Field vs. Doyle Round 1

First off Merry Christmas to everyone out there in DroppinTreats country. This past Wednesday at Belmont High was one of the most anticipated one on one pickup games of all time; Kevin D. Field versus Ryan Q. Doyle. The E-mails about this highly anticipated match up started weeks ago. This was the prime time match up that everyone wanted to see. Hands down these are the two of the worst basketball players out of our group of friends. Doyle is known for hip checking and his patterned laser one step jumper from inside the foul line that usually hits more back board than anything else. Fields game has always been much of a mystery to me because I had never seen him play before. From what I have gathered though from my sources is that his game is exactly the same as Doyles. On paper, this is about as even as a match up as you can get.

Unfortunately, I showed up about an hour after everyone else did because of my own basketball practice. The first thing I asked though was "Did I miss it?!?!" and there was a resounding no from the fellow ballers. This instantaneously put me in a bad mood. From what I heard, Field has played in more pickup games through out the course of the night and there was even mention of him going coast to coast on Doyle. I am already thinking that I have underestimated the little spark plug of my room mate as a hoopster. Upon my arrival my team played in 3 games, Field was on my team for all three. His game is a little rough around the edges but not too bad. Doyle played in 1 of the games and played his typical Doyleian type of game.

Now its time to wrap it up, we didn't have enough time to play another full court game, so we immediately start to beg for this match up. Game to 5...Winners take it. They shoot and Field misses and Doyle drains it. Doyle gets right into his only offensive move, trying to back his man down. Now, as referee, I was willing to let a lot of things slide. Two things I could have called the entire time could have been 3 seconds and arm checking. Doyle never left the paint once and Field wasn't exactly playing sound Boston Celtics D, he was more in a mood of trying to punish Doyle's kidneys. On three consecutivc possessions, Doyle backs down field, gaining a little bit of ground with every dribble and got close enough to where a 7 year old was even going to make the layup. It was just a case of Chinese water torcher for Field. Finally, Field gets a stop on a rare miss by The Bod. The two warriors are just spent physically...Field takes a two pointer from the top of the key and shanks it off the right side of the rim. Doyle got the rebound and it was over from there. I never thought in my life I would eve say this, but Doyle has the more polished basketball game of the two and made Field pay for it.

Not a bad first fame for the two...cant wait to see the in week adjustments and if Field can bounce back or if Doyle will continue to lay the wood to him.

-Rockdaddy