Its all English to me... by the Greek
Last weekend changed the landscape of QBL playoff picture in a massive way. Logan went from two wins away from grand final hosting rights to not having a home playoff game, getting smoked by cross town rivals Brisbane in Cornubia. Logan played one of its worst games this season and i was told Logan players were embarrassed with their performance. I would be too if i let the marshmallow grab two offensive rebounds in a game! Kudos though to Brisbane, they played with their backs on the wall in a must win game and took care of business. If only they had play with that intensity against South West... but that the nature of a league with a short schedule, every game counts.
That loss to Logan would have made folks at Townsville go into red panty night mode, putting the Heat in prime position for a home grand final spot. Given the schedule they were dealt with (5 away games in 8 days) glad to see some good karma for the Heat. Bundaberg could spoil the party in the last round (insert appropriate laughter) but i would seriously doubt Heat drop that one. Losing Djeric for the remained of the season (good luck in Serbia) is going to sting when playoff time, however Townsville has enough experience and talent to accommodate in Djeric's absence.
Some other teams that benefit from Logan misery were the cash cow basketball region of Mackay. The defending champions went from looking outside to securing a playoff spot but beating arch nemesis Rockhampton inside Hegvold in a farcical end to the game (P.S Thank you Mitch Philp for the brain freeze, viewership went through the roof). Since getting rid of Wiggins, Mackay are 6-2, including a 4 game winning streak, giving the Meteors some confidence heading into the playoffs. Cairns was another benefactor of the Thunder meltdown, with the Marlins most likely to secure a home quarter final against the Meteors. This is a team that is finally healthy and has timed its form to perfection. With Pearlman in the helm and Trigger in beast mode they are the dark horse no-one wants to face come playoff time.
The main losers from this round were Rockhampton, those poor guys, can someone please get King Tweedy a tin can, it will come in handy for fundraising 2017 Rockets budget! How the mighty have fallen. Seriously who would have though three years ago that the Cyclones would be the top basketball team in RockVegas. But don't expect coaching changes anytime soon, Tweedy has earned enough leeway to afford one failed season, but i expect wholesale changes in that roster come 2017.
Sunshine Phoenix-Clippers were another team that got screwed on the weekend. Had Logan won in Cornubia, the PClips would have secured a playoff spot at 6-10 (ah the glory of the inept BQ playoff system). Now they have to expect Bundaberg to cause a major upset in Townsville for a chance at post-season.
Speaking of BQ ineptness the QBL MVP candidate list was leaked yesterday. Granted the coaches vote 3-2-1 of each team after every game. Take the coaches out of the preliminary voting. Coaches have their own agendas when voting.I have seen coaches give MVP points to players that played 2 minutes in a particular game because they dislike a particular player that probably deserve a point in the game. Seriously in what universe do teams with a 2-14 record deserve to have the same MVP points allocated to them as a 13-3 team. 8 out of the 17 candidates play in teams with a losing record and people wonder why Bundaberg have two MVP candidates and Townsville have none. But rewarding mediocrity isn't anything new in this league...
