March 11, 2016

ST. LOUIS – There’s a new king of the hill in the Midwest Professional Basketball Association, but who knows for how long that will last.

The Pontiac 66ers with a win Wednesday took over first place by a half-game from the Windy City Groove, who lost Wednesday. The 66ers sit at 9-4, while the Groove are at 8-4. The Chicago Blues, meanwhile, have moved into third place by half a game over the St. Louis RiverSharks, with Chicago at 7-4 at St. Louis at 6-4.

And with five games the next five days on the schedule, the playoff picture might begin to clear up a little—or it might be murkier than ever.

The action starts Friday as the Groove try to snap a three-game losing streak against the RiverSharks in Chicago. St. Louis beat Windy City last Saturday 108-100, despite losing league MVP Justin Bocot that morning to a contract in Mexico. The Groove, however, were playing without two of their stars, Dion Cooksey and Sean Dockery, who both figure to be back for tonight’s game.

Bruce Massey continues to lead the post-Bocot RiverSharks, earning his second Player of the Week nod in the past three weeks. He’s averaging 21.9 points and 7.6 rebounds for Ray Farrell’s team. Aaron Williams and Jaylen Fulton stepped up big in Bocot’s absence against the Groove, and will be needed to do so again if St. Louis hopes to take down Windy City twice in a row.

The Groove are mired in their worst losing streak of the year. After winning eight of their first nine, Handy Johnson’s squad has dropped three straight. Dion Cooksey is Windy City’s top scorer at 22.7 points per game, and also hands out 4.8 assists per game. Five other Groove score in double figures, while Ray Miller, signed last month, has bolstered the interior defense for Windy City, blocking 1.8 shots per game and pulling down 6.8 rebounds to go along with his 9.5 points.

On Saturday, the Gateway Steam head to Champaign in a battle of two teams fighting to stay alive for the playoffs. Gateway (3-8), after reaching .500, has lost five in a row, while Champaign (3-9), after winning its first two games under new coach Daniel Ruffin, has lost its last two.

Dual threat Connell Crossland leads the Steam at 18.7 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, while Lonnel Johnson and Brent Schuck continue to shoot well from three-point range; Johnson is 18 of 36 (.500) from beyond the arc, while Schuck is 16 of 33 (.485).

Michael Rogers is the top scorer for Champaign at 20.9 points per game, but he and Aaron Weaver (19.8) have been helped out by the signing of Jonathan Mills, who, in four games, is averaging 18.0 points and 11.0 rebounds for the Swarm. Oliver McGlade continues to be one of the league’s best three-point shooters, at 27 of 66 (.409) from downtown.

Sunday, the Lima Express try to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot as they host Pontiac. Last Sunday, the Express ended a hard-luck five-game losing streak with a win over Gateway. Lima boasts three 20-plus-point scorers in Kyle Meyer (22.8), Jody Hill (21.3) and Cordaryl Ballard (20.6). Meyer leads the team in rebounding at 6.8 per game, and Ballard leads the league in assists per game at 5.4.

MVP frontrunner Alfonzo Houston leads the 66ers and the league in scoring at 26.5 points per game, as seven players for Pontiac average scoring in double figures. Alex Marzette and Marcus Hammonds continue to control the boards for the 66ers, each averaging just over 8 rebounds per game, as well as throwing in double-digit points. Durrell Robinson, despite having lost four players to overseas contracts this season, continues to reload and has his team poised to make a run at the top overall playoff seed.

Monday night, the Swarm host the Blues in a game being made up from the February 24, when a severe winter storm rolled through East Central Illinois.

The athletic Blues, winners of three in a row, can score from inside or outside, depending on the night, with six players averaging in double figures. Shakir Johnson and Jakeem Hill have formed a SWAT team as of late, with Johnson blocking ten shots his last two games, and Hill turning away eight.

Finally, Tuesday, the RiverSharks host the Steam in the final regular-season meeting between those two cross-town rivals.

All the MPBA action over the next five days and all season long can be seen live, free of charge and in high definition on your laptop or mobile device by visiting the league’s online broadcast channel, MPBA.tv.