Team Nike’s Kenny Satterfield was named the games MVP. (Robert Cole)
Team Nike coach Bingo Cole holds the TOC trophy. (Robert Cole)
Team Nike answered all the questions and all the haters. The sneaker company’s hand-picked team left Gauchos Gym with a feeling of vindication along with the Tournament of Champions crown.
“It means it was a summer worthwhile,” guard Antawn (Anti-Freeze) Dobie said. “With all the scrutiny from everybody, not wanting the Team Nike to be put together, for the players that didn’t make the team, everybody saying it’s not going to work – it worked.”
After fending off rival Ooh-Way Records for the Dyckman title earlier in the week, Team Nike led EBC Rucker and West 4th winner X-Men from start to finish in a 64-53 win Sunday night in The Bronx. It completes the mission the group set out to accomplish when it was put together in the spring, losing just twice to Ooh-Way and Team 914. The title is the second straight for coach Bingo Cole, Dobie, Al Sheppard, Keydren Clark and Anthony Glover, who won with Bingo’s All-Stars last year.
“We knew what our goal was,” said guard Kenny Satterfield, who was named the game’s MVP. “Our goal wasn’t individuals. It’s not about this MVP. If it was me I wouldn’t have even given this out tonight.”
Satterfield, who was tremendous throughout the postseason, scored 12 points to lead Team Nike. Vern Goodridge had 11 points, Quinton (T2) Hosley scored nine and Adris (2 Hard 2 Guard) DeLeon and Dobie each had 11.
Nike streetball player of the year Greg Plummer and former Lakers guard Smush Parker each scored 15 points for the X-Men. Eian Davis added seven.
Team Nike road a 14-2 run over the first and second quarters to grab a 26-11 lead with 7:20 before the half. Satterfield connected on a right corner trey and made 1-of-2 free throws after crossing over Parker to end the half.
“Kenny has always been a winner, always been a leader,” Cole said. “He has a passion for this game.”
Leadership was exactly what they got from Dobie, who was hampered with a quad injury during the postseason, when the games got tight in the fourth quarter. Team Nike’s bigs – B.J. McFarland, Glover, Goodridge and Hosley – dominated on both ends throughout the game. But the X-Men hung around and went on a 12-2 run over the third and fourth quarters to close the gap to 53-44 with 8:31 left in the game behind Davis.
He fed Plummer for a layup in transition, scored on a drive down the middle of the lane and converted a putback. Glover made two free throws and Dobie scored the next five points, including a long 3-pointer along the right side to push the lead back to 60-44 with 4:40 remaining.
“That’s what we were missing in some of the games that I was hurt when we had big leads, someone to close out the game,” Dobie said. “I’m known to close out the game.”
Team Nike finished out the summer the way they envisioned it when they were assembled. Egos, major minutes and points were put aside to bring home the Tournament of Champions crown.
“When we went into that meeting that day and picked this team off the board,” Cole said, “it validated that this was the right team to pick.”
