Thursday, July 26, 2012

All the Above, Ol' Skool advance to Hobbs Nite League championship

Clayton Jones/News-Sun
All the Above's Billy Austin goes up for a dunk
during his team's win Wednesday at Tasker Arena.
  A great Hobbs Nite League championship game is set for 7 p.m. today (Thursday) as defending HNL champ and top seed All the Above take on 2007-09 champ and No. 2 Ol' Skool at Tasker Arena.
  Top-seeded ATA used a strong third quarter Wednesday to pull away from No. 4 Hobbs I for a 105-82 victory in the semifinals – led by Josh Sanders' 27 points and Tyler Turner's 25. Both along with Wayland Baptist University forward and Hobbs grad Juhreece Thompson and fellow Hobbs grad Billy Austin lead ATA into the final and will be tough to beat.
  But they'll be tested by an Ol' Skool squad that seems to have everything going at the right time. It defeated at very talented Team TTB (the No. 3 seed) 106-99 thanks to 38 points from NMJC sophomore and Dallas-area product Dekabriean Eldridge and 34 points from European pro, Texas Tech alum and Hobbs grad Ronald Ross. Those two along with Hobbs grad Allen Haynes (a NMSU alum), NMJC's Ramon Eaton (a transfer from Division I Pepperdine) and Hobbs grad Austin Turner are a tough five for any team to match up with.
  If I remember correctly, the teams split during the season so it should be a great final. Ol' Skool has the experience and a lot of talent but All the Above has found a way to win for all but one game this season and also took the title home a year ago.
  Remember, there is no admission to these games so head out to Tasker Arena tonight. Trust me, you won't get to watch free basketball the quality of this many places - if anywhere.