Categories: Division 1Division 1 & 2Division 2Winter

Easter, Upsets, Statement Games, and the NBA Play-In Tournament and Playoffs

Due to it being Easter weekend, there are only three games on tap this week. Monday night sees the Incredibles taking on the Outlaws. Wednesday evening sees a huge contest with playoff implications as Urgence Médic locks horns with All Hooks. We also have a potential Division 2 Finals matchup with KGP going head-to-head with Terror Squad. All three contests will take place at Loyola.

Last week saw a shakeup in the standings in both Division 1 and Division 2, as upsets and statement victories were the theme of Week 8.

The biggest upset was Gryffindor’s shocking (58-32) win over Flag Moi L’Sac. The win by itself wasn’t a shock, the 58 points they put up, along, with the lack of second half offense by FML, was.

The former can be explained by a masterful performance by Dan Lazzara, who tossed eight touchdown passes in the win. All five of his Receivers who caught a pass, found their way to the endzone. Lazzara, who briefly played for the Concordia Stingers a few years ago, hooked up for touchdowns with current Stinger Jaylan Greaves, McGill Redbird WR Sam Mashtoub, and U of M Carabin WR Jarryd Taylor.

The team’s defense was just as solid, as they forced three turnovers off FML Quarterback Alex Nadeau-Piuze, and Receiver Guillaume Paquet, who threw two passes in the game. Two of those INTs came in the second half, which explains why their offense only put up 12 points in the second stanza. The INT by Paquet was the only mistake he made on the evening, as the former All-Star had a team-high three TDs.

Speaking of current Stingers, Jeremy Murphy had a three-touchdown performance – one on offense, and a pick six on defense – to help the BBallers pull off a (43-32) upset win over KGP.

BBallers QB William Trottier, who struggled in the first half completing only seven passes for one touchdown, and the offense stalling with two turnovers on downs, responded in a big way in the second half, with four TDs on 14 of 15 passing.

The defense made an impact as well. Coming up huge for the BBallers was their Rusher Jean-Nicolas Brenko, who had the unenviable task of chasing down the always elusive Phil Cutler. The fourth-year player did his job and then some, as he produced three sacks.

#NR evened their record at (4-4) with a (31-26) win over the Party Crashers. The move tied #NR with their opponents in wins and points, but the win gives them the head-to-head win gives them possession of sixth place. The victory also put them one point behind both KGP and All Hooks, for fourth and fifth place respectively in Div. 2.

#NR was able to get the win via a go-ahead touchdown by Jarryd Taylor, and a game-sealing interception by Travis Moses. Quarterback Adam Sinagra had a solid game with five touchdown passes, including two to Receiver Quaid Johnson. One of the big differences in the game was the two turnovers forced by #NR defense. Not only did Moses get an INT, but Jarryd Taylor did as well, and the team was also able to force a turnover on downs.

The loss for the Party Crashers ruined a standout performance by Emile Taillefer, who had a game-high 98 yards and three touchdowns. More importantly, the loss puts them only two points ahead of eighth place The Apocalypse. PC does have the head-to-head tiebreaker however due to a (44-34) win in Week 5. Both teams have two games remaining.

The bad times continued for the Party Crashers, as they also fell to Urgence Médic (33-25) last Sunday. Coming up big for UM offensively in the win was the combo of Anthony Lapointe and Mathieu Houle. The duo combined for 17 catches for 129 yards and four touchdowns. Lapointe even made an impact on the other side of the ball with an interception off Party Crashers Quarterback Frédéric Dupuis.

Jesse Dupuis of UM won the battle of Dupuis, as he had five touchdown passes, and no turnovers, and used hid legs to buy time for his Receivers to get open.

This was a statement win for as they were short-handed, missing two of their best playmakers in AJ Gomes, and Emile Beaudoin. After losing a heartbreaker against the Braves last week, this victory puts UM in second place in Div. 2, and two points behind first place Terror Squad.

If you’re a basketball fan, you have probably been glued to your TV the last few days curtesy of the National Basketball Association Play-In games, and the start of the NBA playoffs.

Starting with the Play-In Tournament, I am sure most of you are just like me, and either know more than a few people who weren’t fans of the idea, or like myself, were very skeptical. Even LeBron James himself, went on record as not being a fan of it. The irony that he and his Lakers couldn’t even qualify for it, isn’t lost here. Personally, I am always a fan of including more teams in the playoffs. My skepticism came from allowing teams without winning records get in the dance, only to have them get blown out by the top seeds in both conferences in the first round.  

Last year we saw some fantastic Play-In games involving the Lakers, Grizzles, Spurs, Celtics, Wizards, Pacers, Hornets, and Warriors. This year was no different, as all six games gave us some good and entertaining basketball.    

The playoffs started yesterday. I started writing this article while watching Game 1 of the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers. I am finishing it right now while tuning into the Miami Heat versus Atlanta Hawks. This game is a blowout, but it is only Game 1. Looking at the bigger picture, there are so many questions right now. Can the Bucks repeat? Will Harden actually show up in the playoffs, Can the Suns get back to the Finals and seal the deal this time? Can the Celtics rid their elite defense to a championship? Can the year ahead of schedule Raptors, knock off Philly? Are the Warriors back? How far can the Nets go? Can Trae Young carry the Hawks past the Heat? Are the Grizzles for real, and will we get a better first round matchup than Ja Morant vs Anthony Edwards? We will get answers to all these questions over the next few days and weeks.

If the ending of Game 1 between the Celtics and Nets was any indication of how the playoffs will be, I think we will all be in for a treat. I have said this before and I will say it again, I love sports. The playoffs are the greatest time in the year in every sport. I will say that kickoff week/weekend to the NFL season is awesome, but it still doesn’t match what the post-season gives us. The NHL playoffs are just around the corner. Here we go!

Power Rankings

Division 1

Allstars (6-1) – They jump to the top spot on the list after wins over Got-Skills and Gryffindor, and a loss by Flag Moi L’Sac against Gryffindor this past Wednesday at Stade Hebert. (Last Week: 2nd)

Braves (5-3) – They put a beat down on Gryffindor, who then turned around and blew out Flag Moi L’Sac later that evening. The win speaks volumes and gives the Braves a little momentum heading into their matchup with one of the elite teams in Div. 2, in Urgence Médic Wednesday night. (Last Week: 3rd)

Flag Moi L’Sac (6-2) – A blowout loss to Gryffindor – their first defeat since Week 1 – sees them fall in the rankings. Flag Moi L’Sac, has a chance to get back on track next Sunday when they take on Got-Skills. (Last Week 1st)

Gryffindor (3-5) – Three games in three days is tough for anybody. Going 1 for 3 in those contests isn’t ideal but having that one win come against the top team helps ease the pain. I really wanted to put them higher on the list, but only putting up two touchdowns in a blowout loss to the Braves stopped me from doing it. (Last Week: 4th)

Got-Skills (1-6) – After getting outplayed on both sides of the ball in their (47-25) loss to the Allstars two weeks ago, Got-Skills, almost pulled off the massive upset last Sunday, as they lost (47-40). Their next game is next Sunday versus Flag Moi L’Sac. Can Got-Skills carry some of their momentum over and hand them their second straight loss? (Last Week 5th)

Division 2

Terror Squad (6-1) – Another week, another first place spot in the rankings for Terror Squad. This Wednesday at Loyola, they face their biggest test since their Week 4 matchup with Flag Moi L’Sac – Terror Squad’s only loss of the season – when they take on KGP, in what should be a thriller. Let’s see how they do. Last Week: (1st).

Urgence Médic (5-2) – They jump two spots in the rankings by virtue of their win over the Party Crashers, and losses by both All Hooks and KGP. Upcoming games against All Hooks and the Braves over the next seven days will be tough for Urgence Médic, but they are talented enough to go 2 for 2 in the set. Let’s see what happens (Last Week: 4th)

BBallers (5-3) – They scored 35 points in the second half of their (43-32) win over KGP, and in the process, finally beat a Div. 2 team with a winning record. After playing yet another lesser than opponent next Monday in the Outlaws, the BBallers close out their regular season with a game against the Party Crashers in a matchup with huge ramifications on playoff seeding. (Last Week: 6th)

All Hooks (4-2-1) – They lost by two touchdowns to the top team in Div. 2 There is no shame in that. All Hooks, has a chance to get back to their winning ways and knock off another team they are looking up at in the standings this Wednesday, when they take on Urgence Médic. (Last Week: 3rd)

KGP (4-1-1) – A tough loss to the BBallers sees them drop two spots in the rankings. The schedule doesn’t get any easier, as they take on Terror Squad Wednesday at Loyola. Can KGP get back on track? (Last Week: 2nd)

#NR (4-4) – They knocked off the Party Crashers (31-26), and in the process gained possession of sixth place. Next on the schedule is Team Swoosh next Sunday in Lachine. (Last Week: 7th)

Party Crashers (4-4) – Two losses see the Party Crashers drop in the rankings. The one positive they can take out of the two losses – to Urgence Médic and #NR – is that they were by a combined nine points. Up next for PC, is a showdown with the Incredibles next Sunday at Loyola. (Last Week: 5th)

The Apocalypse (3-5) – They nearly dropped a 60-burger on Team Swoosh in their (54-6) win last Sunday. Just as impressive is the fact they only gave up one touchdown the entire game. (Last Week: 8th)

Outlaws (1-6) – They can’t stop anybody defensively, but their offense can at least hang with the teams in Division 2. That must count for something. With four games left on their schedule, the Outlaws mathematically still have a shot at qualifying for the post-season. Beating the next team on this list this Monday would be the first step in the process. (Last Week: 10th)

Incredibles (1-5) – A 24-point loss to the Apocalypse last week all but ended any shot they had at making the playoffs. All that is left is pride, as they take on the Outlaws Monday night at Loyola. (Last Week: 9th)

Team Swoosh (0-8) – Another tough loss, hopefully serves as a learning experience. Up next is #NR, next Sunday in Lachine. (Last Week: 11th)

Picks (Favorites in bold)

Incredibles vs Outlaws – Outlaws

KGP vs Terror Squad – KGP (Upset Special)

Urgence Médic vs All Hooks – Urgence Médic (My pick for Game of the Week)

Last Week: (4-5)

Season: (35-16-1)

Upset Special: (2-7)

That’s it for this week. Good luck to everybody in their games this week. If you liked, loved, or hated the article, or simply feel that I left something out, do not hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected], or reach me on Instagram @brent_b51

Happy Easter and Passover everybody!