Heat Check Gaming had a few words for the opponents prior to their last match-up on Wednesday. It just may have been one word too many.
After a promising Heat Check debut for Hood earlier Wednesday evening in game one, it was time for game two of their week five doubleheader against Pacers Gaming. Looking ahead on the calendar, the team knew this was going to be a tough matchup, but a good bet says that they weren’t expecting to be without head coach Derric Franklin.
They could’ve really used him this game. The Pacers are one of the best defensive teams in the league, and they had just taken their first loss of the season at the hands of Kings Guard Gaming. One might say with a newly acquired Hood and an absent coach, their fate was sealed, but the show must go on.
And boy did it!
Pacers Gaming 82 – Heat Check Gaming 66
Not only did the Pacers take their first loss of the season a few hours prior, they got flooded out of the arena by twenty. Their pure lockdown defender WoLF 74 got a whopping 41 points dropped on his head by Bp, who also set the regular season record for 3-pointers made in a game at eleven.
For now, only Mavs Gaming remains undefeated (7-0), so the heavy crown is theirs to carry alone. They came out ready to right the ship and make sure they didn’t go 0-2 on the night.
Right from the tip, it looked like Heat Check was ready for the fight and got off to a quick 5-0 run. During this run, they were active on defense, and the doors of communication were open. The Pacers were 1/6 from the field and reeling.
Power forward Lord Beezus got the party started with a catch and shoot 3-pointer on the right wing as 24K Dropoff mistakenly helped off one pass away, leaving an open shooter free to roam the court. After that, the Pacers went on 10-2 run and never looked back.
The Pacers made their intentions known early and often, which was to force the one on one matchup between the two centers in the post. By the end of the first quarter, Ramo was already up to ten points and four rebounds against Heat center HotShot.
This is precisely what the Pacers wanted, and the bait was set. During the matchup in the first period, HotShot was already leading the team in turnovers. Every time he would kick out of the post, WoLF was there in the passing lane ready to steal. By the middle of the second quarter, HotShot had five turnovers.
The Pacers ended the first quarter only up by four with a score of 18-14. During the break, the Heat just needed to tighten a few things up and play smart, and they’d be right back in the game. A run was necessary during the second quarter, but perhaps it came from the wrong team.
Just fifteen seconds into the second quarter, HotShot blocked Ramo at the rim. Hood scooped up the rebound and threw it upcourt to Lotty who was promptly covered by Pacers’ guard Matty. Lotty saw 24K Dropoff cutting to the basket and shoveled the pass his way.
Perfect!
A wide-open shot in front of the rim was available. Why he didn’t dunk the ball, no one knows. It looked as though he got caught accidentally lobbing it back to Lotty, who was not expecting it for obvious reasons.
He caught it under the rim and was swarmed by the defense. Stuck in gameplay animations with defenders in front and in the passing lane, Lotty was forced to burn a timeout.
It was at this moment Heat Check fans knew the game was over.
Lotty and 24K Dropoff spent the entire time arguing about what transpired, telling each other to “relax”. Dropoff was smiling, but Lotty was not. HotShot tried to jump in and defuse the situation a bit since he knew the broadcast was listening in to this timeout, but it was to no avail.
Hood tried to insert some strategy into the conversation (because remember they were only down four) but resigned to having that face of “Hey guys I just got here. Not quite sure how to stop this.” The arguing got so tough that even the Pacers called them out for it from across the stage. The very next play after the time out resulted in a turnover and free throws on the other end for Pacers forward Swizurk.
At halftime, the Heat were down twelve points but it felt like forty, as the team proved they couldn’t recover from their meltdown in the second period. They were shooting contested shots and doing what we call in the 2K community, throwing the scaries. That’s when you look to pass at the first sign of trouble out of instinct.
These passes are completely reactionary and can be coaxed out of even the best players with the right defensive scheme. Some of these passes may get through, but the scary part is when you can’t tell you’re being baited into throwing these passes until you’re just about to click the button and it’s too late. That leads to easy fast break points for the opponent.
In the end, Heat Check lost by sixteen, while also climbing the leaderboard of teams with the most turnovers in league history at 22. They only had themselves to blame.
My Picks
Player of the game: WoLF 74
WoLF had a bounce-back game as a pure lockdown defender by putting the clamps on Hood (3pts, 1/9FG) and scoring 14 points to go along with his five steals and three made 3-pointers. Before the game, Lotty said “I know my math… Bp dropped 41 on him”.
While that may have been true, he may not have wanted to say that into a microphone. Things have a funny way of getting back to people quickly.
Sorely missed: Derric “YouFamous Enough” Franklin
This was a game where the team most certainly missed its leader and coach. He had pneumonia and could not make the trip.
The team tried to carry on without him, but his leadership was greatly missed on the headset. While we’re wishing him a speedy recovery, it had to be tough for him to watch his squad go down like that via live stream.
Heat Check Gaming will watch the tape, make adjustments, and come out ready to go next week. Up ahead, they’ve got another doubleheader next week against two of the top five point guards in the league OFAB and Radiant. They better get ready.