The other semifinal series, encompassed fully in this post, kicks off with three games in...
Toronto, where the Mounties host the Johannesburg Lions in an attempt to meet Melbourne in the finals. Johannesburg got going with 510 from Wiebe Becker. Cyril Hendrickx made a poor judgement play, ending up at 16 for Toronto. Normando Alonso knocked 376 for the Lions to add onto their lead. Curro Garza only churned out 166 for the Mounties, who are already in trouble. Ken Howard posted 195 for Johannesburg. Axel Maes got shut down at 247 for Toronto, barely denting the deficit. Lucio Adame slugged 505 for the Lions, cementing their lead. Tabor Laureano faltered to 36 points for the Mounties. Oshri Aharonov chipped 126 for Johannesburg, keeping the lead steady. Jax Puente fired back with 535 for Toronto, keeping a slight hope alive. Pieter Hendrickx tallied 120 to put the Lions at 1832 total. Antoine Hendrickx managed a measly 20 points, leaving the Mounties short at 1020. Johannesburg, somewhat surprisingly, leads the series 1-0.
Wiebe Becker had a rougher start to game 2, hitting only 33 for Johannesburg. Cyril Hendrickx put Toronto a bit ahead with 128. Normando Alonso answered with 622 for the Lions, putting them in a firm lead. Curro Garza's 305 for the Mounties made the hosts watch their lead slip away again. Ken Howard kept Johannesburg on the attack with 433 in a strong effort. Axel Maes produced just 98 points for Toronto. Lucio Adame tacked on 283 for the Lions, continuing his season-long run of brilliance. Tabor Laureano continued to fail, hitting a measly 69 for the Mounties at a critical juncture in the game. Oshri Aharonov did little to help Johannesburg with only 74 points, not securing the lead. Jax Puente had trouble getting good contact with the ball, ending at 225 for Toronto. Pieter Hendrickx cobbled 187 to put the Lions at 1632 total. Antoine Hendrickx got 301 back for the Mounties, but they lost again with 1126. Johannesburg is on the verge of advancing at 2-0 in the series.
Game 3 saw Wiebe Becker led off for Johannesburg with 378, setting a strong tone early on. Cyril Hendrickx hit 234 for Toronto, making it a somewhat close start. Normando Alonos continued to be integral to the Lions' success, slugging 502 this game to pad the lead. Curro Garza shot back with 319 for the Mounties as they try to hold onto their season. Ken Howard poked 112 for Johannesburg, leaving the door slightly ajar. Axel Maes closed down a lot of the gap with 352 for Toronto. Lucio Adame had an uncharacteristic 106 for the Lions, leaving them vulnerable. Tabor Laureano made the game even closer with 128 for the Mounties, a solid effort by his standards. Oshri Aharonov reignited the Johannesburg offense with 534 points, hoping for that to be enough. Jax Puente likely gave the series away with only 49 points for Toronto at the worst possible time to lay an egg. Pieter Hendrickx slapped 248 to give the Lions a total of 1880. Antoine Hendrickx produced 265, but the Mounties fell at 1347 total. Johannesburg advances on a 3-0 series win to face the Melbourne Renegades in the Finals.
Sometime next week, the finals will be played, in a best-of-seven format. It will likely take two days. The home breakdown will be a 2-2-1-1-1 system. Until then, enjoy the UPCL pool games.
No comments:
Post a Comment