Posts tagged KC Truth Red 2015
KC Truth Reach the Championship of the KC Storm Fall Classic
Nov 24th
The KC Truth Red 7th Grade Make it to the Championship of the 7th Grade Division in the KC Storm Fall Classic
The KC Truth 2015 competed in the 7th Grade division of the KC Storm Fall Classic on November 20-22.
The Truth Red won their pool by beating the MO-KAN Elite 6th Grade and the Spartans 7th Grade. This sent them to the semifinal game against the KC Heat Elite, an experienced and tough team. The Truth struck early against the Heat Elite, jumping out to an early lead on the strength of their developing transition offense. The Truth lead would prove to be insurmountable for the Heat Elite, and resulted in the Truth moving on to the Championship Game of the 7th Grade division.
The Truth Red would face off against the the KC Cowboys in the Championship.
The Cowboys caught The Truth off-balance early, jumping out to an early 16-4 on the strength of their inside game, and led by big man Cody Riley. On their end, the Truth had trouble converting offensively in the early minutes of the game. However, when the Truth got it together on offense, they managed to completely erase the Cowboy lead and take a 2-point lead for themselves, on the strength of balanced scoring. Guard Anthony “Fuzzy” Bonner was not only unstoppable on drives to the basket, but he also racked up assists to teammates DeAngelo Bruster and Gabe Munoz as the Truth gained ground. In addition, big man Jaylen Gill stepped up to the challenge under the basket, going toe-to-toe with Riley.
Thereafter, the game was nip-and-tuck until the final buzzer.
The final seconds of the game provided for a dramatic finish. With the game tied at 38-38, the Cowboys had possession of the ball, and, as the clock wound down to the final five seconds, they turned the ball over. With those five precious seconds left, with his team inbounding the ball on the sideline, Coach Newton drafted the perfect inbounds play. Truth guard Davis took the ball out of bounds and waited patiently as Smith set the perfect screen for teammate Bonner. Bonner, who had provided headaches for the Cowboys in the lane throughout the game, got the ball and drove to basket, virtually unguarded after Smith’s perfect pick. Truth fans felt victory was within grasp. . . and then a whistle blew! A foul was called on the Truth away from the ball! And both teams were over the foul limit, which sent a Cowboy player to the free throw line. Both shots were made, giving the Cowboys a 40-38 lead. Somehow, five seconds remained yet on the clock. And with those five seconds at his disposal, the coach put the ball in Bonner’s hand to break the press, and put Davis and Bruster at the three-point line for the shot. Bonner easily broke the Cowboy press and got the ball to an open Davis. Davis launched the shot, right on target. . . and the ball hit the inside of the rim, and bounced out. Twice, the Truth had come so close to victory, and twice their efforts had been foiled. A hard-fought game was over, and the Truth was left to ponder the fact that their slow start ultimately did them in in the end.
KC Truth Competes in the Shawnee Mission West Viking Invitational
Nov 18th
The KC Truth Red Make it to the Semi-Final Game in their Division
The KC Truth Red won all three of their pool games in the Viking Invitational, which earned them a trip to the semifinal game against the Mo-Kan Elite 6th grade team. The semi-final turned out to be a hard-fought battle, from which Mo-Kan emerged the winner. And while the Truth did not make it to the championship, they clearly made their mark on the division by reaching the semifinal game.
The KC Truth Black Earn Second Place in their Division
The KC Truth Black won all of their pool games in the Viking Invitational, in very convincing fashion. The Truth then faced the Blue Valley Hawks 8th grade team in the semi-final, and once again posted a solid victory. However, in moving on to the championship game, the Truth would face their toughest competition of the tournament when they played the Mo-Kan Elite 13Under. Both of these 7th grade teams had dominated the 8th grade recreational division, and it was inevitable that they would face each other in the championship.
The Mo-Kan Elite came out offensively strong compared to the Truth in the first half, posting twice as many points the Truth did. By half-time, Mo-Kan was leading 21-10. The Truth had posted no fewer than 40 points in any game prior to this one (and racking up 70 in one), yet their offense was stalling on missed shots, and passed-up shots. And while the formidable Truth defense caused a handy number of Mo-Kan turnovers, the Truth were not converting those turnovers to points.
In the second half, though, the Truth started to go to their offensive strengths, while concerning themselves less with their formal offense. Behind some undefendable drives to the basket by guard Anthony “Fuzzy” Bonner and an increasingly aggressive press, the Truth scored twice as many points in the second half as they did in the first half. And leave it to the Truth to make it interesting until the end. With barely a minute and a half to go, the Truth finally employed their full-court press, causing successive turnovers and ending the second half with an offensive flurry by the Truth on an 8-2 scoring run. However, while the Truth outscored Mo-Kan 19-17 in the second half, they paid the price for their offensive inconsistency. The Mo-Kan played a more consistent game from the beginning, and won the championship, 38-29.