4 Penn Plaza opened their 2021-22 season with a loss before finishing out the first round of the schedule with four consecutive wins. Last week the boys lost to the league’s best team, The Flight Attendants, and followed that defeat up with another one to the second-best team Jam Y’all.
The experts predicted this would be a close matchup, 73.21 points, and in the end, the deficit was even closer at 70.70 points. Both teams failed to live up to their initial projections but duked it out until the final buzzer handed Jam Y’all a victory to improve to 5-2. The loss dropped 4 Penn Plaza to 4-3, only one game over .500.
When people examine the daily box scores, most would be surprised that Plaza actually led the matchup four days to three; however, Jam Y’all won the most critical day, Sunday. A further look into the numbers will show that it was more significant when Plaza had the lead than the numbers Jam led by.
4 Penn Plaza was the first team to reach 1000 points with a 1015.60 point total after Wednesday. However, Jam hung around and managed to take their first lead on Thursday. They continued to win, extending their lead as the teams headed into Saturday when Plaza regained the lead for the last time. A subpar Sunday afternoon erased a 35.10 lead, leading to a 70.70 point defeat, a swing of 105.80 points.
Teams in the Pacific North West continue to feel each other out, but some trends are developing. After seven weeks, 4 Penn Plaza continues to be the best rebound team in the league with first-place rankings in offensive rebounds and rebounds. The boys also rank first overall in steals and blocks, with a solid second-place ranking in double-doubles.
The lowest ranking out of the 12 categories is three-pointers made, where Plaza sits in fifth place with just 506 baskets on 1478 attempts. The team has no sixth place rankings, with the rest of the categories sitting between second, third, and fourth.
4 Penn Plaza was the only team to surpass 2000 points in their matchup and lose. Jam Y’all had the second-highest point total of the week, while The Flight Attendants continue to roll with a league-high 2451.30 points in week eight.
Three teams have winning records, while three teams sit with losing records. Everyone scored into four digits this past week, with Stephen A. Smith’s Team scoring a low of 1362.30. They provided their sibling team Stephen A. Smith’s Genuis Team, their first season victory.
Dejounte Murray (San Antonio), one of the Plaza’s draft gems, took home his first best player award in this week’s matchup. His 229.70 points led all shooters as the only player to surpass 200 points in a tightly contested matchup. Murray’s stat line read like this: 5/7 at the free-throw line, 7/18 from downtown, 68 points, 43 total rebounds, 44 assists, nine steals, one block, two double-doubles, and one triple-double. This week’s worse player was Murray’s San Antonio teammate Doug McDermott who collected just a single point on two free-throw attempts.
Joel Embiid (Philadelphia) was the matchup’s leading scorer with 229.00 points. His final numbers were off the charts, going 40/46 at the line and 4/12 from downtown. He collected 120 points with 44 rebounds, 17 assists, seven steals, one block, and one double-double.
In an attempt to salvage the matchup and claim victory, team management executed a handful of transitions to collect points. The first move involved McDermott, who signed with the team on December 11, and after one terrible performance, found his way back to the waiver wire the very next day.
After a slew of injuries, there were plenty of open spots in the lineup, which allowed De’Anthony Melton (Memphis) to sign on. He was joined by Darius Bazley (Oklahoma City) and Herbert Jones (New Orleans) before the end of the week.
Weekly Move Total: 4/25
Season Move Total: 9
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Keeping the Stats 