1st Division A Round 16 (Regular Season): Karkkila lose to JBA

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most important game in the last round took place in Karkkila between third ranked Karkkila (12-4) and fourth ranked JBA (11-4) on Saturday night. Karkkila was defeated by JBA in a tough game at home 78-85. JBA forced 22 Karkkila turnovers. Strangely Karkkila outrebounded JBA 50-32 including a 17-5 advantage in offensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Elias Sarkka (188-2005) who helped to win the game recording 26 points. point guard Leon Ounap (188-2006) contributed with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners. JBA's coach Mikko Tupamaki used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. American power forward Caleb Jones-McCrary (203-2000, college: MNU) replied with 9 points and 15 rebounds for Karkkila. JBA maintains fourth position with 11-4 record. Karkkila at the other side dropped to the second place with four games lost. They share the position with Kipina. JBA are looking forward to face RaPy (#5) in Tampere in the next round. Karkkila will play on the road against Huima in Aanekoski and is hoping to win this game.
Very important is a home loss of second ranked Kipina (12-4) against ninth ranked HBA-Marsky (6-9) on Sunday night. Host Kipina was defeated by HBA-Marsky in Aanekoski 110-96. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Kipina. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Christian Blomfelt (197) who helped to win the game recording 22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists and Reino Saivosalmi who added 21 points and 5 assists during the contest. At the losing side American point guard Jake Hilmer (180-2000, college: Upper Iowa) responded with 24 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists (made all of his seven free throws). Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. HBA-Marsky moved-up to eighth place. Kipina at the other side keeps the second position with four games lost. They share it with Karkkila. HBA-Marsky will play against LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta in the next round. Kipina will play on the road against Raiders Basket (#12) in Jarvenpaa and hopes to get back on the winning track.
1st Division A top team - ACO Basket (14-1) had no problems winning another game on Sunday. This time they crushed fifth ranked HNMKY (9-7) in Oulun 94-71. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of HNMKY. The winners were led by Tyler Harris who had that evening a double-double by scoring 22 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Even 20 points and 4 assists by Lenni Hervola did not help to save the game for HNMKY. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. ACO Basket have an impressive seven-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 14-1 record. Loser HNMKY keeps the fifth place with seven games lost. They share the position with RaPy and ToPo. ACO Basket will meet ToPo (#6) in the next round where they are favorite. HNMKY will play against Pyrinto Ak.A and hope to secure a win.

Other games in round 16 were not that significant. ToPo beat LrNMKY on the road 65-54. Pyrinto Ak.A won against Huima on its own court 92-85. Bottom-ranked Raiders Basket was outscored by RaPy in Tampere 95-75.



LrNMKY - ToPo 54-65

No shocking result in a game when seventh ranked ToPo (9-7) beat 11th ranked LrNMKY (2-14) in Lappeenranta 65-54 on Thursday. ToPo forced 20 LrNMKY turnovers. The winners were led by forward Eldar Skamo (198) who had that evening a double-double by scoring 16 points and 11 rebounds and point guard Markus Rautasalo (180-2000) supported him with 15 points, 5 assists and 4 steals. Even 16 points and 5 rebounds by forward Valtteri Heiskanen (198-2004) did not help to save the game for LrNMKY. Guard Johan Immonen (189-1999) added 6 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists for lost side. ToPo moved-up to fifth place, which they share with HNMKY and RaPy. LrNMKY lost seventh consecutive game. They keep the eleventh position with 14 games lost. ToPo will meet at home league's leader ACO Basket in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. LrNMKY will play against HBA-Marsky (#8) in Helsinki and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
ToPo: V.Mustola 18+4reb, E.Skamo 16+11reb+1ast, M.Rautasalo 15+4reb+5ast, R.Avist 8+3reb+2ast, A.Sufuentes 4+9reb, S.Laakso 2+5reb
LrNMKY: H.Valtteri 16+5reb+1ast, H.Elias 9+6reb+1ast, T.Niilo 9+6reb+2ast, V.Nuutti 7+1reb+1ast, I.Johan 6+8reb+6ast, A.Niki 5+4reb

Pyrinto Ak.A - Huima 92-85

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 10th ranked Huima's (3-12) road loss to ninth ranked Pyrinto Ak.A (6-10) in Tampere 85-92 on Thursday. Pyrinto Ak.A looked well-organized offensively handing out 25 assists. The winners were led by guard Eetu Honkaniemi (185-2007) who scored that evening 21 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists and forward Jaakko Nieminen (203-2006) supported him with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Five Pyrinto Ak.A players scored in double figures. Pyrinto Ak.A's coach allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. Even a double-double of 28 points and 18 rebounds by American forward Malachi Rhodes (203-2001, college: AUM) did not help to save the game for Huima. Guard Atte Metsala (188-2007) added 28 points (made all of his eight free throws) for lost side. Pyrinto Ak.A maintains ninth position with 6-10 record. Huima lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the tenth place with 12 games lost. Pyrinto Ak.A will meet higher ranked HNMKY (#7) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Huima will play against Karkkila and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Pyrinto Ak.A: E.Honkaniemi 21+9reb+7ast, J.Nieminen 20+7reb+4ast, O.Raisanen 16+8reb+5ast, J.Ketola 14+2reb+1ast, V.Eskelinen 12+5reb+5ast, J.Talola 4
Huima: M.Atte 28+1reb+2ast, M.Rhodes 28+18reb+2ast, F.Julius 17+2reb+3ast, J.Veeti 5+4reb+5ast, K.Tatu 5+3reb+1ast, N.Onni 2+2reb+1ast

RaPy - Raiders Basket 95-75

Very predictable result when seventh ranked RaPy (9-7) rolled over bottom-ranked Raiders Basket (1-15) in Tampere 95-75 on Friday. RaPy looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists. The winners were led by forward Juho Kaltiainen (193-2002) who scored that evening 21 points and swingman Timi Puittinen (194-1994) supported him with 16 points and 5 rebounds. Five RaPy players scored in double figures. Even 24 points by British guard Oliver Rapo (195-2006) did not help to save the game for Raiders Basket. Guard Aleksanteri Ahola (185-1995) added 15 points and 4 assists for lost side. Both coaches tested many bench players saving starting five for next games. RaPy moved-up to fifth place, which they share with HNMKY and ToPo. Raiders Basket lost tenth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with 15 games lost. RaPy will meet higher ranked JBA (#4) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Raiders Basket will play against the league's second-placed Kipina (#2) and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
RaPy: J.Kaltiainen 21+3ast, T.Puittinen 16+5reb+2ast, A.Mavrodiev 16+3reb+3ast, M.Smolander 13+5reb+3ast, S.Maki 10+4reb+3ast, V.Niskanen 7+3reb+1ast
Raiders Basket: R.Oliver 24+2reb+3ast, A.Aleksanteri 15+2reb+4ast, S.Montague 12+4reb+3ast, G.Ivan 8+3reb+1ast, T.Sami 6+8reb+2ast, H.Otso 5+4reb+4ast

Karkkila - JBA 78-85

The most important game in the last round took place in Karkkila between third ranked Karkkila (12-4) and fourth ranked JBA (11-4) on Saturday night. Karkkila was defeated by JBA in a tough game at home 78-85. JBA forced 22 Karkkila turnovers. Strangely Karkkila outrebounded JBA 50-32 including a 17-5 advantage in offensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Elias Sarkka (188-2005) who helped to win the game recording 26 points. point guard Leon Ounap (188-2006) contributed with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners. Five JBA players scored in double figures. JBA's coach Mikko Tupamaki used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. American power forward Caleb Jones-McCrary (203-2000, college: MNU) replied with 9 points and 15 rebounds and Ghanian guard Woeyram Bani (183-2001) added 15 points and 7 rebounds in the effort for Karkkila. JBA maintains fourth position with 11-4 record. Karkkila at the other side dropped to the second place with four games lost. They share the position with Kipina. JBA are looking forward to face RaPy (#5) in Tampere in the next round. Karkkila will play on the road against Huima in Aanekoski and is hoping to win this game.
Top scorers:
JBA: E.Sarkka 26+2reb, S.Manninen 14+3reb+5ast, M.Koskela 14+4reb+1ast, L.Ounap 12+8reb+4ast, V.Vili 10+6reb, P.Blomgren 4+4reb+1ast
Karkkila: K.Nestori 19+3reb+1ast, H.Markus 17+7reb+1ast, B.Woeyram 15+7reb+3ast, P.Patrik 9+5reb+1ast, C.Jones-McCrary 9+15reb+1ast, N.Matias 5+5reb+1ast

ACO Basket - HNMKY 94-71

1st Division A top team - ACO Basket (14-1) had no problems winning another game on Sunday. This time they crushed fifth ranked HNMKY (9-7) in Oulun 94-71. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of HNMKY. They outrebounded HNMKY 56-36 including a 34-23 advantage in defensive rebounds. ACO Basket looked well-organized offensively handing out 26 assists comparing to just 13 passes made by HNMKY's players. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when ACO Basket made 10 blocks. The winners were led by American forward Tyler Harris (201-2001, college: Richmond) who had that evening a double-double by scoring 22 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists and the other American import forward Kyle Johnson (203-2000, college: Delaware St.) supported him with 14 points, 17 rebounds and 4 blocks. Harris is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Four ACO Basket players scored in double figures. Even 20 points and 4 assists by point guard Lenni Hervola (183-2003) did not help to save the game for HNMKY. Guard Nikolas Kataja (192-2002) added 15 points and 6 rebounds for lost side. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. ACO Basket have an impressive seven-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 14-1 record. Loser HNMKY keeps the fifth place with seven games lost. They share the position with RaPy and ToPo. ACO Basket will meet ToPo (#6) in the next round where they are favorite. HNMKY will play against Pyrinto Ak.A and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
ACO Basket: H.Tyler 22+10reb+4ast, H.Shawn 18+6reb+1ast, J.Kyle 14+17reb+3ast, P.Eino 13+8reb+2ast, V.Valkama 7+1reb+4ast, T.Kuukkanen 7+3reb+3ast
HNMKY: H.Lenni 20+2reb+4ast, K.Nikolas 15+6reb+1ast, A.Oskar 8+3reb+1ast, P.Olli 7+5reb+1ast, K.Rasmus 7+4reb+1ast, V.Roni 6+5reb+1ast

Kipina - HBA-Marsky 96-110

Very important is a home loss of second ranked Kipina (12-4) against ninth ranked HBA-Marsky (6-9) on Sunday night. Host Kipina was defeated by HBA-Marsky in Aanekoski 110-96. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Kipina. HBA-Marsky had a 34-21 advantage in offensive rebounds. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 27 assists. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Christian Blomfelt (197) who helped to win the game recording 22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists and guard Reino Saivosalmi (188-2008) who added 21 points and 5 assists during the contest. At the losing side American point guard Jake Hilmer (180-2000, college: Upper Iowa) responded with 24 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists (made all of his seven free throws) and his fellow American import guard Joe Cookson (198, college: Pomona-Pitzer) produced a double-double by scoring 22 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. Four Kipina players scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. HBA-Marsky moved-up to eighth place. Kipina at the other side keeps the second position with four games lost. They share it with Karkkila. HBA-Marsky will play against LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta in the next round. Kipina will play on the road against Raiders Basket (#12) in Jarvenpaa and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Top scorers:
HBA-Marsky: C.Blomfelt 22+8reb+5ast, R.Saivosalmi 21+2reb+5ast, B.Passila 18+3reb+1ast, A.Pallijeff 10+4reb+1ast, M.Hemdahl 9+7reb+3ast, V.Varila 8+2reb+1ast
Kipina: J.McCoy 25+9reb+2ast, J.Hilmer 24+7reb+9ast, J.Cookson 22+10reb+6ast, V.Ville 12+4reb+1ast, L.Eemeli 8, M.Sami 3+3reb