Thanks to the 3 Maurice Creek points that won the game on Sunday, we are going to have a TBT champion for the first time on Tuesday night. Creek’s shot sent No. 22 Sideline Cancer to his first appearance in the title game, while No. 4 Golden Eagles returned to championship game after falling to Carmen’s Crew last summer.
It’s a rematch of the 2019 Wichita Regional Final, when Golden Eagles eliminated Sideline Cancer 88-80. Will we see a replay of that game?
“We were hungry for this game,” Creek said. “I felt the pain last year. Everyone who played last year felt that pain. It will be a great basketball game.”
Let’s look at some of the key talking points in the lead-up to the championship game (7 p.m. ET, ESPN), where the winner will take home $ 1,000,000.
How they got here: Golden Eagles received a seed in the top four after last season’s title game loss and was therefore fired in the second round. They knocked down the CP3 team in the second round and the Brotherly Love team in the quarterfinals, before a late surge against No. 8 Red Scare in the semifinals brought them back to the championship.
“We are a focused group, we understand what is at stake,” coach Joe Chapman said. “We’ve been through this before. We’re excited about it, that nervous energy. We want to get this monkey off our backs.”
Sideline Cancer, ranked 22nd, had to win four games to reach the title. He reached No. 11 Team Hines in the first round, then knocked down No. 6 Team Challenge ALS in the second round. In the rooms, Syracuse Boeheim’s alumni army exploded. But it was the semifinal victory over Overseas Elite that will come down in the TBT tradition. Sideline Cancer erased a 10-point half-point deficit against Joe Johnson and the four-time champions, crowned by Creek’s triple to win the Elam Ending.
“We just got together and stood firm,” guard Marcus Keene said. “Everyone on our team is underdog. And we bring that to the field every day.”
Players namely: Golden Eagles, filled with Marquette alumni, have many familiar faces from past TBT events. The two key names to watch out for are Darius Johnson-Odom and Jamil Wilson. Johnson-Odom was an All-Big East first-team pick as a senior before being selected in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft. He has been a consistent offensive player for the Golden Eagles, scoring 13 points in the semifinal victory. and averaging 17.3 points in three games. Wilson was excellent in the semifinal victory, scoring 23 points and hitting five triples, including some late baskets to clinch victory. He’s averaging 17.3 points and 7 rebounds.
Keene and Creek’s Sideline Cancer duo of the pitch led him to victory late in the semifinals, with both players hitting big shots. Keene, the former central Michigan star who averaged 30 points in his senior year, transferred his scoring prowess to TBT. “Marcus Elam,” as he is known for his heroics at the end of the game, is averaging 20 points and 4.5 assists, and had 22 points in the semifinals. Creek, who played for Indiana and George Washington, and Remy Abell, who played for Indiana and Xavier, stepped forward in the absence of former Maryland big man Diamond Stone, who is out due to injury.
X factors: For Golden Eagles, it’s depth. Golden Eagles used 10 different players in the semifinals, and that did not include Andrew Rowsey, who contributed big numbers for Marquette in college. Marquette alumni have the deepest team in TBT and can create mismatches due to their versatility and sheer numbers.
“We are more complete [than last year]”Chapman said.” We have our bench players, as good as our starters. When we skimp the last three weeks, it’s 50/50. It is a complete list. It is also a brotherhood. Men bought their role, put aside individual status, put aside individual minutes. We are better overall, we are a family. “
Sideline Cancer could be a target team. Jermaine Marshall, who played her college ball at Arizona State and Penn State and was noted for past Sideline Cancer teams, passed away in January 2019. Comebacks and belated heroics have led some players to believe that something else is at stake. this month .
“That was Jermaine Marshall,” Creek told reporters after his winning shot. “He would have told me to shoot all the time. I know he is looking down on us right now.”
Money fee: Golden Eagles plans to split the money equally, with the head coach and each player earning $ 90,000 and general manager Daniel Fitzgerald earning $ 80,000.
Sideline Cancer has a similar approach, with both coaches and each player earning $ 75,000 and power-up Cathy Griffith earning $ 100,000. Griffith is the President of the Griffith Foundation, which raises money to fight pancreatic cancer; his part would go to the foundation.
Prediction: I have to side with the Golden Eagles here. They have the experience of being in this situation before, in addition to the hunger to lose in the championship game last season. They have the depth and versatility at the perimeter to make Keene’s life difficult, and the loss of Stone will harm Sideline Cancer inside. Sideline Cancer also won’t have an answer for Jamil Wilson; it’s a brutal showdown and it continues to hit big hits.
No. 4 Golden Eagles 86, No. 22 Sideline Cancer 81
.
