EDMONTON - The Edmonton Energy will play for the International Basketball League championship Sunday after defeating division rivals and the defending champion Albany Legends 114-107 in a semifinal Saturday at Vancouver, Wash.
It was the Energy’s first playoff win since the 2007-08 campaign, when the franchise played its inaugural season as the Edmonton Chill.
Both teams were on even footing early until the Legends opened up an eight- point lead with nine minutes left in the half. The Energy fashioned a 10-0 run towards the end of the second quarter to take a 60-52 lead by halftime.
Foul trouble and missed free throws plagued both teams throughout the second half, particularly Albany, which had several opportunities to catch the Energy but let them slip out of their hands at multiple points in the third and fourth quarters.
“They shot a lot of free throws, not sure what the final percentages were, but that’s part of the game. You gotta make free throws down the stretch,” said Energy forward Lee Scruggs. “We were fortunate they missed a couple tonight and we were able to come out on top.”
Still, the Legends made things interesting when they tied the score 99-99 in the final quarter. The Energy settled down and pulled out the necessary late-game heroics, scoring six points with just 25 seconds left. Guard Curtis Nash nailed several important free throws down the stretch, allowing Edmonton to emerge victorious.
“We were fortunate to come out of it on top, but we played hard and we played great. We stayed cool, even when the game got close, and we were able to come out with the win,” Scruggs said.
Edmonton, which matched up well with their New York rivals, expected a tight battle and a close score at the final buzzer. One week ago Saturday, Edmonton held a 13-point lead against the Legends, only to have their opponents storm back in the final minutes to win by two points.
Despite last weekend’s unpredictable finish and losses in the first two games of the 2011 campaign to Albany, the Energy managed to tie the season series with the Legends at three games apiece, taking two of the last three games in convincing fashion (126-114 on June 24 and 119-102 last Sunday) during the final weekend of the regular season.
With both teams’ seasons on the line, the Energy managed to emerge victorious.
“They’re defending champions and, if someone doesn’t knock them off, they were gonna continue to be champions,” Scruggs admitted. “But we knocked them off tonight, we were the better team tonight, and that’s why we’re playing for the championship (Sunday).”
The Energy won’t have much time to rest, as they face the winner of the other semifinal between the top-seeded Bellingham Slam and the host Vancouver Volcanoes for the league title at 2 p.m. MDT Sunday.
Edmonton played Bellingham during the second weekend of the regular season at the end of May. In three matchups, the Energy took the first game by 22 points, but came up short in the other two, losing 130-95 and 111-99, respectively.
“Bellingham is a well-disciplined team; they shoot the ball really well and don’t make too many mistakes,” Scruggs said. “We were just getting started when we played them this year. We didn’t have a lot of practice time, didn’t have a lot of chemistry. We’re definitely a different team this time than when we played them before.
“We know what to expect from them, but I’m not sure they know what to expect from us.”
A matchup with the Volcanoes, however, will be a bit of a mystery as the Energy did not play them this season. It won’t be enough of a mystery, though, to force a change in their game plan, according to Scruggs.
“They look like they’re a pretty athletic team, they play hard. But at the end of the day, if we do what we’ve been doing all year, it doesn’t matter what anybody else does.”
The Edmonton Journal
It was the Energy’s first playoff win since the 2007-08 campaign, when the franchise played its inaugural season as the Edmonton Chill.
Both teams were on even footing early until the Legends opened up an eight- point lead with nine minutes left in the half. The Energy fashioned a 10-0 run towards the end of the second quarter to take a 60-52 lead by halftime.
Foul trouble and missed free throws plagued both teams throughout the second half, particularly Albany, which had several opportunities to catch the Energy but let them slip out of their hands at multiple points in the third and fourth quarters.
“They shot a lot of free throws, not sure what the final percentages were, but that’s part of the game. You gotta make free throws down the stretch,” said Energy forward Lee Scruggs. “We were fortunate they missed a couple tonight and we were able to come out on top.”
Still, the Legends made things interesting when they tied the score 99-99 in the final quarter. The Energy settled down and pulled out the necessary late-game heroics, scoring six points with just 25 seconds left. Guard Curtis Nash nailed several important free throws down the stretch, allowing Edmonton to emerge victorious.
“We were fortunate to come out of it on top, but we played hard and we played great. We stayed cool, even when the game got close, and we were able to come out with the win,” Scruggs said.
Edmonton, which matched up well with their New York rivals, expected a tight battle and a close score at the final buzzer. One week ago Saturday, Edmonton held a 13-point lead against the Legends, only to have their opponents storm back in the final minutes to win by two points.
Despite last weekend’s unpredictable finish and losses in the first two games of the 2011 campaign to Albany, the Energy managed to tie the season series with the Legends at three games apiece, taking two of the last three games in convincing fashion (126-114 on June 24 and 119-102 last Sunday) during the final weekend of the regular season.
With both teams’ seasons on the line, the Energy managed to emerge victorious.
“They’re defending champions and, if someone doesn’t knock them off, they were gonna continue to be champions,” Scruggs admitted. “But we knocked them off tonight, we were the better team tonight, and that’s why we’re playing for the championship (Sunday).”
The Energy won’t have much time to rest, as they face the winner of the other semifinal between the top-seeded Bellingham Slam and the host Vancouver Volcanoes for the league title at 2 p.m. MDT Sunday.
Edmonton played Bellingham during the second weekend of the regular season at the end of May. In three matchups, the Energy took the first game by 22 points, but came up short in the other two, losing 130-95 and 111-99, respectively.
“Bellingham is a well-disciplined team; they shoot the ball really well and don’t make too many mistakes,” Scruggs said. “We were just getting started when we played them this year. We didn’t have a lot of practice time, didn’t have a lot of chemistry. We’re definitely a different team this time than when we played them before.
“We know what to expect from them, but I’m not sure they know what to expect from us.”
A matchup with the Volcanoes, however, will be a bit of a mystery as the Energy did not play them this season. It won’t be enough of a mystery, though, to force a change in their game plan, according to Scruggs.
“They look like they’re a pretty athletic team, they play hard. But at the end of the day, if we do what we’ve been doing all year, it doesn’t matter what anybody else does.”
The Edmonton Journal
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