1st Division A Round 15 of Regular Season

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The biggest surprise of round 15 in 1st Division A was guest HNMKY's (9-6) road victory over 6th ranked ToPo (8-7) 68-67 on Friday evening. The best player for the winners was guard Nikolas Kataja (192-2002) who scored 24 points and 5 rebounds. Center Roni Vuori (205-2002) chipped in 14 points and 9 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was forward Eldar Skamo (198) who recorded a double-double by scoring 28 points, 15 rebounds and 6 assists. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. HNMKY moved-up to fifth place. ToPo at the other side keeps the sixth position with seven games lost. They share it with RaPy. HNMKY are looking forward to face league's leader ACO Basket in Oulun in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. ToPo will play on the road against LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta and is hoping to win this game.
An exciting game between Top Four teams was played in Karkkila. Third ranked Kipina faced second-best Karkkila. Guests from Aanekoski (12-3) defeated host Karkkila (12-3) 95-84. It ended at the same time the seven-game winning streak of Karkkila. The game was dominated by American players. It was a good game for guard Jalen McCoy (196-2002, college: USC Aiken, agency: Origins Sports Group) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 26 points and 10 rebounds. Joe Cookson contributed with 18 points and 12 rebounds (went 7 for 7 at the free throw line) for the winners. Kipina's coach allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. Guard Joey Holifield (191, college: Lourdes) answered with a double-double by scoring 20 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists for Karkkila. Kipina have an impressive series of five victories in a row. They moved-up to second place, which they share with defeated Karkkila. Kipina will play against HBA-Marsky (#8) in Helsinki in the next round which should be theoretically an easy game. Karkkila will play at home against JBA (#4) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Leader ACO Basket delivered the thirteenth victory on Friday night. This time they beat 10th ranked Huima (3-11) 80-68 in Aanekoski. The game was also dominated by American players. It was a great evening for Kyle Johnson who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 17 points and 13 rebounds. The best for the losing side was Raheem Anthony with a double-double by scoring 31 points and 12 rebounds. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The victory was the sixth consecutive win for ACO Basket. They maintain first place with 13-1 record. Huima lost their third game in a row. They keep the tenth position with 11 games lost. ACO Basket will meet at home HNMKY (#5) in the next round. Huima will play against Pyrinto Ak.A (#9) in Tampere and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

Other games of round 15 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
Kipina crushed LrNMKY in Aanekoski 114-75. JBA smashed Pyrinto Ak.A at home 87-52. Karkkila won against Raiders Basket on the opponent's court 95-78. HBA-Marsky managed to outperform RaPy in a home game 90-74.



LrNMKY - Kipina 75-114

There was no surprise in Lappeenranta where 11th ranked LrNMKY (2-13) was crushed by third ranked Kipina (12-3) 114-75 on Thursday. Kipina dominated down low during the game scoring 60 of its points in the paint compared to LrNMKY's 34. They outrebounded LrNMKY 39-26 including 29 on the defensive glass. Kipina shot the lights out from three sinking 14 long-distance shots on high 51.9 percentage. It was a great evening for American guard Jalen McCoy (196-2002, college: USC Aiken, agency: Origins Sports Group) who led his team to a victory scoring 27 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Power forward Ville Virtaharju (201-2000) helped adding 19 points and 7 rebounds. Five Kipina players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was guard Johan Immonen (189-1999) with 9 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists and forward Elias Hagman (201-2007) scored 11 points and 7 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. The victory was the fifth consecutive win for Kipina. They moved-up to second place, which they share with Karkkila. LrNMKY lost their sixth game in a row. They keep the eleventh position with 13 games lost. Kipina will meet at home HBA-Marsky (#8) in the next round which should be theoretically another easy game. LrNMKY will play against ToPo and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Kipina: M.Jalen 27+6reb+4ast, V.Virtaharju 19+7reb, H.Jake 12+4reb+6ast, N.Karkkainen 12+2reb, C.Joe 11+9reb+4ast, R.Hinkkanen 11+2reb+1ast
LrNMKY: H.Valtteri 13+3reb+1ast, H.Elias 11+7reb, T.Joel 10+2reb+1ast, I.Johan 9+6reb+5ast, T.Niilo 8+1reb+3ast, V.Aleksi 7+2reb+1ast

Huima - ACO Basket 68-80

Leader ACO Basket delivered the thirteenth victory on Friday night. This time they beat 10th ranked Huima (3-11) 80-68 in Aanekoski. The game was also dominated by American players. It was a great evening for forward Kyle Johnson (203-2000, college: Delaware St.) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 17 points and 13 rebounds. Forward Tyler Harris (201-2001, college: Richmond) helped adding 13 points and 11 rebounds. Harris is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. The best for the losing side was guard Raheem Anthony (195, college: St.Thomas) with a double-double by scoring 31 points and 12 rebounds and forward Malachi Rhodes (203-2001, college: AUM) scored 17 points and 6 rebounds. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The victory was the sixth consecutive win for ACO Basket. They maintain first place with 13-1 record. Huima lost their third game in a row. They keep the tenth position with 11 games lost. ACO Basket will meet at home HNMKY (#5) in the next round. Huima will play against Pyrinto Ak.A (#9) in Tampere and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
ACO Basket: J.Kyle 17+13reb+1ast, H.Shawn 16+3reb+1ast, H.Tyler 13+11reb+1ast, P.Eino 8+5reb+1ast, T.Kuukkanen 8+1reb+2ast, S.De 7+2reb+5ast
Huima: R.Anthony 31+12reb+3ast, M.Rhodes 17+6reb, N.Onni 8+1reb+1ast, J.Veeti 7+6reb, K.Tatu 3+2reb, R.Jimi 2+1ast

JBA - Pyrinto Ak.A 87-52

No shocking result in a game in Jyvaskyla where fourth ranked JBA (10-4) smashed 8th ranked Pyrinto Ak.A (5-10) 87-52 on Friday. JBA outrebounded Pyrinto Ak.A 45-26 including a 17-3 advantage in offensive rebounds. JBA looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists comparing to just 12 passes made by Pyrinto Ak.A's players. It was a great evening for guard Elias Sarkka (188-2005) who led his team to a victory scoring 14 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Guard Miro Koskela (202-2004) helped adding 16 points and 7 rebounds. Four JBA players scored in double figures. JBA's coach Mikko Tupamaki felt very confident that he used 11 players and allowed the starting five to rest. The best for the losing side was forward Ville-Pekka Eskelinen (199) with 17 points and 6 rebounds and forward Mikael Parsiala (193-2006) scored 10 points. JBA maintains fourth place with 10-4 record. Loser Pyrinto Ak.A dropped to the ninth position with ten games lost. JBA will meet higher ranked Karkkila (#3) on the road in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Pyrinto Ak.A will play against Huima (#10) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
JBA: S.Manninen 18+1reb+5ast, M.Koskela 16+7reb+2ast, E.Sarkka 14+6reb+6ast, L.Ounap 12+2reb+6ast, P.Blomgren 9+5reb, V.Vili 9+7reb
Pyrinto Ak.A: E.Ville-Pekka 17+6reb+1ast, P.Mikael 10+2reb+1ast, K.Julius 8+2reb+1ast, A.Aarre 7+1reb+2ast, R.Vilho 4+1ast, H.Eetu 2+2reb+4ast

ToPo - HNMKY 67-68

The biggest surprise of round 15 in 1st Division A was guest HNMKY's (9-6) road victory over 6th ranked ToPo (8-7) 68-67 on Friday evening. The best player for the winners was guard Nikolas Kataja (192-2002) who scored 24 points and 5 rebounds. Center Roni Vuori (205-2002) chipped in 14 points and 9 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was forward Eldar Skamo (198) who recorded a double-double by scoring 28 points, 15 rebounds and 6 assists and point guard Markus Rautasalo (180-2000) added 8 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists respectively. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. HNMKY moved-up to fifth place. ToPo at the other side keeps the sixth position with seven games lost. They share it with RaPy. HNMKY are looking forward to face league's leader ACO Basket in Oulun in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. ToPo will play on the road against LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta and is hoping to win this game.
Top scorers:
HNMKY: N.Kataja 24+5reb, R.Vuori 14+9reb+1ast, L.Hervola 9+3reb+3ast, R.Kauste 7+2reb+3ast, A.Hyvonen 6, L.Tokoi 5+5reb+1ast
ToPo: S.Eldar 28+15reb+6ast, S.Abel 10+7reb+3ast, L.Sakari 9+2reb+1ast, R.Markus 8+5reb+7ast, K.Otto 7+3reb+1ast, M.Alvar 4+7reb+2ast

Raiders Basket - Karkkila 78-95

Very expected game in Jarvenpaa where 12th ranked Raiders Basket (1-14) was defeated by second ranked Karkkila (12-3) 95-78 on Friday. Karkkila dominated down low during the game scoring 60 of its points in the paint compared to Raiders Basket's 32. Karkkila forced 19 Raiders Basket turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 25 assists. It was a great evening for American guard Joey Holifield (191, college: Lourdes) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 18 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. His fellow American import power forward Caleb Jones-McCrary (203-2000, college: MNU) helped adding 18 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists. Four Karkkila players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was British guard Oliver Rapo (195-2006) with 20 points and 6 assists and swingman Antti Mattila (202-2005) scored 9 points and 5 rebounds. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. The victory was the seventh consecutive win for Karkkila. They maintain second place with 12-3 record behind leader ACO Basket, which they share with Kipina. Raiders Basket lost their ninth game in a row. They stay at the bottom position with 14 games lost. Karkkila will meet at home JBA (#4) in the next round. Raiders Basket will play against RaPy (#6) in Tampere and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Karkkila: N.Kivimaki 25+2reb+1ast, M.Hyytiainen 23+4reb+4ast, H.Joey 18+10reb+8ast, J.Caleb 18+11reb+4ast, M.Nyman 5, A.Nieminen 4+3reb+1ast
Raiders Basket: R.Oliver 20+3reb+6ast, S.Toni 11+4reb+1ast, G.Ivan 10+5reb, M.Antti 9+5reb+2ast, A.Aleksanteri 7+1reb+5ast, T.Sami 7+4reb+3ast

HBA-Marsky - RaPy 90-74

There was a small surprise in Helsinki where ninth ranked HBA-Marsky (5-9) beat 6th ranked RaPy (8-7) 90-74 on Friday. HBA-Marsky outrebounded RaPy 43-27 including a 35-17 advantage in defensive rebounds. It was a great evening for guard Christian Blomfelt (197) who led his team to a victory scoring 19 points and 9 rebounds. Center Kalle Kuhalampi (199) helped adding 12 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists. Four HBA-Marsky players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was forward Samppa Maki (192-2001) with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists and 5 steals and Veikko Niskanen (188-2002) scored 18 points. RaPy's coach Jorgo Dakaj rotated ten players seeing no chance for a win. HBA-Marsky moved-up to eighth place. Loser RaPy keeps the sixth position with seven games lost. They share it with ToPo. HBA-Marsky will meet league's second-placed Kipina in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. RaPy will play against Raiders Basket (#12) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
HBA-Marsky: C.Blomfelt 19+9reb, M.Hemdahl 17+10reb, V.Varila 15+2reb+4ast, K.Kuhalampi 12+7reb+8ast, R.Saivosalmi 9+1reb+1ast, B.Passila 7+2reb+1ast
RaPy: N.Veikko 18+4reb+1ast, P.Timi 13+3reb+1ast, P.Karo 11+4reb+4ast, K.Miro 9+1reb+2ast, S.Miika 8+2reb+1ast, M.Samppa 8+7reb+9ast

Karkkila - Kipina 84-95

An exciting game between Top Four teams was played in Karkkila. Third ranked Kipina faced second-best Karkkila. Guests from Aanekoski (12-3) defeated host Karkkila (12-3) 95-84. It ended at the same time the seven-game winning streak of Karkkila. The game was dominated by American players. It was a good game for guard Jalen McCoy (196-2002, college: USC Aiken, agency: Origins Sports Group) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 26 points and 10 rebounds. Guard Joe Cookson (198, college: Pomona-Pitzer) contributed with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 12 rebounds (went 7 for 7 at the free throw line) for the winners. Kipina's coach allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. Guard Joey Holifield (191, college: Lourdes) answered with a double-double by scoring 20 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists and power forward Caleb Jones-McCrary (203-2000, college: MNU) added 16 points and 9 rebounds in the effort for Karkkila. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Kipina have an impressive series of five victories in a row. They moved-up to second place, which they share with defeated Karkkila. Kipina will play against HBA-Marsky (#8) in Helsinki in the next round which should be theoretically an easy game. Karkkila will play at home against JBA (#4) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Kipina: M.Jalen 26+10reb+3ast, H.Jake 19+6reb+7ast, C.Joe 18+12reb+2ast, V.Virtaharju 13+8reb, P.Hinkkanen 5, S.Mantymaa 3+3reb
Karkkila: J.Holifield 20+12reb+7ast, H.Markus 19+3reb+1ast, K.Nestori 17+6reb+2ast, C.Jones-McCrary 16+9reb+3ast, B.Woeyram 5+3reb+2ast, P.Patrik 5+7reb