Buzzerbeater Predictions : Game 15
Now we reach the final round of interconference games, and what a round it is. Six of the games this week are projected to finish with single digit margins of victory. If you were saving up enthusiasm for a big game, this might be the week to let loose.
Saturday’s predictions turned out much better than the week before. My projections were off by a mere 7.75 points on average, and I correctly predicted the winners in 7 of 8 games, right where I was expecting. The two big deviations were Slashing Dragons upsetting Upland Raptors, and apparantly my 45 point prediction for a Trombe victory was simply not large enough. With a much closer slate this week, I am expecting to only predict the winner correctly on 6.0 of the games.
Featured Game
Trombe BC at New York Knuckleheads
Picking this week’s feature was a no brainer. Get ready for a preview of this season’s finals, and for the first time, Trombe is expected to be in a close one. Scoring is the deciding factor here, as Trombe features an overpowering offense, even against a defensive titan like the Knuckleheads. Trombe will likely put up above average offensive production while the Knuckleheads merely very good offense will have trouble putting up points against Trombe’s top ranked defense. In the Knuckleheads favor is home court advantage, which will help negate some of Trombe’s advantage.
Trombe BC by 4.6 (69.5%)
The Rest
Cold Fish at Upland Raptors
The other matchup between playoff teams is a close one. Upland has home court and a superior defense. Cold Fish have a better offense and rebounding. All put together, and we end up pretty close to a draw. Flip a coin on this one.
Cold Fish by 0.2 (51.1%)
Balls of Steel at Cathar Heretics
Balls of Steel wins the lotto for the winners of this week’s blowout. Balls of Steel outclasses Cathar in every aspect of the game. Home court can’t make this lopsided of a matchup close.
Balls of Steel by 26.1 (97.0%)
Bautosai at The Mercenaries
And we reach the other game that isn’t projected terribly close, although certainly within striking range for an upset. The Mercenaries have a disadvantage in rebounding, but they have a decisive advantage in offense, defense, and passing. If Bautosai expects to upset The Mercenaries, they must convert their second opportunities into points often.
The Mercenaries by 15.6 (90.7%)
white -red knights at illinois frostes
Apparently no team in the Big 8 wants to face New York Knuckleheads in the playoffs, because every time a chance comes around to try and take the 4th playoff spot, everyone loses. illinois frostes has the tiebreaker advantage over BC Iron Horse if he can make up a game. This is an opportunity, but will the rebounding of the white -red knights prove too much to handle? Expect it to be close, one way or another.
white -red knights by 2.4 (61.3%)
Wheels World at Misfits
Wheels World holds a slight advantage over Misfits in nearly every category, but Misfits have home court. Wheels World is expected to win, but Misfits will probably have more fight in them than they showed against Trombe BC.
Wheels World by 6.4 (74.9%)
Slashing Dragons at Crooklyn Ruckus
Slashing Dragons showed good resolve Saturday, beating the Upland Raptors to stay in the playoff race. They will need to keep the wins rolling in to make up the two games they are behind. There shouldn’t be too much problem here, although Slashing Dragons can’t take things too lightly. Crooklyn has been rebounding, but an extremely poor defense that the Dragons should be able to take advantage of.
Slashing Dragons by 8.1 (79.1%)
The Ashkickers at BC Iron Horse
The Ashkickers are fighting to avoid auto-relegation, while BC Iron Horse is fighting to hold on to his playoff spot. Neither has done a stellar job at either of these tasks so far (although Iron Horse does still hold a playoff spot with a 4-10 record). The Ashkickers are ill equiped to take advantage of Iron Horse’s league-worst defense. If they can figure out how to score, they might squeak out an upset win. Otherwise expect Iron Horse to hold on to his playoff spot going into the intraconference games.
BC Iron Horse by 7.1 (76.7%)
