2006 Playoffs

Major Season Events

In the regular season, Santa Ana improved by a stunning 29 games this year as Coach Thomas Hammett became only the 2nd coach to win 60+ games in the Current Hoops league.

Coach Thomas Hammett became only the 2nd coach to win 60+ games as Santa Ana improved by a stunning 29 games, despite having to build the team without many high draft picks after having traded them away in recent years. After building a 2-games-to-none lead in the Finals, Santa Ana lost in six to the more experienced King's Crimson Cobras. Now that coach Hammett's first-round draft picks pretty much belong to Santa Ana once again, the team looks to get even better.

Midwest and Baja didn't make the playoffs, even though they won more games than playoff-bound River City, who happened to be in the soft division. If RC had been in the east, the team would have come in 5th place (out of 5 teams).

Individually, Baja's Kobe Bryant scored 29.4 points per game. Only Jordan has scored more. Amazingly, Kobe accomplished this while having Allen Iverson (24.3 pts per game) as a teammate. Equally astonishing is the fact that AI averaged that many points while only starting 36 of 73 games.

Baja's Kevin Garnett easily won his 3rd straight rebound title (13.5), KCC's Steve Nash won his 2nd-straight assist title, and KCC's Shaquille O'Neal won his 2nd-straight FG% title (58.3%). Rookie Chris Paul of Rottingham had the most steals (2.67).

Some of the records set or tied this yr:

Ahwatukee's Gilbert Arenas tied for the most points in a game (58).
Santa Ana's Shawn Marion tied for the most steals in a game (10).
Baja's Kobe Bryant tossed up 43 shots in a game, 27 in a half, and 17 in a quarter.
Baja's Allen Iverson made 23 FTs in a game.
Hiroshima's Zydrunas Ilgauskus tied a record for highest FG% in a game (11 of 11).
Ahwatukee made 18 3's in a game. In another game, they attempted 43 3's.
KCC set a record for highest FG% (52.1%) for the season.
Costa Mesa lost 14 games in a row.
KCC had the most turnovers (18.4 per game) and fewest steals (5.8 per game).
Costa hacked KCC 42 times in a game.
Hiroshima shot 81.59% from the line for the year.

Notable Finals performances:

Santa Ana's Shawn Marion missed games 1 & 2 due to injury, but Santa Ana won both games despite his absence. Mehmet Okur replaced Marion and performed well.
Things looked grim for KCC in game 3. After one quarter, KCC was down by 7 on the road with starting center Shaq in foul trouble (3 fouls). Down 2-games-to-none, KCC's Steve Nash and Shaq got on a hot streak in the 2nd quarter as the team shot 76.5% in the quarter, turning around the series.
When Marion came back in game 3, he had 33 pts (14 of 20 shooting), 5 blocks and 3 steals, but only 4 rebs in 26 minutes. Once again, KCC got into early foul trouble, but KCC's bench came through in the 4th quarter.
In game 4, KCC's Tony Parker's speed was too much for SA's slower guards (Marion & Kidd). Parker ended up with 35 pts on 16 of 22 shooting, finding time to get 6 assists and 2 steals.
In game 6, KCC's Tim Duncan scored 27 on 11 of 12 shooting. Teammate Shaq scored 30 on 14 of 17 FGs. KCC's Steve Nash had 17 assists and only 3 turnovers.
Playoff MVP: KCC's Steve Nash averaged 21.9 pts on 50.6% FGs (58.7 adjusted FG%), 49.1% 3's, 92.9% FTs, 10 assists. Four years ago, KCC acquired Nash from Hammett's Costa franchise in this trade: Costa Mesa trades Steve Nash (5/4 G, age 29) and two 2nd round picks in the 2003 draft (no. 12, Teyshaun Prince, 1/1 F, age 23; no. 15, Chauncey Billups, 4/2 G, age 27) to KCC for Zach Randolph (1/2 FC, age 22).

Notable playoff performances:

In a game 1 loss to KCC, RC's Richard Hamilton scored 30 pts on 11 of 14 shooting, including 7 of 7 from the FT-line. He also had 6 assists. Opponent Steve Nash also scored 30 pts and had 6 assists, but also had no turnovers to Hamilton's 4.
In the deciding game 5 of SA/Hiro, Jason Richardson came off the bench and scored 36 pts (playing in place of injured Shawn Marion), on 13 of 19 shooting (5-5 3's, 5-6 FTs), dishing out 4 assists and turning the ball over only once. He also scored 17 in the 4th qtr.
In 5 games against Santa Ana, Hiroshima's Rashard Lewis averaged 24.6 pts against on 56.4% shooting. Hiro's Vince Carter underperformed, shooting only 41.8%, including 18% 3's.
Santa Ana's Elton Brand averaged 25 pts, 10.6 pts, and 2 blocks while shooting 92.6% FTs in 5 games against Hiroshima.
In 5 games against KCC, River City's Richard Hamilton shot 58.1% (90.9% FTs) and averaged 21.8 pts. Dwayne Wade shot 36.6% and only averaged 14.8 pts against LeBron & Co.
In 5 games against River City, KCC's Steve Nash averaged 24.6 pts and 9 assists while shooting 40% 3's and 95.8% FTs (23 of 24). Tony Parker torched the Runaway Train defense by shooting 59.6% (but only 52.4% FTs).

Finals

The King's Crimson Cobras defeats the Santa Ana SeaLions 4-2.

Game 1: Santa Ana Sealions 108, The King's Crimson Cobras 104

Qtr 1:

Shaq gets 3 fouls

"It looks like HOWARD took an elbow... He's hurting... Play is halted...
He's going to sit down... But, he may be back..."

KCC shoots 68.8%, SA 35.7%

5-pt lead for KCC

Qtr 2:

KCC's Shaq now has 4 fouls.

KCC's LeBron scores 13, hitting both of KCC's only 3-pt attempts

8-pt lead for KCC

Qtr 3:

KCC's Shaq fouls out with only 22 minutes played. KCC shoots 21% and only scores 14 in the qtr. KCC's LeBron goes 0-5. SA gets balanced scoring and takes the lead.

6-pt lead for SA

Qtr 4:

KCC's Tony Parker 9 pts, KCC's Tim Duncan 10 pts, SA's Jason Richardson 11 pts

Game 2: Santa Ana Sealions 121, The King's Crimson Cobras 110

Qtr 1:

KCC's Nash gets 4 fouls in less than 5 minutes. Twelve fouls in total for KCC. Add in 8 TO's and KCC trails by 8.

Qtr 2:

SA's Jason Richardson is the team's hottest player in the Finals. Eleven points in this quarter and 14 to lead the team. Foul situation: 5 for each of KCC's starting forwards (Duncan/Howard) and 4 for the team's starting point guard (Nash). SA up by 12.

Qtr 3:

KCC's staring forwards (Duncan/Howard) foul out half-way through the 3rd qtr. KCC's starting point guard (Nash) has 5 fouls. SA's Elton Brand and KCC's Tony Parker both score 12 pts on 6 of 7 shooting. SA maintains their 12-pt lead.

Qtr 4:

KCC's staring center (Shaq) fouls out. With KCC's entire starting front line fouled out, SA shoots 70% for the quarter. Five DQ's for KCC: LeBron, Shaq, Nash, Duncan, Howard. KCC outscores SA by 1 to lose by 11.

Game 3: The King's Crimson Cobras 129, Santa Ana SeaLions 118

Qtr 1:

KCC's Shaq get 3 fouls in 7 minutes. KCC shoots 59%, but KCC goes to the line 13 times and leads by 7.

Qtr 2:

Despite having 4 fouls, KCC's Shaq pours in 11 while Nash adds 12 on 5 of 5 shooting. KCC shoots 76.5%, but misses 6 FTs. KCC has 10 TO's vs only 3 for SA.

Qtr 3:

KCC's Shaq fouls out after playing 20 minutes. Santa Ana goes cold, shooting 38% (8 of 21) but is hot from the line (10 of 11).

Qtr 4:

Due to fatigue of playing on the road, KCC has to go deep into its bench. SA's Shawn Marion tries to take over, shooting 4 of 5, blocking 3 shots, hitting a 3, all without turning over the ball. For the game he scored 33 pts on 14 of 20 shooting, but only grabbed 4 rebounds in 46 minutes. SA's Peja Stojakovic shot 6 of 20 for the game. KCC lost the turnover battle for the game yet again (15 to 9) but had 20 more assists (37 to 17). KCC's Nash and Parker combined for 23 assists and only 4 turnovers.

Game 4: The King's Crimson Cobras 109, Santa Ana SeaLions 95

Qtr 1:

Instead of KCC's Shaq getting into early foul trouble, it was SA's Jason Kidd. Replacing him was Ricky Davis, who scored 13 pts on 5 of 8 shooting, including 1 for 1 from behind the arc. Davis and Marion couldn't contain KCC's Tony Parker though, who torched the slower defenders for 18 pts on 9 of 9 shooting (and 0 for 2 from the line). KCC's Nash had 8 assists in the quarter. A rarity: KCC went a whole quarter without a turnover.

Qtr 2:

SA's Ricky Davis and Chris Wilcox both scored 6 in the quarter as SA's bench brought the game to a tie at half-time. KCC went cold as LeBron and Duncan combined for 2 of 10 shooting. Shaq played almost the whole quarter and managed zero points, zero rebounds, and 3 turnovers. Players with 3 fouls at halftime: KCC's LeBron & Shaq, SA's Brand & Kidd. Leading scorers at halftime: SA's Ricky Davis 19 (off the bench) and KCC's Tony Parker 22.

Qtr 3:

KCC's Shaq makes up for a sub-par 2nd quarter by grabbing 8 rebounds, shooting 3 of 3, not turning over the ball, and finally not fouling anyone within hacking distance. SA's Elton Brand gets into deeper foul trouble as KCC's Dwight Howard shoots 4 FT's. KCC opens up a 7-pt lead. SA's Shawn Marion leads all rebounders with 15 through the 3rd quarter, but he and Kidd/Davis are having trouble containing KCC's lightning-fast Tony Parker (29 pts on 14 of 18 shooting, 3 assists, 1 TO).

Qtr 4:

An ugly quarter as both teams combined for 37% FG's, 25% 3's, and 54.5% FTs. SA's Elton Brand had trouble keeping KCC's Dwight Howard off the offensive glass (Howard had 5 in the quarter and KCC had 8). Despite SA's Stojakovic's great D on KCC's Duncan (who shot 5 of 20), KCC's Tony Parker's speed was too much for SA's slower guards (Marion & Kidd). Parker ended up with 35 pts on 16 of 22 shooting, finding time to get 6 assists and 2 steals. The critical turnover battle was a tie at 12 for each team. SA's leading scorer was Ricky Davis off the bench (19 pts).

Game 5: The King's Crimson Cobras 111, Santa Ana SeaLions 103

Qtr 1:

KCC gets off to a hot shooting start (57.1%) due to Nash's 4 of 4 (including 2 3's) and Duncan's 3 of 3. Unlike the previous game, Tony Parker is held in check (0 pts) but does get 4 assists with zero turnovers. KCC leads by 6.

Qtr 2:

Santa Ana comes storming back, behind 12 each from Elton Brand (5 of 5 FGs) and Ricky Davis (5 of 7 FGs). SA's Shawn Marion is holding Tony Parker in check (2 pts and 3 fouls at the half). KCC's lead is down to 2. Foul trouble at the half: KCC's Shaq & Parker each have 3. Game's leading scorer: Ricky Davis off SA's bench for 18.

Qtr 3:

Jason Kidd's 4 assists in the quarter help SA tie the score at 80. SA's Shawn Marion isn't rebounding like his usual self (only 2 through 3 qtrs) but his opponent (Parker, who torched SA in the previous game) only has 4 pts through 3 qtrs on 1 of 7 shooting.

Qtr 4:

KCC's Shaq fouls out again and only manages to grab 5 rebounds in the game. SA's tight defense on KCC's starting guards works in the 4th (2 of 8 FGs in the qtr) but KCC's guards find the open forwards, as Duncan and LeBron combine for 17 pts in the qtr on 6 of 7 shooting. Meanwhile, Peja/Kidd/Marion go cold for SA (37% for the qtr). Leading scorers: little-used Ricky Davis with 21 for SA (8 of 11 FGs, 4 of 4 FTs, only 1 turnover in 28 minutes off the bench), 25 for LeBron.

Game 6: The King's Crimson Cobras 132, Santa Ana SeaLions 118

Qtr 1:

Super-sub Ricky Davis of SA gets KCC's Tony Parker in foul trouble (3 fouls). KCC shoots 10 FTs but only makes 4. Shaq and Dwight Howard combine for 0-4 FTs. SA leads by 4.

Qtr 2:

KCC's Shaq punishes Alonzo Mourning by scoring 11 on 5 of 6 shooting. In the first half, Shaq has 17 pts on 8 of 10 shooting while Mourning has 0 pts & 3 fouls in less than 9 minutes of playing time. SA's little-used Rasheed Wallace and Chris Webber are wondering why they're not getting a shot at slowing down the Diesel. SA's Stojakovic is the game's 2nd-leading scorer with 16. KCC leads by 8.

Qtr 3:

The power forwards battle it out as SA's Elton Brand leads all scorers in the 3rd with 13 pts on 6 of 9 shooting. KCC power forward Tim Duncan scores 8 on 4 of 5 shooting. KCC's sizzling 78.9% FGs only stretches KCC's lead by two points for a total lead of 10. SA's Peja Stojakovic is keeping SA in the game with 27 pts on 9 of 11 shooting (6-6 FTs) through the 3rd qtr.

Qtr 4:

KCC's entire front line (Shaq/Duncan/Dwight Howard) fouls out. But KCC conquers their turnover problem (4 fewer than SA in the game, despite KCC's record-breaking high turnover season) and wins the game and the series, coming back after trailing two games to zero. KCC shoots 63.5% FGs in the game, including 62.5% 3's (and shoots a horrid 53.8% from the line). Leading scorers for the game: 32 from SA's Stojakovic (11 of 13 shooting) and 30 from KCC's Shaq (14 of 17 shooting).

KCC's playoff stats.
Santa Ana's playoff stats.

Division Finals:

East:

Santa Ana defeats Hiroshima 4-1

Game 1: Santa Ana Sea Lions 126, Hiroshima Godzillas 116 Former River City point guard Jason Kidd had a triple-double for Santa Ana (17,11,12) with only 1 turnover.
Game 2: Santa Ana Sea Lions 115, Hiroshima Godzillas 113 SA's Shawn Marion hit a shot at the buzzer to win game 2 against Hiroshima. Marion, obtained in an offseason trade along with Okur from Rottingham for Andrew Bynum and Josh Howard, is averaging 28 pts on 55% shooting (and 17 rebs). Sixth-man Okur (who was on Hiroshima two seasons ago) is averaging 14 pts on 71.4% FGs. In the regular season, Marion came in 7th in scoring, 5th in FG%, 3rd in rebs, 4th in steals, and 2nd in minutes per game.
Game 3: Hiroshima Godzillas 125, Santa Ana Sea Lions 117 Hiroshima's Kirk Hinrich scored 12 in the 4th, helping overcome ex-Hiroshma power forward Elton Brand's 41-pt night.
Game 4: Santa Ana Sea Lions 132, Hiroshima Godzillas 127 Kidd/Brand/Marion withstand Hiro's 42-pt 4th qtr. Zero ties and only 1 lead change. Hiroshima's coach collects 2 technicals.
Game 5: Santa Ana Sea Lions 124, Hiroshima Godzillas 103 With Shawn Marion going down with an injury, Jason Richardson came off the bench and scored 36 pts, on 13 of 19 shooting (5-5 3's, 5-6 FTs), dishing out 4 assists and turning the ball over only once. He also scored 17 in the 4th qtr.

Hiroshima's playoff stats.

West:

KCC defeats River City 4-1

Game 1: The King's Crimson Cobras 114, River City 109 By the end of the 1st qtr, RC had built an 18-pt lead on 70.4% shooting including 5 of 5 for 3's. KCC wore down RC and outscored RC 31-15 in the critical 4th qtr. Notoriously poor FT-shooting KCC surprisingly shot 84.8% from the charity stripe (28 of 33). Turnover-prone KCC had 8 fewer TO's than RC.
Game 2: The King's Crimson Cobras 109, River City 97 RC got off to another 1st qtr lead (31-19), but KCC roared back for a 12-pt win behind Nash's 29 pts (including 16 pts in the 3rd on perfect shooting of 4-4, 3-3, 5-5 and zero turnovers in the quarter).
Game 3: The King's Crimson Cobras 125, River City 114 Once again RC got off to a quick 1st-qtr start (29-22), but ex-River City guard Tony Parker torched his former team for 25 pts and 11 assists. Fellow guard Steve Nash (formerly of Hiroshima and Costa Mesa) led all scorers with 31 pts. He also had 12 assists, only 2 turnovers, and shot 6 of 9 from behind the arc. KCC, which set a record for highest FG% and most turnovers, shot 57.9% FGs and had one fewer TO than River City.
Game 4: River City 97, The King's Crimson Cobras 86 Ugly game as KCC's Nash shot 3 of 15, RC's Wade shot 3 of 20, Shaq fouled out after only playing 18 minutes, and KCC's turnover problems resurfaced (21).
Game 5: The King's Crimson Cobras 110, River City 108 Going into the 4th qtr, KCC had the lead, but KCC's starting forwards (Tim Duncan/Dwight Howard) both had 5 fouls. RC clawed back into the game and had a 102-101 lead and the ball with 1:55 left in the game, but turned the ball over when Hamilton couldn't get a shot off. Then, in less than a minute, Nash fed the ball into Yao for two, RC's Hamilton missed, then Nash racked up his 11th assist when LeBron hit on a jumper. With 1:15 left, Camby scored on a pass from Wade, putting RC down by only 1 (104-105). LeBron then found Nash inside for a layup with 59 seconds left, giving KCC a three point lead. RC's Wade took the next shot but missed it, Yao grabbed the rebound and LeBron was eventually fouled. RC then went fishing.

River City's playoff stats.

Post-season Injuries

Santa Ana's Shawn Marion was injured in game 5 of the playoff series against Hiroshima and will miss the first two games of the Finals.

Santa Ana's Jason Richardson was injured in game 3 of the Finals and will miss 3 games.



			2006 Playoffs Major Season Events In the regular season, Santa Ana improved by a stunning 29 games this year as Coach Thomas Hammett became only the 2nd coach to win 60+ games in the Current Hoops league. Coach Thomas Hammett became only the 2nd coach to win 60+ games as Santa Ana improved by a stunning 29 games, despite having to build the team without many high draft picks after having traded them away in recent years. After building a 2-games-to-none lead in the Finals, Santa Ana lost in six to the more experienced King's Crimson Cobras. Now that coach Hammett's first-round draft picks pretty much belong to Santa Ana once again, the team looks to get even better. Midwest and Baja didn't make the playoffs, even though they won more games than playoff-bound River City, who happened to be in the soft division. If RC had been in the east, the team would have come in 5th place (out of 5 teams). Individually, Baja's Kobe Bryant scored 29.4 points per game. Only Jordan has scored more. Amazingly, Kobe accomplished this while having Allen Iverson (24.3 pts per game) as a teammate. Equally astonishing is the fact that AI averaged that many points while only starting 36 of 73 games. Baja's Kevin Garnett easily won his 3rd straight rebound title (13.5), KCC's Steve Nash won his 2nd-straight assist title, and KCC's Shaquille O'Neal won his 2nd-straight FG% title (58.3%). Rookie Chris Paul of Rottingham had the most steals (2.67). Some of the records set or tied this yr: Ahwatukee's Gilbert Arenas tied for the most points in a game (58). Santa Ana's Shawn Marion tied for the most steals in a game (10). Baja's Kobe Bryant tossed up 43 shots in a game, 27 in a half, and 17 in a quarter. Baja's Allen Iverson made 23 FTs in a game. Hiroshima's Zydrunas Ilgauskus tied a record for highest FG% in a game (11 of 11). Ahwatukee made 18 3's in a game. In another game, they attempted 43 3's. KCC set a record for highest FG% (52.1%) for the season. Costa Mesa lost 14 games in a row. KCC had the most turnovers (18.4 per game) and fewest steals (5.8 per game). Costa hacked KCC 42 times in a game. Hiroshima shot 81.59% from the line for the year. Notable Finals performances: Santa Ana's Shawn Marion missed games 1 & 2 due to injury, but Santa Ana won both games despite his absence. Mehmet Okur replaced Marion and performed well. Things looked grim for KCC in game 3. After one quarter, KCC was down by 7 on the road with starting center Shaq in foul trouble (3 fouls). Down 2-games-to-none, KCC's Steve Nash and Shaq got on a hot streak in the 2nd quarter as the team shot 76.5% in the quarter, turning around the series. When Marion came back in game 3, he had 33 pts (14 of 20 shooting), 5 blocks and 3 steals, but only 4 rebs in 26 minutes. Once again, KCC got into early foul trouble, but KCC's bench came through in the 4th quarter. In game 4, KCC's Tony Parker's speed was too much for SA's slower guards (Marion & Kidd). Parker ended up with 35 pts on 16 of 22 shooting, finding time to get 6 assists and 2 steals. In game 6, KCC's Tim Duncan scored 27 on 11 of 12 shooting. Teammate Shaq scored 30 on 14 of 17 FGs. KCC's Steve Nash had 17 assists and only 3 turnovers. Playoff MVP: KCC's Steve Nash averaged 21.9 pts on 50.6% FGs (58.7 adjusted FG%), 49.1% 3's, 92.9% FTs, 10 assists. Four years ago, KCC acquired Nash from Hammett's Costa franchise in this trade: Costa Mesa trades Steve Nash (5/4 G, age 29) and two 2nd round picks in the 2003 draft (no. 12, Teyshaun Prince, 1/1 F, age 23; no. 15, Chauncey Billups, 4/2 G, age 27) to KCC for Zach Randolph (1/2 FC, age 22). Notable playoff performances: In a game 1 loss to KCC, RC's Richard Hamilton scored 30 pts on 11 of 14 shooting, including 7 of 7 from the FT-line. He also had 6 assists. Opponent Steve Nash also scored 30 pts and had 6 assists, but also had no turnovers to Hamilton's 4. In the deciding game 5 of SA/Hiro, Jason Richardson came off the bench and scored 36 pts (playing in place of injured Shawn Marion), on 13 of 19 shooting (5-5 3's, 5-6 FTs), dishing out 4 assists and turning the ball over only once. He also scored 17 in the 4th qtr. In 5 games against Santa Ana, Hiroshima's Rashard Lewis averaged 24.6 pts against on 56.4% shooting. Hiro's Vince Carter underperformed, shooting only 41.8%, including 18% 3's. Santa Ana's Elton Brand averaged 25 pts, 10.6 pts, and 2 blocks while shooting 92.6% FTs in 5 games against Hiroshima. In 5 games against KCC, River City's Richard Hamilton shot 58.1% (90.9% FTs) and averaged 21.8 pts. Dwayne Wade shot 36.6% and only averaged 14.8 pts against LeBron & Co. In 5 games against River City, KCC's Steve Nash averaged 24.6 pts and 9 assists while shooting 40% 3's and 95.8% FTs (23 of 24). Tony Parker torched the Runaway Train defense by shooting 59.6% (but only 52.4% FTs). Finals The King's Crimson Cobras defeats the Santa Ana SeaLions 4-2. Game 1: Santa Ana Sealions 108, The King's Crimson Cobras 104 Qtr 1: Shaq gets 3 fouls "It looks like HOWARD took an elbow... He's hurting... Play is halted... He's going to sit down... But, he may be back..." KCC shoots 68.8%, SA 35.7% 5-pt lead for KCC Qtr 2: KCC's Shaq now has 4 fouls. KCC's LeBron scores 13, hitting both of KCC's only 3-pt attempts 8-pt lead for KCC Qtr 3: KCC's Shaq fouls out with only 22 minutes played. KCC shoots 21% and only scores 14 in the qtr. KCC's LeBron goes 0-5. SA gets balanced scoring and takes the lead. 6-pt lead for SA Qtr 4: KCC's Tony Parker 9 pts, KCC's Tim Duncan 10 pts, SA's Jason Richardson 11 pts Game 2: Santa Ana Sealions 121, The King's Crimson Cobras 110 Qtr 1: KCC's Nash gets 4 fouls in less than 5 minutes. Twelve fouls in total for KCC. Add in 8 TO's and KCC trails by 8. Qtr 2: SA's Jason Richardson is the team's hottest player in the Finals. Eleven points in this quarter and 14 to lead the team. Foul situation: 5 for each of KCC's starting forwards (Duncan/Howard) and 4 for the team's starting point guard (Nash). SA up by 12. Qtr 3: KCC's staring forwards (Duncan/Howard) foul out half-way through the 3rd qtr. KCC's starting point guard (Nash) has 5 fouls. SA's Elton Brand and KCC's Tony Parker both score 12 pts on 6 of 7 shooting. SA maintains their 12-pt lead. Qtr 4: KCC's staring center (Shaq) fouls out. With KCC's entire starting front line fouled out, SA shoots 70% for the quarter. Five DQ's for KCC: LeBron, Shaq, Nash, Duncan, Howard. KCC outscores SA by 1 to lose by 11. Game 3: The King's Crimson Cobras 129, Santa Ana SeaLions 118 Qtr 1: KCC's Shaq get 3 fouls in 7 minutes. KCC shoots 59%, but KCC goes to the line 13 times and leads by 7. Qtr 2: Despite having 4 fouls, KCC's Shaq pours in 11 while Nash adds 12 on 5 of 5 shooting. KCC shoots 76.5%, but misses 6 FTs. KCC has 10 TO's vs only 3 for SA. Qtr 3: KCC's Shaq fouls out after playing 20 minutes. Santa Ana goes cold, shooting 38% (8 of 21) but is hot from the line (10 of 11). Qtr 4: Due to fatigue of playing on the road, KCC has to go deep into its bench. SA's Shawn Marion tries to take over, shooting 4 of 5, blocking 3 shots, hitting a 3, all without turning over the ball. For the game he scored 33 pts on 14 of 20 shooting, but only grabbed 4 rebounds in 46 minutes. SA's Peja Stojakovic shot 6 of 20 for the game. KCC lost the turnover battle for the game yet again (15 to 9) but had 20 more assists (37 to 17). KCC's Nash and Parker combined for 23 assists and only 4 turnovers. Game 4: The King's Crimson Cobras 109, Santa Ana SeaLions 95 Qtr 1: Instead of KCC's Shaq getting into early foul trouble, it was SA's Jason Kidd. Replacing him was Ricky Davis, who scored 13 pts on 5 of 8 shooting, including 1 for 1 from behind the arc. Davis and Marion couldn't contain KCC's Tony Parker though, who torched the slower defenders for 18 pts on 9 of 9 shooting (and 0 for 2 from the line). KCC's Nash had 8 assists in the quarter. A rarity: KCC went a whole quarter without a turnover. Qtr 2: SA's Ricky Davis and Chris Wilcox both scored 6 in the quarter as SA's bench brought the game to a tie at half-time. KCC went cold as LeBron and Duncan combined for 2 of 10 shooting. Shaq played almost the whole quarter and managed zero points, zero rebounds, and 3 turnovers. Players with 3 fouls at halftime: KCC's LeBron & Shaq, SA's Brand & Kidd. Leading scorers at halftime: SA's Ricky Davis 19 (off the bench) and KCC's Tony Parker 22. Qtr 3: KCC's Shaq makes up for a sub-par 2nd quarter by grabbing 8 rebounds, shooting 3 of 3, not turning over the ball, and finally not fouling anyone within hacking distance. SA's Elton Brand gets into deeper foul trouble as KCC's Dwight Howard shoots 4 FT's. KCC opens up a 7-pt lead. SA's Shawn Marion leads all rebounders with 15 through the 3rd quarter, but he and Kidd/Davis are having trouble containing KCC's lightning-fast Tony Parker (29 pts on 14 of 18 shooting, 3 assists, 1 TO). Qtr 4: An ugly quarter as both teams combined for 37% FG's, 25% 3's, and 54.5% FTs. SA's Elton Brand had trouble keeping KCC's Dwight Howard off the offensive glass (Howard had 5 in the quarter and KCC had 8). Despite SA's Stojakovic's great D on KCC's Duncan (who shot 5 of 20), KCC's Tony Parker's speed was too much for SA's slower guards (Marion & Kidd). Parker ended up with 35 pts on 16 of 22 shooting, finding time to get 6 assists and 2 steals. The critical turnover battle was a tie at 12 for each team. SA's leading scorer was Ricky Davis off the bench (19 pts). Game 5: The King's Crimson Cobras 111, Santa Ana SeaLions 103 Qtr 1: KCC gets off to a hot shooting start (57.1%) due to Nash's 4 of 4 (including 2 3's) and Duncan's 3 of 3. Unlike the previous game, Tony Parker is held in check (0 pts) but does get 4 assists with zero turnovers. KCC leads by 6. Qtr 2: Santa Ana comes storming back, behind 12 each from Elton Brand (5 of 5 FGs) and Ricky Davis (5 of 7 FGs). SA's Shawn Marion is holding Tony Parker in check (2 pts and 3 fouls at the half). KCC's lead is down to 2. Foul trouble at the half: KCC's Shaq & Parker each have 3. Game's leading scorer: Ricky Davis off SA's bench for 18. Qtr 3: Jason Kidd's 4 assists in the quarter help SA tie the score at 80. SA's Shawn Marion isn't rebounding like his usual self (only 2 through 3 qtrs) but his opponent (Parker, who torched SA in the previous game) only has 4 pts through 3 qtrs on 1 of 7 shooting. Qtr 4: KCC's Shaq fouls out again and only manages to grab 5 rebounds in the game. SA's tight defense on KCC's starting guards works in the 4th (2 of 8 FGs in the qtr) but KCC's guards find the open forwards, as Duncan and LeBron combine for 17 pts in the qtr on 6 of 7 shooting. Meanwhile, Peja/Kidd/Marion go cold for SA (37% for the qtr). Leading scorers: little-used Ricky Davis with 21 for SA (8 of 11 FGs, 4 of 4 FTs, only 1 turnover in 28 minutes off the bench), 25 for LeBron. Game 6: The King's Crimson Cobras 132, Santa Ana SeaLions 118 Qtr 1: Super-sub Ricky Davis of SA gets KCC's Tony Parker in foul trouble (3 fouls). KCC shoots 10 FTs but only makes 4. Shaq and Dwight Howard combine for 0-4 FTs. SA leads by 4. Qtr 2: KCC's Shaq punishes Alonzo Mourning by scoring 11 on 5 of 6 shooting. In the first half, Shaq has 17 pts on 8 of 10 shooting while Mourning has 0 pts & 3 fouls in less than 9 minutes of playing time. SA's little-used Rasheed Wallace and Chris Webber are wondering why they're not getting a shot at slowing down the Diesel. SA's Stojakovic is the game's 2nd-leading scorer with 16. KCC leads by 8. Qtr 3: The power forwards battle it out as SA's Elton Brand leads all scorers in the 3rd with 13 pts on 6 of 9 shooting. KCC power forward Tim Duncan scores 8 on 4 of 5 shooting. KCC's sizzling 78.9% FGs only stretches KCC's lead by two points for a total lead of 10. SA's Peja Stojakovic is keeping SA in the game with 27 pts on 9 of 11 shooting (6-6 FTs) through the 3rd qtr. Qtr 4: KCC's entire front line (Shaq/Duncan/Dwight Howard) fouls out. But KCC conquers their turnover problem (4 fewer than SA in the game, despite KCC's record-breaking high turnover season) and wins the game and the series, coming back after trailing two games to zero. KCC shoots 63.5% FGs in the game, including 62.5% 3's (and shoots a horrid 53.8% from the line). Leading scorers for the game: 32 from SA's Stojakovic (11 of 13 shooting) and 30 from KCC's Shaq (14 of 17 shooting). KCC's playoff stats. Santa Ana's playoff stats. Division Finals: East: Santa Ana defeats Hiroshima 4-1 Game 1: Santa Ana Sea Lions 126, Hiroshima Godzillas 116 Former River City point guard Jason Kidd had a triple-double for Santa Ana (17,11,12) with only 1 turnover. Game 2: Santa Ana Sea Lions 115, Hiroshima Godzillas 113 SA's Shawn Marion hit a shot at the buzzer to win game 2 against Hiroshima. Marion, obtained in an offseason trade along with Okur from Rottingham for Andrew Bynum and Josh Howard, is averaging 28 pts on 55% shooting (and 17 rebs). Sixth-man Okur (who was on Hiroshima two seasons ago) is averaging 14 pts on 71.4% FGs. In the regular season, Marion came in 7th in scoring, 5th in FG%, 3rd in rebs, 4th in steals, and 2nd in minutes per game. Game 3: Hiroshima Godzillas 125, Santa Ana Sea Lions 117 Hiroshima's Kirk Hinrich scored 12 in the 4th, helping overcome ex-Hiroshma power forward Elton Brand's 41-pt night. Game 4: Santa Ana Sea Lions 132, Hiroshima Godzillas 127 Kidd/Brand/Marion withstand Hiro's 42-pt 4th qtr. Zero ties and only 1 lead change. Hiroshima's coach collects 2 technicals. Game 5: Santa Ana Sea Lions 124, Hiroshima Godzillas 103 With Shawn Marion going down with an injury, Jason Richardson came off the bench and scored 36 pts, on 13 of 19 shooting (5-5 3's, 5-6 FTs), dishing out 4 assists and turning the ball over only once. He also scored 17 in the 4th qtr. Hiroshima's playoff stats. West: KCC defeats River City 4-1 Game 1: The King's Crimson Cobras 114, River City 109 By the end of the 1st qtr, RC had built an 18-pt lead on 70.4% shooting including 5 of 5 for 3's. KCC wore down RC and outscored RC 31-15 in the critical 4th qtr. Notoriously poor FT-shooting KCC surprisingly shot 84.8% from the charity stripe (28 of 33). Turnover-prone KCC had 8 fewer TO's than RC. Game 2: The King's Crimson Cobras 109, River City 97 RC got off to another 1st qtr lead (31-19), but KCC roared back for a 12-pt win behind Nash's 29 pts (including 16 pts in the 3rd on perfect shooting of 4-4, 3-3, 5-5 and zero turnovers in the quarter). Game 3: The King's Crimson Cobras 125, River City 114 Once again RC got off to a quick 1st-qtr start (29-22), but ex-River City guard Tony Parker torched his former team for 25 pts and 11 assists. Fellow guard Steve Nash (formerly of Hiroshima and Costa Mesa) led all scorers with 31 pts. He also had 12 assists, only 2 turnovers, and shot 6 of 9 from behind the arc. KCC, which set a record for highest FG% and most turnovers, shot 57.9% FGs and had one fewer TO than River City. Game 4: River City 97, The King's Crimson Cobras 86 Ugly game as KCC's Nash shot 3 of 15, RC's Wade shot 3 of 20, Shaq fouled out after only playing 18 minutes, and KCC's turnover problems resurfaced (21). Game 5: The King's Crimson Cobras 110, River City 108 Going into the 4th qtr, KCC had the lead, but KCC's starting forwards (Tim Duncan/Dwight Howard) both had 5 fouls. RC clawed back into the game and had a 102-101 lead and the ball with 1:55 left in the game, but turned the ball over when Hamilton couldn't get a shot off. Then, in less than a minute, Nash fed the ball into Yao for two, RC's Hamilton missed, then Nash racked up his 11th assist when LeBron hit on a jumper. With 1:15 left, Camby scored on a pass from Wade, putting RC down by only 1 (104-105). LeBron then found Nash inside for a layup with 59 seconds left, giving KCC a three point lead. RC's Wade took the next shot but missed it, Yao grabbed the rebound and LeBron was eventually fouled. RC then went fishing. River City's playoff stats. Post-season Injuries Santa Ana's Shawn Marion was injured in game 5 of the playoff series against Hiroshima and will miss the first two games of the Finals. Santa Ana's Jason Richardson was injured in game 3 of the Finals and will miss 3 games.

			Home \| Current Hoops \| Football \| Retro Hoops \| Investment Site Standings \| Scores \| Playoffs \| Teams \| Rosters \| Statistics \| Trades \| Records \| Coaches \| Drafts \| Chat \| Rules \| E-Mail