1st Division A Round 21 (Regular Season): ACO Basket edges Kipina by one point

There will be only one (last) round of the Regular Season in 1st Division A. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Second-ranked Kipina (16-5) made lots of trouble for first ranked ACO Basket (20-1) in Oulun on Saturday. ACO Basket managed to secure only one-point victory 82-81. However their fans expected easier game. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Kipina. ACO Basket forced 20 Kipina turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists comparing to just 4 passes made by Kipina's players. The game was dominated by American players. The best player for the winners was forward Tyler Harris (201-2001, college: Richmond) who scored 18 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Forward Kyle Johnson (203-2000, college: Delaware St.) chipped in 17 points and 9 rebounds. ACO Basket's coach Aleksi Koskinen used a ten-player rotation in such tough game. At the other side the best for losing team was guard Jalen McCoy (196-2002, college: USC Aiken, agency: Origins Sports Group) who recorded 33 points (!!!) and 8 rebounds. ACO Basket have an impressive series of thirteen victories in a row. They maintain first place with 20-1 record. Kipina at the other side keeps the second position with five games lost. They share it with Karkkila. ACO Basket are looking forward to face LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Kipina will play at home against Pyrinto Ak.A (#9) and is hoping to prove to their supporters that this time they can win.
Seventh-ranked ToPo (9-12) made lots of trouble for third ranked Karkkila (16-5). Karkkila managed to secure only three-point victory 83-80. However their fans expected much easier game. It was a good game for guard Markus Hyytiainen (191-2002) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 25 points and 10 rebounds (went 8 for 8 at the free throw line). Emmanuel Bandoumel contributed with 26 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Forward Eldar Skamo (198) answered with a double-double by scoring 13 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists for ToPo. Karkkila moved-up to second place, which they share with Kipina. ToPo lost their fifth game in a row. They keep the seventh position with 12 games lost. They share it with HBA-Marsky. Karkkila will play against RaPy (#5) in Tampere in the next round. ToPo will play at home against JBA and hopes to get back on the winning track.
The game with biggest result difference took place in Jyvaskyla. Local JBA (15-6) outscored 12th ranked Raiders Basket (2-19) 100-75 on Friday night. Elias Sarkka stepped up and scored 20 points and 9 rebounds for the winners. The best for the losing side was Otso Hayrinen with 18 points and 6 assists (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field). The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. JBA maintains fourth place with 15-6 record. Loser Raiders Basket stay dead last with 19 lost games. JBA will meet ToPo (#7) in the next round. Raiders Basket will play against Huima (#10) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

Other games of round 21 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
RaPy defeated Pyrinto Ak.A in Tampere 62-51. Huima was beaten by HBA-Marsky at home 73-84. LrNMKY was destroyed by HNMKY on the opponent's court 101-76.
The best stats of 21th round was 12 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists by Valtteri Heiskanen of LrNMKY.



Pyrinto Ak.A - RaPy 51-62

There was no surprise in Tampere where 9th ranked Pyrinto Ak.A (7-14) was defeated by fifth ranked RaPy (12-9) 62-51 on Thursday. RaPy forced 24 Pyrinto Ak.A turnovers. Forward Samppa Maki (192-2001) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 11 rebounds for the winners and forward Panu Peltokangas (200) chipped in 8 points and 9 rebounds. The best for the losing side was forward Ville-Pekka Eskelinen (199) with 13 points and forward Jaakko Nieminen (203-2006) scored 2 points and 11 rebounds. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. RaPy maintains fifth place with 12-9 record. Loser Pyrinto Ak.A keeps the ninth position with 14 games lost. RaPy will meet at home higher ranked Karkkila (#3) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Pyrinto Ak.A will play against the league's second-placed Kipina (#2) in Aanekoski and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
RaPy: S.Maki 15+11reb+2ast, A.Mavrodiev 12+3reb+1ast, J.Saarinen 11+2reb, P.Peltokangas 8+9reb+2ast, J.Hilden 5+3reb+3ast, M.Honkaniemi 4+6reb+2ast
Pyrinto Ak.A: E.Ville-Pekka 13+4reb+1ast, Y.Eeki 10+2reb+3ast, M.Aaron 8+3reb+2ast, R.Otto 6+3reb+1ast, H.Eetu 4+6reb+2ast, A.Aarre 3

Huima - HBA-Marsky 73-84

No shocking result in a game in Aanekoski where eighth ranked HBA-Marsky (9-12) defeated 10th ranked Huima (5-16) 84-73 on Friday. Guard Christian Blomfelt (197) stepped up and scored 26 points and 6 rebounds for the winners and guard Reino Saivosalmi (188-2008) chipped in 19 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Four HBA-Marsky players scored in double figures. HBA-Marsky's coach Anton Mirolybov allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. The best for the losing side was American guard Raheem Anthony (195, college: St.Thomas) with a double-double by scoring 28 points, 20 rebounds and 4 assists and guard Atte Metsala (188-2007) scored 15 points. HBA-Marsky moved-up to seventh place, which they share with ToPo. Loser Huima keeps the tenth position with 16 games lost. HBA-Marsky's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Helsinki HNMKY.
Top scorers:
HBA-Marsky: B.Christian 26+6reb+2ast, R.Saivosalmi 19+6reb+5ast, M.Hemdahl 11+12reb+3ast, E.Korhonen 11+5reb+1ast, A.Pallijeff 7+1ast, M.Haliseva 4+3reb+1ast
Huima: R.Anthony 28+20reb+4ast, M.Atte 15+1reb, P.Sulo 9, K.Tatu 9+5reb, N.Onni 5+3reb+2ast, J.Veeti 5+4reb+4ast

JBA - Raiders Basket 100-75

The game with biggest result difference took place in Jyvaskyla. Local JBA (15-6) outscored 12th ranked Raiders Basket (2-19) 100-75 on Friday night. JBA forced 27 Raiders Basket turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 30 assists comparing to just 16 passes made by Raiders Basket's players. Guard Elias Sarkka (188-2005) stepped up and scored 20 points and 9 rebounds for the winners and guard Miro Koskela (202-2004) chipped in 17 points and 7 assists. The best for the losing side was guard Otso Hayrinen (189) with 18 points and 6 assists (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field) and forward Sami Tahvanainen (195-1998) scored 12 points and 7 rebounds. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. JBA maintains fourth place with 15-6 record. Loser Raiders Basket stay dead last with 19 lost games. JBA will meet ToPo (#7) in the next round. Raiders Basket will play against Huima (#10) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
JBA: E.Sarkka 20+9reb+2ast, R.Kivinen 17+2ast, M.Koskela 17+4reb+7ast, S.Manninen 12+5reb+4ast, R.Nurminen 10+2reb+3ast, T.Flinck 7+4reb+6ast
Raiders Basket: H.Otso 18+3reb+6ast, T.Sami 12+7reb+1ast, S.Montague 11+5reb, H.Pyry 11+4reb, A.Aleksanteri 7+1reb+4ast, S.Toni 5+3reb

ACO Basket - Kipina 82-81

Second-ranked Kipina (16-5) made lots of trouble for first ranked ACO Basket (20-1) in Oulun on Saturday. ACO Basket managed to secure only one-point victory 82-81. However their fans expected easier game. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Kipina. ACO Basket forced 20 Kipina turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists comparing to just 4 passes made by Kipina's players. The game was dominated by American players. The best player for the winners was forward Tyler Harris (201-2001, college: Richmond) who scored 18 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Forward Kyle Johnson (203-2000, college: Delaware St.) chipped in 17 points and 9 rebounds. 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. ACO Basket's coach Aleksi Koskinen used a ten-player rotation in such tough game. At the other side the best for losing team was guard Jalen McCoy (196-2002, college: USC Aiken, agency: Origins Sports Group) who recorded 33 points (!!!) and 8 rebounds and guard Joe Cookson (198, college: Pomona-Pitzer) added 14 points and 11 rebounds respectively. ACO Basket have an impressive series of thirteen victories in a row. They maintain first place with 20-1 record. Kipina at the other side keeps the second position with five games lost. They share it with Karkkila. ACO Basket are looking forward to face LrNMKY (#11) in Lappeenranta in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Kipina will play at home against Pyrinto Ak.A (#9) and is hoping to prove to their supporters that this time they can win.
Top scorers:
ACO Basket: H.Tyler 18+9reb+5ast, J.Kyle 17+9reb+1ast, H.Shawn 11+5reb+3ast, P.Eino 10+3reb, H.Boyd 8+7reb+5ast, J.Rainto 6+2reb
Kipina: J.McCoy 33+8reb+2ast, J.Hilmer 21+3reb+1ast, J.Cookson 14+11reb, V.Ville 6+5reb+1ast, S.Sami 4+8reb, L.Eemeli 3

Karkkila - ToPo 83-80

Seventh-ranked ToPo (9-12) made lots of trouble for third ranked Karkkila (16-5). Karkkila managed to secure only three-point victory 83-80. However their fans expected much easier game. Karkkila forced 20 ToPo turnovers. It was a good game for guard Markus Hyytiainen (191-2002) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 25 points and 10 rebounds (went 8 for 8 at the free throw line). Canadian guard Emmanuel Bandoumel (193-1998, college: Nebraska) contributed with 26 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Forward Eldar Skamo (198) answered with a double-double by scoring 13 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists and point guard Markus Rautasalo (180-2000) added 16 points and 7 rebounds in the effort for ToPo. Five ToPo players scored in double figures. Karkkila moved-up to second place, which they share with Kipina. ToPo lost their fifth game in a row. They keep the seventh position with 12 games lost. They share it with HBA-Marsky. Karkkila will play against RaPy (#5) in Tampere in the next round. ToPo will play at home against JBA and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Top scorers:
Karkkila: B.Emmanuel 26+5reb+2ast, M.Hyytiainen 25+10reb+3ast, N.Kivimaki 10+2reb+2ast, J.Caleb 8+9reb+1ast, P.Poutiainen 6+5reb, S.Nappinen 5+4reb+3ast
ToPo: R.Markus 16+7reb+3ast, S.Abel 14+3reb+1ast, S.Eldar 13+12reb+5ast, M.Alvar 12+6reb+3ast, L.Sakari 10+3reb+1ast, A.Robin 7+3reb+1ast

HNMKY - LrNMKY 101-76

Very expected game in Helsinki where 11th ranked LrNMKY (4-17) was rolled over by sixth ranked HNMKY (11-10) 101-76 on Sunday. HNMKY looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists. Guard Nikolas Kataja (192-2002) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 25 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners and center Roni Vuori (205-2002) chipped in 17 points and 5 rebounds. Four HNMKY players scored in double figures. HNMKY's coach Tuomas Oja felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was forward Valtteri Heiskanen (198-2004) with a double-double by scoring 12 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists and forward Elias Hagman (201-2007) scored 15 points and 5 rebounds. HNMKY maintains sixth place with 11-10 record. LrNMKY lost their third game in a row. They keep the eleventh position with 17 games lost. HNMKY's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Helsinki to the arena HBA-Marsky.
Top scorers:
HNMKY: N.Kataja 25+10reb+4ast, R.Vuori 17+5reb+2ast, S.Valtonen 12+2reb, E.Sosala 11+3reb+1ast, L.Hervola 11+2reb+10ast, M.Mainio 8+6reb
LrNMKY: H.Elias 15+5reb, K.Otso 13+3reb+2ast, H.Valtteri 12+8reb+10ast, V.Nuutti 9+2reb, K.Kalle 8+4reb+4ast, T.Joel 7+4reb+6ast