Winded and Winning

The only problem the two week layoff had on the Reignmakers was in their cardiovascular fitness.

It affected the Dream Team more however as the good guys rolled to a 74-51 victory, in a game that blew up in the second half.

With a different look in the starting lineup and having captain Jason Hunter come off the bench for more of a scoring punch, the Reignmakers battled with the Dream Team 34-31 at the half.

Play was dictated by a more physical presence and getting to the basket. For the first time this year, the Reignmakers Kerry Hunter was the tallest man on the floor.

"It was a confidence booster right off the bat," Coach Jason Hunter said after the game, "Starting off the game knowing you have the biggest man out there, it makes it easier defensively. A couple of us got a little lazy on the defensive end, the layoff hurt us in the lung capacity department tonight, but we kept getting to the hoop. It was good to see Brent have a huge game after his underwhelming last game. We needed that punch from him tonight."

Brent Hunter was huge. He was more aggressive in taking the ball to the basket and it showed in his shooting percentage. He was 12 of 16 from the floor total and only three of his shots (one made) came from the outside. He added two free throws to boot. Getting his second call-up in two games he finished with 27 points leading the Reignmakers on that end.

Jason and his other brother Brandon combined for 28 points (14 a piece) and Jason made all three of his attempts from deep. It looked smooth everytime he seemed to release the ball.

"I felt it. It felt good. It's a great feeling to know when you release the ball it has a great chance of going in. When everyone else is hitting shots, it makes it easier for them to come to you," Hunter said after the game.

The Reignmakers were hitting their shots. The team combined for a 55% shooting night from the field and 47% from deep. Ryan Stuver bested his season scoring margin with four points on 100% shooting, Kerry Hunter (9 rebounds) went 4 for 8 on the night, and Mike Petrilli got into the key offensively which led to open looks from the outside..

Some winded defensive efforts led to some movement in the middle of the 2-3 zone, but the Reignmakers collapsed and forced tough shots and contested threes for all of the second half, which is where they usually put teams away. Clintion Weigel and Andy Kempf provided more hustle on defense and strength in the zone, which allowed the big men underneath to grab defensive rebound after rebound.

It was a great rebound win for the Reignmakers after the loss to Fighting Fancus two weeks earlier. With the team coming into the season looking to survive around .500 ball, the way the team has jelled as a unit is a promising site going into the second half of the season.

"It's the best shooting team I've been a part of," Coach Hunter said during the local radio interview. "As crazy as that sounds to me...I mean there is no way you could have told me at the beginning of the year that this group would be the best offensive team I have ever been on. It's incredible, it has to continue."

If there was a negative going forward it's that Brent Hunter may of played his last game for the Reignmakers. He was sent back to the developmental league yesterday and is looking to continue his dominance down there. The team has already used its three-time call-up rule on Brent and it is highly unlikely he will get another chance. The only way he would be allowed back is if an injury became of one roster member on the full-time Reignmakers squad.

"It looks good for the future," big man Kerry Hunter was quoted, "I am not sure how much longer I have here and Brent will bring some more length to this team when I'm gone. It's good to see him play well tonight."

The Reignmakers will get back on the Monday schedule next week when they face the Sidelines team, which was 1-3 as of this writing.