JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two straight heartbreaking losses in the COMO semifinals have Duval United fans guarding their optimism. So, despite a 64-18 record and its first regular-season championship, the Bold City Brigade wants to approach each game with unmatched focus. "Scare up a hornet's nest," coach 'Proposition' Joe Stewart said, "no telling who's gon' get stung." Duval has been stung during its past two playoff runs. After blowing a late lead in 2014's clinching game vs. Shorewood, United's improbable 2015 run fell 12 points short against Chaska last year. Now, they're the prohibitive favorite for the first time after a dominant regular season. Kevin Durant and company will face No. 8 seed Kansas City (32-50) in a best-of-three series that begins at the House of Shad on Monday night. Up north, No. 2 seed Shorewood (61-21) and MVP favorite Stephen Curry will host No. 7 seed Minneapolis (36-46), which has won eight of its past 12 games behind super-rookie Karl-Anthony Towns and a resurgent Chris Paul. In another all-Minnesota matchup, No. 3 seed Chaska (57-25) will take on No. 6 seed Minnesnowta (48-34). We're in for an all-time frontcourt battle, with Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, Paul Millsap, Al Horford, Tim Duncan, Kevin Love, Rudy Gobert and Kristaps Porzingis all expected to hit the floor. The final matchup features No. 4 seed Rio (50-32) squaring off against No. 5 seed Newport Beach (50-32) in Brazil. A well-balanced Rainmakers roster will face a top-heavy, star-studded Grizzlies team that features Russell Westbrook, LeBron James and John Wall. FIRST-ROUND SCHEDULE Game 1 (Feb. 29 - March 3) -- played at high seed arena Game 2 (March 4 - March 6) -- played at low seed arena Game 3* (March 7 - March 10) -- played at high seed arena *If necessary
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The regular season is over, and the clear favorites for MVP and Rookie of the Year finished hella strong. Shorewood Show star Stephen Curry capped a blistering February with a 44-bone night on Saturday, finishing with 39.20 bones over 10 starts. He also collected Player of the Week after posting a 46.00 average over his final four starts. Twenty miles away, Karl-Anthony Towns put the finishing touches on his 29.00-bone, 11-start leap month that helped vault the Minneapolis Player Haterzz into the COMO Playoffs. Towns is the second COMO rookie (Minnesnowta's Michael Carter-Williams, 2013-2014) to sweep the league's Rookie of the Month awards. Later today: Check out our comprehensive COMO Playoffs preview. GREELEY, Colo. — James Harden continued his hot streak this past week. Colorado continued to tumble in the standings. As recently as two weeks ago, the Hilltoppers (26-52) had a decent shot at ascending to the No. 8 seed. But the team has simply not done enough around Harden, who poured in 38.33 bones in three starts between Feb. 8 and Feb. 21. A lock for the All-COMO first team, Harden will key another postseason run in Greeley next season. But with two lost seasons already under his belt since helping Shorewood win the 2013-2014 title, how much more patience will he have? DEADLINE DEAL: Newport Beach adds 'Big Al' Jefferson for playoff run, Hollywood continues rebuild2/15/2016 NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The Grizzlies are giving 'Big Al' one more title shot. Al Jefferson, 31, still potentially has several years of basketball in him, but his production — and health — have slipped much more quickly than expected. He essentially has a final chance at being a strong championship contributor with Newport Beach (47-29), which shipped forward Robert Covington ($3 million) and its 2016 second-round draft pick to Hollywood for the right to haul in Jefferson's $20 million contract. The big man had a good run in Tinseltown, finishing his Hornets career with the franchise's third-most bones (2,599), third-most points (2,135), second-most rebounds (1,011) and second-most blocks (128) in nearly three seasons. Currently healing from December meniscus surgery, Jefferson is expected to return "shortly," according to The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell. NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The MVP race still has a clear favorite in Shorewood, but Stephen Curry has company in the form of Duval United's Kevin Durant and Newport Beach's Russell Westbrook. The latter received his second career Player of the Week nod after averaging 38.33 bones over three starts for the Grizzlies. Westbrook is now averaging 31.10 bones through 52 starts, a bit off Curry's pace (32.73 in 48 starts) but neck and neck with Durant (31.33 in 43 starts), who's led a second-half demolition in Jacksonville. Grizzlies general manager Peter Mayer said Westbrook is "hands down" the MVP. "There's nothing Russ and this team cannot do," Mayer said. "If the Vuce (Nikola Vucevic) can stay healthy, it's championship or bust." Newport Beach (45-29) is currently sitting in the No. 5 spot, one game behind Rio for No. 4 and four games behind Chaska for No. 3. "Forget the 3 seed," Mayer said. "We already know we're the best team around. There's nothing to fix other than health." NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A career-best stretch of basketball for DeMarcus Cousins has earned him his first COMO Player of the Month award. Chaska's versatile big man averaged 34.00 bones over 15 starts in January. The Moose (47-21) are currently four games behind Duval United in their quest for a third straight regular season championship. Up in Minneapolis, Karl-Anthony Towns is doing his best to keep the Player Haterzz in the playoff field. Currently tied for the No. 7 seed at 28-40, Minneapolis has received a big boost from Towns, who put up 25.88 bones per game over 16 starts in January. GREELEY, Colo. — For the second year in a row, James Harden appears headed for an All-COMO first-team nod while his Colorado Hilltoppers flounder near the bottom of the standings. Harden won his fourth career COMO Player of the Week award on Monday (38.50 bones over four starts), but the 'Toppers are currently tied for ninth in the standings at 24-44. "Shouts to Harden for holding it down and inspiring the team," GM Collin Atkinson said. Colorado is currently four games behind Minneapolis and Kansas City for the eight and final playoff spot. There are only 14 games remaining in the regular season, and the trade deadline is coming up in exactly two weeks. So, will Greeley boys sell? Or push for their first-ever postseason appearance? "Now that it's crunch time, the plan is to focus in and do what's best for the organization moving forward," Atkinson said. "As of now, Harden is a Hilltopper." Harden is a bona fide superstar; His departure would severely upset the Hilltoppers fanbase and potentially send the team spiraling out of contention for the next couple years. Outside of No. 13, Colorado has little to no options (Ricky Rubio at $9 million? Derrick Rose at $11 million) that playoff-bound teams would be interested in. This week's slate of six games will go a long way toward deciding the Hilltoppers' fate. |
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