The second game, of 16 June 2016, was played between the Heat and Bama Tru Ballers.  Both of these teams are on the rise and are serious contenders for the Eastern Division Championship.  The Heat were 7 - 7 when they reported and the Bama Tru Ballers were 6 - 9.  The Heat have won three of their last four games.  The Bama Tru Ballers have won their last three games by an amazing margin of 20 points per game.  The Heat were without their top scorer, #17 Felton Scott.

The starting players for the Heat were:  #11 Norman King, #15 Johnny Sanchez, #24 Sidney Dowlen, #27 Christopher Alexander, and #33 Otis Lewis.  The starting players for the Bama Tru Ballers were:  #32 Tony Moses, #96 David Hardge, #00 Cleotis Brown, #13 Navarro Davis, and #23 Alphonzo Jukes.

The Heat won the tipoff and first possession.  We saw four lead changes at 7, 8, 9, and 10.  The Heat owned the leads at 7 and 9.  That would be the last time they would hold a lead for the remainder of the game.  The Heat scored on two 3-pointers, six 2-pointers, and one free throw to account for 19 first half points.  No Heat player scored more than four points.  That did not come from a lack of effort.  The Heat made every effort to put the right group of players on the court who could spark a scoring run, but it was not in the cards for them.  As for the Bama Tru Ballers, they have found the formula as a team.  Cleotis Brown has really helped transform this team by leading them on the floor in several ways and the players have bought into the system to win games.  As the game developed, I could see the Bama Tru Ballers begin to put things together to start pulling away from the Heat.  Cleotis "No Limit Soldier" Brown (#00) scored 11 points and Navarro Davis (#13) scored 12 points to lead the Bama Tru Ballers during the first half.  The first half ended with the Heat 19 and the Bama Tru Ballers 35.  Both teams committed six team fouls. 

Both teams improved their scoring during the second half, but it was not enough for the Heat to keep the Bama Tru Ballers from adding them to the list of teams trailing by 20 points or more.  The Bama Tru Ballers entered the second half ready to go.  Cleotis Brown and Chris Watson connected for a total of five 3-pointers.  Cleotis scored on three and Watson scored on two.  Navarro Davis (#13) led the Bama Tru Ballers with 12 second half points.  Alester Anderson (#5) added 8 points to the lead, as well.  The Heat's Sidney Dowlen did all he could to generate a comeback, with 15 points, but it was too late.  The Bama Train had already left the station with no stopovers.  Donald Brophy (#13) wrestled in 7 points for the Heat, but it was not enough to hold the Bama Tru Ballers back from adding them to the list.  The Bama Tru Ballers never used a timeout as opposed to three by the Heat.  When the Heat called their last timeout, the Bama Tru Ballers had already captured a 55 - 27 point lead.  The Bama Tru Ballers added the Heat to the list with a 74 - 45 victory.  No team has scored 60 points against the Bama Tru Ballers in four games.  I believe they have developed a formula to winning.

The scorers for the Heat were: #24 Sidney Dowlen with 19 points, #13 Donald Brophy with 9 points, #27 Christopher Alexander with 4 points, #15 Johnny Sanchez with 4 points, #8 Antonio Anthony with 3 points, #11 Norman King with 3 points, and #33 Otis Lewis with 3 points.

The scorers for the Bama Tru Ballers were:  #13 Navarro Davis with 24 points, #00 Cleotis Brown with 22 points, #44 Chris Watson with 11 points, #5 Alester Anderson with 8 points, #96 David Hardge with 6 points, and #23 Alphonzo Jukes with 3 points.