2008 Woodie Awards
Fraternity basketball championship: SigEp, Pike battle for BC Kent
Kevin Bailey
Issue date: 12/13/07 Section: Maine Sports
Many students have noticed that the past two weeks have been relatively quiet on the athletic courts and fields of the University of Maine. With the semester winding down, many teams' seasons have slowed down accordingly, but members of UMaine Greek Life know that the competition of intramurals hardly ever takes a break. On Monday night, the fraternity basketball championship took the spotlight at the Rec Center. In an intense battle, Pi Kappa Alpha was able to outlast and emerge victorious over Sigma Phi Epsilon.
Anyone who spent their Monday night watching a weak NFL match-up missed a true battle of the intramural titans. Pike and SigEp have had a strong hold on top of the all-points standings all semester, with Pike having the upper hand recently due to two floor hockey championships last week.
As the game kicked off, SigEp looked to set the tempo right away, but Pike matched them for an evenly-played first half. Few players could drive the lanes without getting roughed up and the tough style of play led to many free-throw opportunities. The low-scoring half ended with Pike holding a slim 16-14 lead.
Early on in the second half, each team made adjustments. SigEp showed they were ready to pick up the intensity, as they locked down on defense and continued to crash the Pike big guys down low. Pike adjusted to this and began to swing the ball around more, opening up shots and driving the paint.
The real turning point came with about seven minutes remaining in the game. Pike had yet to bust open their lead, in front by just three, when sophomore Matt Andreasen took a kick-out pass from a driving Josh McNutt and nailed a contested three. Something had clicked for Andreasen, and on the next two possessions, he buried consecutive three-pointers. "I'm not usually the top scorer, but I try to pick my moments and step it up when it really counts," Andreasen said. McCarthy recalled that from last season, explaining, "He had some huge shots against us last year too. He just caught fire."
Down by eight with just three minutes remaining, SigEp enacted a full-court press to catch Pike off-guard. Their aggressive strategy was rewarded with a few steals and buckets, closing the gap to four. After that Pike was finally able to get into the free-throw bonus. One final three-pointer by Andreasen put the lead back up to seven, securing the victory.
"Both teams had a lot of guys show up, and it's so huge to have your boys behind you and cheering for the whole game," Andreasen said.
The win helped Pike build on their lead in the standings, but with SigEp close behind and several other fraternities eyeing the top, no one can get too comfortable.
Anyone who spent their Monday night watching a weak NFL match-up missed a true battle of the intramural titans. Pike and SigEp have had a strong hold on top of the all-points standings all semester, with Pike having the upper hand recently due to two floor hockey championships last week.
As the game kicked off, SigEp looked to set the tempo right away, but Pike matched them for an evenly-played first half. Few players could drive the lanes without getting roughed up and the tough style of play led to many free-throw opportunities. The low-scoring half ended with Pike holding a slim 16-14 lead.
Early on in the second half, each team made adjustments. SigEp showed they were ready to pick up the intensity, as they locked down on defense and continued to crash the Pike big guys down low. Pike adjusted to this and began to swing the ball around more, opening up shots and driving the paint.
The real turning point came with about seven minutes remaining in the game. Pike had yet to bust open their lead, in front by just three, when sophomore Matt Andreasen took a kick-out pass from a driving Josh McNutt and nailed a contested three. Something had clicked for Andreasen, and on the next two possessions, he buried consecutive three-pointers. "I'm not usually the top scorer, but I try to pick my moments and step it up when it really counts," Andreasen said. McCarthy recalled that from last season, explaining, "He had some huge shots against us last year too. He just caught fire."
Down by eight with just three minutes remaining, SigEp enacted a full-court press to catch Pike off-guard. Their aggressive strategy was rewarded with a few steals and buckets, closing the gap to four. After that Pike was finally able to get into the free-throw bonus. One final three-pointer by Andreasen put the lead back up to seven, securing the victory.
"Both teams had a lot of guys show up, and it's so huge to have your boys behind you and cheering for the whole game," Andreasen said.
The win helped Pike build on their lead in the standings, but with SigEp close behind and several other fraternities eyeing the top, no one can get too comfortable.
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