QFBA Rag – 2007-8 Week Sixteen

Rarified Air

Judging by the volume of email traffic, the game of the week was the first vs. last matchup between the Powerhouse Parrotdeads and the GoGoGals. Through some outside kibitzing, (or so it’s been claimed) Cher managed a wise free agent pickup of former Ute Andre Miller and former Jailblazer Rasheed Wallace.

I don’t mind saying that the Good Cap’n was against the ropes when Wednesday found him down by seven with Boozer and Crawford still to go for their respective teams. Think 1992 Nuggets vs Sonics. Think 2007 Warriors vs Mavericks. Think 1980 USA hockey... okay maybe that’s reaching.

Crawford played first in the early game and brought home a whopping 41 points for the Gals, meaning the Cap needed 48 from Boozer just to tie. It didn’t look too promising considering that Boozer’s numbers have dipped lately thanks to the more balanced team game the Jazz have been playing since the first of the year.

As they say, though, great players come through in big games and Boozer proved the adage by posting his first career triple-double. The Gals wind up tied with the Cap for the 2nd highest score of the week and off to overtime. The second go was the non-story this matchup should have been all along.

Congrats to the Gals for keeping all of us entertained. If this lineup stays healthy, you may get a few more wins before it’s all said and done. Maybe it will be someone else’s heart to break next time.

Dubers Drop Cruisers

There may be nothing left for the Dubers to do but play spoiler now and they certainly did that this week. Cruisers were hoping to move into the final playoff spot this week with a win but Dubers had other plans.

Playing with only four players, J-Dub’s boys showed they still have some firepower left even with J. O’Neal on the bench. The FJ’s might have survived sub par performances from virtually everyone if Wilcox had at least managed to show up. Coach April would have liked this one but at 8-8, all is not lost. She’s but a game back of Super Dave and has the tie breaker with six weeks left. Still a lot of round ball to be played before this is settled.

Chief Lucks into Another

Just call them Hayduke’s Hardluck kids. Down thirteen with G. Wallace to go, it should have been a cakewalk for the Runners to hand Rednicks the loss they’ve had coming for weeks. Wallace waited until Monday, when lineups were set to decide he was hurt or coach Hayduke might have had Ginobili and his 57 in the game. Ouch, that one hurts. I’m not sure whoI’d rather not be in the Runners locker room; Wallace or the training staff.

Runners are now two games out of the playoffs with an easy tiebreaker if they can just make up some ground in the last six weeks. As for the Chief, his luck has got to run out soon. Maybe it will come next week against the hungry Cruisers.

Jitz Squander Another Chance to Move Up

I guess Coach Sisti is getting tired of hearing this reporter tell him he’s stayed in the playoff hunt through smoke and mirrors and maybe some good coaching. He responded in Week sixteen by posting the weekly high score behind sold performances across the board. This is what teamwork is all about.

The poor Jitz had a decent, if not spectacular, outing this week, which is starting to look like the story of this team of aging veterans. Do they have enough gas left to make a playoff push? They’re going to have to be better than “decent” if that’s going to happen, you can count on that.

Clutch Falls in Game of Weak

Speaking of skating by on his looks, that Bus must be one handsome devil ‘cause he sure ain’t winning on merit. Only three teams did worse than he did this week and, of course, he was playing one of those three teams. (Haven’t we heard this one before?) Even so, had this been a fair five-on-five fight, he’d have dropped like a glass-jawed boxer.

I know I’m going to hear how unfair I was to the poor Bus yet again this week but gees Louise; he has caught some breaks lately. I’m not sure who looks more desperate right now with the big trade between these two teams but obviously Bus knows he’s got to do something different if he’s going to get past the Good Cap next week.

As for Clutch, I think he knows he’s grasping at straws at this point but he told this reporter that he’s throwing everything he’s got into a playoff push. Good luck, Tobias, you’ll need it.