reagan played extremely well after immediately replacing the great Tremaine Hubbard, as his 761 career rebounds are second on the team's all-time stats list, while his 168 career blocks and 104 career steals are both third in team history. He was solid player who never contributed much offensively, but started all 96 games of his career at center. Damian Sears surprised the coaching staff immensely by becoming a regular starter at SF from his first day on campus, replacing the venerable Madden Bullock. Sears never put up outstanding individual numbers, but he was an excellent role player who finished with nearly 500 career rebounds and had a 2-to-1 assist/turnover ratio for his career. And lastly, Cory Dilard never really lived up to his early promise, but he made a solid bench rebounder throughout his entire career.
REGULAR SEASON: St. Cloud, Cooperstown, Mobile, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Pueblo, Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Waterloo
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Olympia (Semifinals), Carson City (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Dearborn (Consolation Game 2), Ithaca (Consolation Game 5)
REGULAR SEASON: NONE
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Flint (Round 1), Tuscaloosa (Consolation Game 3), Hot Springs (Consolation Game 4), Camden (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 25
The Predators landed a big prize at the start of Season 33 in the form of Douglas Adams, a 7'1" monster from Long Beach High School who should become the next in an increasingly lengthy line of standout big men to come to campus. Adams scored over 24 PPG on 54% shooting in his final season of high school, and has the potential to dominate the conference for years to come. 6'7" Jack Davis came in with some surprisingly good ratings, and could make for a solid SF and replacement for Damian Sears. Davis handles the ball very well and may eventually be the best defender on the team. And 6'8" Isaac Curry brings in some much-needed rebounding ability, and should be at least be a solid reserve, if not an immediate frontcourt starter. The class was ranked 99/39 by the magazines.
It was a bit of a disappointing preseason though, as the Predators only managed to win 1 of 3 games in the sixth annual Twonament, knocking off Baton Rouge by fifteen in the finale after falling to both Trenton and Athens. The Woopigs' frontcourt dominated the Predators', allowing them to win comfortably by 13, and the Straits used their athleticism to draw 26 fouls to cruise by with a 12-point win. Long Beach was able to contain Baton Rouge's high-powered attack for their only win, holding them to 35% shooting, 9-32 from downtown, and drawing 22 fouls. Not quite the results that we were hoping for, but not a terrible showing nonetheless. Douglas Adams tied for the tournament lead in rebounds with 30 in 3 games.
The Predators got pushed hard in the season opener, but managed to scratch out a 76-69 victory over a stubborn St. Cloud team. Long Beach was dominated on the glass, but took advantage of 20 turnovers and sank 22 free throws to get just enough of an edge. Douglas Adams stood out in his first regular season game, scoring 25 points to go along with 6 rebounds. Johnny Spoon started slow, but also finished with 20 points. Then a blistering offensive performance got the Preds past the up-tempo Cooperstown squad by a score of 92-79. The team shot an outstanding 62% for the game and was stellar from the free throw line again, sinking 20 of 23 attempts. Spoon played through foul trouble most of the game, but still finished with a game-high 25 points. Adams scored 16 to go along with 9 rebounds, and Aaron Miller scored 17 more. Even the bench did well, as the five reserves combined to shoot 7 for 9. Long Beach would then finish off the perfect week by dismantling Mobile, 87-65. Adams ripped off 27 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots. Spoon added 16 points, and Jack Davis played an excellent game with 10 points, 7 boards, and 6 assists. Gil O'Reilly dished out 8 assists, and the team committed only four turnovers. Amazingly, this was the first time in my eight seasons that the Predators won all 3 games in the first week.
Long Beach exploded out of the gates in conference play, drubbing Eugene in a laugher by a score of 90-58. Johnny Spoon went off for 31 points on 12-18 shooting to pace the offense, while Douglas Adams had another strong performance with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Aaron Miller grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds, and Gil O'Reilly dished out 7 more assists. The Preds ran a very efficient offense again, shooting 52% for the game and only giving the ball away 5 times. The Olympia game was sloppier, but the Predators still beat the Melanomas, 70-55. Adams continued his stellar play with 21 points and 9 rebounds, and the team once again only gave the ball away 5 times. The Preds' weak schedule held them back a bit, but their undefeated start put them at 27th in the first power rankings of the season. Long Beach would finish the week by plowing past Roswell, 87-62. The Preds got outstanding games once again from Adams and Spoon and played some good defense, limiting the Sacramentos to just 36% shooting. The 6-0 start is the best in team history to this point.
The Preds passed their first big test of the season at the start of week three, defeating previously-unbeaten Pueblo by a score of 79-70. Douglas Adams dominated again, dropping in 28 points, and the team shot 52% overall. Long Beach sank 17 free throws to just 6 for the Fire Water Burn, and were able to withstand a 34-point night from standout Freshman Patrick Richards. It was much easier sailing two nights later, as the Predators raced out to a 32-point halftime lead enroute to a 99-61 demolition of Salem. Three players scored at least 20 points, with Adams leading the way with 24, Johnny Spoon adding 21, and Aaron Miller chipping in 20 more. Long Beach was dominant on the glass and shot 55% for the game. Long Beach stayed perfect through the third week, but just barely after escaping a shootout with Carson City by a score of 94-88. The Kingmambos sank 10 three-pointers and made 18 free throws to keep themselves in the game, but the Preds made 31 shots from the free throw line and dominated on the glass to help them squeak out the victory. Miller lead the offensive charge this time with 21 points, while Adams added 20 and Gil O'Reilly chipped in 15 more. The nine straight wins out of the gate marked the team's longest winning streak in eight seasons.
Long Beach continued their conference dominance through week four with a 77-57 win over Salt Lake City. Johnny Spoon and Douglas Adams both finished with 16 points, while Adams and Aaron Miller both pulled down 10 rebounds. The defense held the Gryphons to just 41% shooting and the team held a 17-5 advantage in free throws. Tucson put up a big fight two nights later, but the Predators stayed perfect after scratching out a 67-64 victory over the Iron Men. Adams and Spoon were largely shut down, but Miller was able to lead the way with 16 points, and the defense held Tucson to just 2-13 shooting from long range. Hapless Waterloo was no match though at the end of the week, as the Predators cruised to an 82-57 OOC win. Miller lead the way again with 21 points this time and the team doubled up the Sultans in rebounding, 34-17. Long Beach also outscored Waterloo 42-24 after halftime. The undefeated season stayed alive through week four at 12-0.
The Predators plowed through Eugene again to start the final division swing by a score of 102-63, taking the two games from the Lone Rangers by a combined 71 points. Douglas Adams dominated again, leading the way with 24 points, followed closely again by Aaron Miller's 23 and Johnny Spoon's 20. Long Beach shot an incredible 66% (41-62) as a team on the evening. The Preds then wiped the floor with Olympia, smashing the Melanomas by a score of 86-53, clinching the school's fourth straight regular season conference title. The win sealed up another trip to the NTT, and was also the school's fifth regular season crown in the last six seasons. Adams scored 21 more points, Gil O'Reilly dished out 8 assists, and the team sliced through the Olympia defense with 59% shooting. Long Beach then put the finishing touches on a perfect 15-0 regular season by cruising past Roswell, 91-68. The Predators dominated the second half, and got more big offensive games from Spoon (26 points) and Adams (25 points). This also marked the second straight season that Long Beach did not lose an in-conference regular season game.
Long Beach breezed through the Quarterfinals of the Conference Tournament, taking care off Roswell again by a score of 76-55. The defense did its job, holding the Sacramentos to 36% shooting even though Roswell held a slight advantage in rebounding. Douglas Adams notched 22 points and Jack Davis played a great defensive game with 3 steals and 3 blocks. Olympia was pushed aside for the third time on the season in the Semifinals, as Long Beach reached yet another championship game with a 74-60 win over the Melanomas. Aaron Miller led the charge in this one with 20 points, while Adams finished with 18 points and 10 of the team's 42 rebounds. The Predators then sealed the deal on a perfect 18-0 season with a 92-83 victory over Carson City, giving the school its FIFTH conference championship in the last SIX seasons. The Kingmambos were once again able to run with the Long Beach offense for most of the night, and Adams fouled out after just 14 minutes of playing time. But the rest of the team stepped up in a big way, as both Miller and Gil O'Reilly notched 19 points, and Johnny Spoon scored 18. Miller also grabbed 13 rebounds to help make up for Adams' absence most of the game.
And then just like that, the season was over. An undefeated season that showed so much promise wiped out in an instant, another ugly first round NTT game, as the 6th-seeded Predators flamed out against the 11th-seeded Flint Giddyup Gips by a score of 86-69. The Gips had little trouble ripping through the Long Beach defense, and got help from 20 fouls that turned into 27 free throws. Douglas Adams was completely eliminated by Senior center Martin Kurasch, who put up 19 points and 10 rebounds, while going 11-11 from the free throw line. Johnny Spoon shot just 3-12, Aaron Miller fouled out with just 5 points, and the game would have been a lot uglier if not for a strong game from Gil O'Reilly (18 points and 4 assists). This game would go down as the Predators' sixth straight loss in the first round of the NTT. Yet another shockingly bitter disappointment.
The Predators' end-season slump continued with three more consolation losses in the last five games, but the team's final record of 20-4 ended up as the best ever in school history. A final ranking of 25th would also go into the books as the school's highest ever.
Douglas Adams accomplished what no Long Beach player had ever done before, being named Conference Player of the Year in his first season of college ball. Along with the well-deserved CPOY award, Adams was named the Conference Freshman of the Year, as well as receiving a First Team All-Conference accolade. Adams wasn't the team's only award winner either. Gil O'Reilly was named Second Team All-Conference for the third season in a row, and Johnny Spoon was also named Second Team All-Conference for his solid year.
The El Paso Federalists incredibly made it to their fourth straight Final Four, smashing defending champion Dallas in the Northwest Regional Final in a rematch of last season's championship game. The Honolulu Nobhill Trojans came out of the Southwest Region again, this time as the #2 seed, and handing Independence another Regional Final defeat. The Twin Falls Tricksters, the #3 seed in the Northeast, crushed top-seeded Naples in the Regional Final, and the Southeast's #2 seed, the Detroit Wreck, upset top-seeded Kansas City by a dozen in their Regional Final matchup.
El Paso continued their amazing dominance by making it to the Championship Game for the fourth straight season, knocking off Honolulu by 16. They would face Twin Falls for all the marbles after the Tricksters obliterated Detroit in the other National Semifinal, handing the Wreck their first loss of the season. But a three-peat was not to be, as Twin Falls erased more than four straight seasons of losses to El Paso by beating the Federalists, 76-59, in the Championship Game. The Tricksters won their first league championship in school history.
This season's class of Seniors was nothing really special. Axel McGee finished second on the team in scoring in his Freshman year, but was relegated to backup duty for the past three seasons. He was a very capable backup though, and finished his career with a 48% shooting percentage. Barry Swan was the team's backup point guard for four years, and while he was never anything spectacular and definitely not an offensive threat, he filled his role well and finished his career with nearly twice as many assists as turnovers. And lastly, Calvin Buck was a walk-on to the team four seasons ago, and did not play a single game during his time on the roster.
REGULAR SEASON: Spokane, Phoenix, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Glendale, Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Durham
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Salt Lake City (Semifinals), Carson City (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Miami (Round 1), Ithaca (Consolation Game 3), Rockford (Consolation Game 6)
REGULAR SEASON: Detroit
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Twin Falls (Round 2), Shreveport (Consolation Game 4), Stamford (Consolation Game 5)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 22
The Predators acquired a trio of big men at the start of Season Thirty-Four. 6'11" Kurt Hiatt is a dominant rebounder who should immediately step in as the starting power forward and fit in very nicely playing next to Douglas Adams. 6'10" Vincent Woodward is a terrible shooter, but can play shut-down defense and rebounds very well. He should be a defensive force off the bench. And 6'11" Darrell Treadway will also make a passable backup forward if called upon. The class ranking was 56/73.
It was a rough preseason week for Long Beach, as the Predators failed to even win a game in the seventh annual Twonament. A late comeback was thwarted in the opener by Hiram Morton's three-point play in the dying seconds to give Laredo a three-point win. Then the tough-as-nails El Paso team shut the Preds' offense down to just 54 points, and finally, Long Beach fell by two points to Madison, as Douglas Adams was beaten badly by Madison's freshman center, Gary Wall.
The Predators began the season in defeat, dropping a hard-fought contest to Detroit by a score of 91-83. Douglas Adams had a solid game with 22 points and 8 rebounds, but the backcourt did not play well, as Gil O'Reilly and Johnny Spoon combined for 8 turnovers, while allowing Detroit's guard combo to shoot a combined 19-30 for 44 points. The Preds' inability to contain the Detroit offense at all prevented a late comeback. Isaac Curry had a very nice game off the bench though with 11 points and 4 assists. Long Beach came out on top in the second game after a few adjustments though, hanging on to beat a tough Spokane team, 73-71. O'Reilly played an excellent game with 23 points on 10-15 shooting, and Kellen Wantland did an outstanding defensive job at SG, grabbing 6 rebounds and swiping 3 steals while holding Varmints' SG Drew Pierce to just 3-14 shooting with 6 turnovers. Aaron Miller scored 13 points off the bench, and the defense also forced 20 total turnovers in the game. The Predators would conclude their very tough opening week schedule with a surprisingly easy 78-58 victory over Phoenix. The high-powered Peaheads offense shot just 45% for the game, turned the ball over 19 times, and Freshman phenom Floyd King was limited to just 8 points. Adams outdueled one of the best centers in the league, finishing with 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Spoon scored 15 points off the bench, and Jack Davis also had a solid game with 13 points, 6 boards, and 2 steals. 2-1 was an excellent start to the season against some very tough competition.
The Predators began conference play with a huge bang, obliterating Eugene by a score of 90-50. Douglas Adams was virtually unstoppable in scoring 25 points, and Kurt Hiatt absolutely dominated on the glass with 13 rebounds. Kellen Wantland dished out 8 assists while coming off the bench having played just 21 minutes. The Preds outrebounded the Ducks 46-20, shot 54%, and turned the ball over just 1 time. The team followed that performance with another 40-point win, this time dispatching Olympia by a score of 101-61. Adams shot 14-23 on his way to 31 more points, while Gil O'Reilly added 19 more points to go along with 6 assists. Three other Predators scored in double figures, and both Adams and Hiatt pulled down 11 rebounds to contribute to Long Beach's 50-21 rebounding edge. The 4-1 start put the Predators at #49 in the first power rankings of the season. The Predators cruised to yet another easy victory to close the first division swing, hammering Roswell by a score of 96-67. Adams matched his previous game's output with 31 more points, and once again, four of his teammates scored in double figures. The team dished out 25 assists while only turning the ball over twice.
Long Beach got a bit of a scare at the start of week three, but used a huge second half to pull away from Glendale and win by a final margin of 90-63. The Red Eagles trailed by just three points at halftime, but managed only 21 points after the intermission, compared to 45 for the Predators. The balanced scoring attack was on full display again, as Douglas Adams led the way once more with 20 points, followed closely by Kurt Hiatt's 18 and Gil O'Reilly's 17. The Preds missed 12 free throws, but pulled down 42 rebounds and forced 14 turnovers. Antoher big second half erased another slow start two nights later as Long Beach took down Salem, 78-58. The Huskies led by four points at halftime but scored only 16 points in the second half. Adams had a big night with 24 points and 12 rebounds, while O'Reilly finished with 20 points and 2 steals. The defense held Salem to just 40% shooting on the evening. The Predators then finished the week with their biggest conference victory of the season, hanging on to beat Carson City by a score of 84-78. Adams scored 28 more points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Hiatt also grabbed 10 boards and blocked 3 shots. Jack Davis' defense also heavily contributed to the victory, holding Kingmambos' SF Benjamin Lampe to just 4-20 shooting in the game. The victory left Long Beach one game ahead of both Carson City and Olympia for first place in the conference at the halfway point of the conference schedule.
The Predators took down Salt Lake City in a hard-fought contest to begin week four by a score of 91-79. The Long Beach offense was in high gear again, shooting 57% overall and getting 31 points out of Douglas Adams. Jack Davis dished out 6 of the team's 20 assists, and the defense forced 17 turnovers to help hold off the Gryphons' late rally. Then it was Gil O'Reilly's 25 points combined with 52% team shooting that shot down Tucson, 95-74. O'Reilly also dished out 5 assists without a single turnover in what may have been his best game of the season. Adams also dominated with 23 points and 9 rebounds, and Aaron Miller scored 15 points off the bench. The win kept the Preds' undefeated conference streak going into the final week. Long Beach finished the five-day stretch with their fourth OOC win of the season, racing out to an early 17-0 lead and cruising past Durham, 81-48. Adams accounted for over half of the team's offense with a career high 41 points, while O'Reilly, Davis, and Kellen Wantland all dished out 5 assists each.
Long Beach whitewashed Eugene again by a score of 90-49 to start the second division swing. Douglas Adams sank 12 of 15 shots to finish with 31 points, and Gil O'Reilly scored 17. O'Reilly and Jack Davis both dished 5 assists and swiped a pair of steals. The Predators also made 28 free throws and only turned the ball over once in the easy victory. The win over Eugene then set the table for another big win over Olympia, as a 91-57 victory over the Melanomas clinched the Predators' fifth straight regular season conference title. Adams dominated again with 31 more points and the defense held Olympia to just 19 second-half points. The win ensured yet another first place finish, meaning a seventh straight trip to the NTT. Long Beach finished the regular season with another comfortable demolition of Roswell by a final score of 92-57. As usual, Adams had another big game with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Johnny Spoon scored 16 points off the bench in this one. The team absolutely shredded the Sacramentos' defense with 60% shooting on the evening. The win capped off a 14-1 regular season, and the third straight regular season without a single loss to a conference opponent.
The Predators hammered Roswell one more time in the Conference Quarterfinals, this time by a margin of 106-57. The scoring stats were off the charts in this game. It was business as usual for Gil O'Reilly (26 points) and for Douglas Adams (21 points), but the supporting cast also made a big difference as William Barrera scored 20 points off the bench and Aaron Miller scored 19 more off the bench. The defense also came away with 12 steals and held the Sacramentos to just 36% shooting in the laugher. It was much tougher going in the Semifinals but the Predators outlasted Salt Lake City, 77-72. Adams was held to a season-low 9 points, but O'Reilly stepped up with 18 and Jack Davis sealed the win with two huge free throws in the last 15 seconds. The Predators then closed the deal on their sixth Conference Championship in the last seven seasons with an 85-73 victory over Carson City in the Final. O'Reilly led the offense with 16 points and Johnny Spoon also had a big 16 points off the bench. Long Beach had a huge 46-23 edge in rebounding and held the potent Carson City offense to just 47% shooting. The win also marked the third consecutive season without a single conference defeat.
At long last, the NTT curse would finally end. After six consecutive first-round exits, this season's Long Beach team finally made it into the second round, as the 7th-seeded Predators defeated 10th-seeded Miami, 78-75. It was a close back-and-forth affair all night that turned on the Preds' 35-27 edge in rebounding. Douglas Adams scored 20 points, Gil O'Reilly had 16, and William Barrera and Johnny Spoon combined for 23 more off the bench. But while the curse was over, the team's chances in the NTT were soon over as well, as the Predators were decimated by mighty Twin Falls, 82-56. Long Beach only managed 20 baskets (33% shooting) and turned the ball over 13 times against one of the best defenses in the league. Besides O'Reilly (16 points) and Adams (15 points), the other three starters combined for 4 points. Despite the disappointing loss, the team can still build off of their first NTT win in years.
The Predators split their four remaining consolation games, picking up wins over Spokane and Rockford, while losing narrowly to Shreveport and falling to Stamford in overtime. Long Beach finished 20-4 for the second season in a row, and the final ranking of 22nd was the highest ever in school history.
Douglas Adams earned his second straight Conference Player of the Year award, and on top of that, he was named to the ALL-LEAGUE SECOND TEAM, the highest honor for a Long Beach player in school history. And as a fitting cap to a great career, Senior Gil O'Reilly finally added an All-Conference First Team award to his resume, on top of the three Second Team nominations he previously received.
Several late-round upsets in the NTT prevented any of the top seeds from even reaching the Regional Finals. The Oxford Bayou Bengals would be the Northwest Region's team coming out as the 4th-seed, defeating #2 Midland in a shootout. They would opposed by the 4th-seed from the Southwest bracket, as Boston Justin's Gang finally followed through on their potential by upsetting top-seeded Jersey City and then cruising past second-seeded Dallas, the defending champions. The Independence Peanuts finally made a Final Four, coming out of the Northeast as a third-seed, hammering 5th-seed Detroit by 20 in the Regional Final. And finally, the 4th-seeded Hialeah Aces pulled off another upset in the Southeast, knocking off two-seed Honolulu to advance to the last four as well.
Boston ensured that there would be a first-time champion after they slammed Oxford by 26 in the first National Semifinal. Their opponent would be Independence, after the Peanuts slipped past Hialeah by one in the other. And it would be the stifling defense of Independence that would take home the title after completely smothering the high-powered Boston offense in a 76-57 victory. It was the first game in the NTT that Boston failed to score at least 82 points. The Peanuts capped off an undefeated season by not allowing any one of their six NTT opponents to score more than 69 points. A much deserved first title for Independence.
Long Beach would lose their starting backcourt at the conclusion of the season. Gil O'Reilly was a mainstay at the point for all four years, immediately winning the job and keeping it his entire career. O'Reilly was never the standout scorer that I envisioned after recruiting him, but he was an excellent secondary scorer who could carry the team on his back when necessary. Gil was never an assist machine, but he will go into the Long Beach record books with 116 career steals, breaking the old career record set by Madden Bullock six seasons before. The Predators also lost Kellen Wantland, a solid utility player who started most of his Senior season at SG, and while never a scorer, was a solid shut-down defender and passer. Wantland was a backup for his first three seasons, but proved to be very useful in his final college year. Sebastian Durst was the only non-signficant loss in this class, as shooting troubles and ball-handling issues kept him on the bench at the beginning of his career, and he only played 32 games total in a Long Beach uniform.
REGULAR SEASON: Spokane, Detroit, Reading, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Erie, Salem, Carson City, Tucson, Burbank
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Tucson (Semifinals), Carson City (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Evansville (Consolation Game 2), Memphis (Consolation Game 4), Peoria (Consolation Game 6)
REGULAR SEASON: Salt Lake City
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: St. Petersburg (Round 1), Owensboro (Consolation Game 3), Hot Springs (Consolation Game 5)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 25
Recruiting wasn't kind to the Predators at the start of Season Thirty-Five. Long Beach lost out all three solid players, all of whom probably would've immediately jumped into the starting lineup to replace the departed duo of Gil O'Reilly and Kellen Wantland. As for the signees, 6'3" Frankie Iles flew under the radar because he played out of position in high school, but he could potentially challenge for the starting PG job in the future. 6'5" Jonathan Widner looks like a career backup, but he should be a pretty good one, with the versatility to play multiple positions. Lastly, 6'7" Ernest Storm should help out the defense if he cracks the 10-man rotation.
Long Beach went 1-2 in the preseason and failed for the seventh time in eight Twonaments to reach the second stage. The Preds lost the opener to Spokane by four largely due to a coaching oversight in failing to set the opening day lineup, while the players themselves blew an 8-point halftime lead in a four-point loss to Detroit. The one win was a 95-90 shootout over Providence. The team's offense was in high gear, but the amount of points allowed would be cause for concern.
The Predators avenged their preseason loss by opening the regular season with a 74-59 victory over Spokane. The game was tied at halftime, but Douglas Adams in particular took over after the intermission, finishing the game with 35 points. The defense held the Varmints to only 21 second-half points and only 37% shooting for the game. William Barrera also had a nice outing in his first game as a regular starter with 14 points and 4 assists. The Predators dished out 22 assists as a team, with only 8 missed free throws as a real cause for concern. Long Beach then avenged another preseason loss with a wild shootout victory over Detroit, 96-88. The Preds opened up a 12-point lead with 8 minutes to play, only to see that shrink all the way to 3 before making just enough free throws at the end of the game to win. The Predators actually missed 15 of their 38 free throw attempts and allowed the Wreck to hit 7 three-pointers, but the offense was clicking with 53% accuracy and the big guys did their work, outrebounding Detroit, 46-33. There were lots of stellar individual performances in this game. Adams scored 25 to go along with 8 rebounds, Kurt Hiatt scored 18 and grabbed 11 rebounds, Johnny Spoon added 18 more points, and Frankie Iles dished 5 assists off the bench. Long Beach would complete the opening week sweep with a 70-56 win over Reading. The Predators finished the game rather sloppily, but the defense did its job in this game, holding the Rooboys to only 43% shooting and allowing only 4 points in the last 10 minutes of the game. Adams led the way offensively again with 17 points, while Hiatt and Jack Davis dished out 6 assists each.
Long Beach opened conference play with a sloppy 65-42 win over Eugene. The Predators were surprisingly average on offense, with Douglas Adams leading the way with only 20 points, and William Barrera and Kurt Hiatt chipping in 12 each. But dominant rebounding (44-21) and excellent defense (33% shooting by the Ducks) were more than enough to compensate. The Preds cruised past Olympia again in the next game by a comfortable margin of 85-50. Adams scored 30 points to go along with 10 rebounds, and Barrera had another excellent game with 15 points, 5 assists, and no turnovers. The team shot 52% and only gave the ball away 3 times. And on top of the team's 5-0 start, the Predators opened second overall in the league in the first power rankings of the season, the team's highest ranking at any point in school history. Then the Predators finished the division swing with another easy win, taking care of Roswell, 88-52. Adams had another 31 points to go along with 11 boards and 3 blocks, Barrera added 12 points and 5 assists, and Jack Davis had another solid all-around game with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.
Long Beach got a huge non-conference scare to start the third week, barely escaping Erie by a score of 74-67. Douglas Adams was a non-factor for the first time all-season, limited to just 10 points and 6 rebounds in 21 minutes due to early foul trouble. William Barrera ably picked up the slack though, scoring a career-high 27 points even though he only shot 10 for 25. Kurt Hiatt also had a nice game with 13 points and 7 boards, and the defense was able to do just enough, as the Tigers shot just 4-16 from long range. It was business as usual though two nights later against Salem, as the Predators raced out to a 32-point halftime lead and cruised past the Huskies, 89-60. Adams rebounded from his previous performance with 29 points and 10 rebounds, while Hiatt grabbed 13 boards to help the team to a staggering 50-24 rebounding edge. The Predators then finished the week with an enormous 96-86 victory over Carson City. This was the deciding game for first place in the conference last season, and Long Beach once again was able to get a leg up on the Kingmambos. The Preds induced a whopping 31 Carson City fouls, and made 33 of their 43 free throw attempts. Adams dominated the entire game with 33 points and 12 boards, while Johnny Spoon stepped up and played a huge role in this one, scoring 17 points and getting Carson City's leading scorer, SG Benjamin Lampe, to foul out after just 10 minutes of playing time.
But the Predators finally stumbled at the start of week four. Long Beach fell to Salt Lake City in an upset, 76-75. The Preds essentially gave this game away, missing 13 free throws, including one by Jack Davis in the final seconds that would have tied the score and sent the game into overtime. On top of that, the Gryphons scored 22 points over the final 10 minutes to erase an 8-point deficit, while their defense outrebounded the Predators and held the Long Beach offense to just 42% shooting. William Barrera scored 21 points, but Douglas Adams was held to 15 and he gave the ball away 5 times. The Preds rebounded two nights later, holding off Tucson by a score of 85-72 in a game that was much closer than the final score indicated. Long Beach only led by 3 points with just under 6 minutes to play before going on a 14-4 run to finish it off. Adams scored 19 points, Johnny Spoon added 17, while Barrera finished with 8 points and 6 assists. Isaac Curry and Aaron Miller came up big off the bench with 8 points each. The Preds finished off the week by adding another to the win column, taking a hard-fought OOC contest from Burbank, 89-80. Adams was largely neutralized by Clowns' Center Ryan Harris (who grabbed 15 rebounds), but others stepped up in a big way. Spoon scored 22 points while Miller came up extremely large off the bench with 22 points on 8-11 shooting in just 12 minutes of playing time. Even though the team missed 18 free throws (with Kurt Hiatt responsible for 8 of those misses), the Predators were still able to force 12 turnovers and 42% shooting from their opponents. Hiatt's career-high 16 rebounds made up for his poor shooting at the foul line.
Long Beach hammered Eugene again by a score of 85-50 to begin the second division swing. Douglas Adams had a bit of an off night shooting, but he still finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Johnny Spoon wound up with 13 points and 3 steals, Aaron Miller shot a perfect 5-5 off the bench, and Isaac Curry grabbed 8 rebounds in 20 minutes. In all, the Predators shot 57% as a team, while limiting the Ducks to only 18 baskets and 35% shooting. The Preds whitewashed Olympia again two nights later, hammering the Melanomas by a final of 91-61. Adams scored 25 to go along with 12 boards, Miller and William Barrera scored 14 points each, and Jack Davis swiped 4 steals. The Predators then put the finishing touches on their Sixth Consecutive Regular Season Conference Title with an 89-58 thrashing of Roswell. Barrera and Adams both finished with 22 points, as the Preds raced out to a 28-point halftime lead and coasted from there. The Sacramentos only shot 39% for the game, and Long Beach was easily able to clinch their eighth straight trip to the NTT.
The Predators rolled through the Conference Quarterfinals with another big win over Roswell, 86-54. Seven players all scored at least 10 points, and the Preds also had a huge 46-25 rebounding edge. Douglas Adams finished with 19 points and 9 boards, while Kurt Hiatt added 12 points and 10 boards. Tucson was no match for the Long Beach in the Semifinals either, as the Preds cruised to another easy victory, 91-68 over the Iron Men. Adams completely dominated the game, racking up 29 points and 12 rebounds, while William Barrera also had an excellent outing with 19 points to go along with 6 assists. Tucson got some good mileage out of their top scorers, but their other eight players combined to hit only 12 shots the rest of the game. And finally, Long Beach won their fourth consecutive Conference Championship and their seventh in the last eight seasons with a 79-65 victory in the Championship game over Carson City. It was the third straight season that the Predators defeated the Kingmambos for the Title. Adams was the player of the game again with 26 points and 11 rebounds, while Barrera added 17 more points despite shooting only 7-18. The Predators dominated on the glass and held the Kingmambos to only 40% shooting for the game.
But it was the same old story yet again in the NTT. Despite earning a #5 Seed, the highest in school history, the Predators still lost in the first round of the tournament, falling to 12th-seeded St. Petersburg by a score of 89-82. The Preds simply had no answers for the Purple Turtles' offense, allowing them to shoot 55% for the game, including 7 three-pointers, 16 free throws, and a whopping 24 points from the backup Point Guard, Rick Weatherby. Douglas Adams got into foul trouble early, and finished with just 12 points on 4/14 shooting, once again disappearing on the country's big stage. Johnny Spoon had a nice game with 17 points, and William Barrera added 16 points and 5 assists, but the Predators still couldn't do enough to win, despite a slim rebounding edge and only 5 turnovers. The loss dropped the team's record to 1-8 in meaningful NTT games over the past eight seasons.
Long Beach wound up winning 3 of the 5 remaining consolation games, defeating Evansville, Memphis, and Peoria, while losing a close one to Owensboro and another close one to Hot Springs in Overtime. The Predators finished 20-4 for the third season in a row.
The Predators had many familiar faces on the All-Conference First Team this season. First and foremost was Douglas Adams, who amazingly finished on the All-Conference First Team and as the Conference Player of the Year both for the third season in a row. Adams was also named ALL-LEAGUE SECOND TEAM for the second year in a row. William Barrera was named to the All-Conference First Team as well, his first ever postseason award. And Kurt Hiatt also earned his firstever postseason award as the third Predator named to the All-Conference First Team.
It was a wild NTT that saw all four of the top seeds drop out by the third round and four double-digit seeds reach the Elite Eight. The 4th-seeded Hialeah Aces came out of the Northwest Region over #3-seed Honolulu, and they would face the Southwest's winner, the 10th-seeded Arlington Attack, who outlasted one of the best 9th-seeds in recent memory, Minneapolis, in a wild double overtime shootout. The Northeast's #2-seed, the Stamford Green Griffins, were the highest ranked team to reach the Final Four, after capping off their regional run over Cinderella 13th-seed Bangor. But a 13th-seed did still reach the Final Four, as the Southeast's #13, the Augusta Penguins, edged 10th-seeded Casper to complete a regional sweep that involved beating three teams from one conference.
The National Semifinals were both tight defensive struggles that ended with the teams separated by just two points. Augusta slipped past Stamford to reach their first Final in 11 seasons, while Hialeah edged Arlington to get a crack at their first championship. And then amazingly, it would be the Augusta Penguins winning their second NTT Championship, shutting down Hialeah by a score of 63-53. The Penguins were just 12-6 and a 13th-seed entering the tournament.
The Predators graduated a 59/47 class that didn't quite live up to expectations, but was a solid group of players nonetheless. William Barrera only got to start in his Senior season, but he made the most of his opportunity. Barrera was the team's second-leading scorer in his final season, and he was an excellent PG, not for racking up the assists, but because he hardly ever turned the ball over. He was a solid backup for three seasons before that, learning behind his predecessor, Gil O'Reilly. Johnny Spoon was an early surprise and started in his first season, but slowed a bit over the next two. However he got back into the starting five in his Senior year, and played very well over the second half of the season. Spoon finished as a 52% career shooter, and scored just under 14 points per game. And lastly, Aaron Miller was one of the best reserve forwards in team history, coming off the bench the last two years after starting in his first two seasons. Miller finished with 61 career blocks and was also nearly a 52% shooter for his career. Miller also never left the Long Beach area in his entire career, spending eight straight years there through high school and college.
REGULAR SEASON: Detroit, Spokane, Omaha, Eugene (Twice), Olympia (Twice), Roswell (Twice), Salem, Carson City, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Albany
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: Roswell (Quarterfinals), Eugene (Semifinals), Olympia (FINALS)
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Shawnee (Round 1), Independence (Round 2), Sacramento (Consolation Game 4)
REGULAR SEASON: Dallas
CONFERENCE TOURNEY: NONE
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT: Little Rock (Regional Semifinal), Fort Worth (Consolation Game 5), Phoenix (Consolation Game 6)
FINAL POWER RANKING: 8
The Predators scored big time