Below is the TBT Semifinals recap. Only two teams remain in the hunt for $1M! Catch the TBT Championship Game on Thursday (8/3) at 7p on ESPN!
(2) HeartFIRE 73, (4) Herd That 68
Heartfire walked off the court in Wichita eight days ago after dismantling the host AfterShocks and looked like the team to beat in TBT. For the first 35 minutes of Tuesday night’s semi-final matchup against Herd That, not much had changed in the eyes of TBT prognosticators.
Then, Herd That made a late surge during the Elam Ending, cutting what had been a 16-point lead down to just two points.
With the shot clock winding down, TBT veteran big man Raphiael Putney banked in a three-pointer to hit the target score, and Heartfire survived the late rally from Herd That in a 73-68 semi-final victory. Putney finished with 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting in the win for Heartfire, which advances to its third TBT final.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">RAPHIAEL PUTNEY CALLS BANK!!!!!!!!<br><br>HE JUST BANKED IN THE ELAM ENDER TO SEND HEARTFIRE TO TBT'S CHAMPIONSHIP😱<br><br>Heartfire is ONE WIN AWAY from $1,000,000 <a href="https://t.co/zJMLxWqai2">pic.twitter.com/zJMLxWqai2</a></p>— TBT (@thetournament) <a href="https://twitter.com/thetournament/status/1686907762251284480?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>“We trust each other,” said Putney. “That’s a big part of our team.”
It was a tale of two quarters in the first half. Herd That opened up a seven-point lead after the opening period only to see Heartfire begin the second quarter on a 22-3 run to take a lead that it would never relinquish.
Tevin Mack added 14 points for Heartfire, which won despite making just four of 22 attempts from beyond the arc. It was the Heartfire defense which keyed the victory, holding Herd That to just 1-for-18 shooting from beyond the arc.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">❤️🔥 ONE ❤️🔥<br>❤️🔥 WIN ❤️🔥<br>❤️🔥 AWAY ❤️🔥<a href="https://twitter.com/team_heartfire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@team_heartfire</a> will play for $1 MILLION tomorrow night at 7p on ESPN! <a href="https://t.co/BKnt1CFtdO">pic.twitter.com/BKnt1CFtdO</a></p>— TBT (@thetournament) <a href="https://twitter.com/thetournament/status/1686913745899962373?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>“It was a group effort,” said Heartfire coach LaPhonso Ellis. “Defense has gotten us to where we are right now. Our number one objective was to take away the three.”
Marcus Hall scored nine points in the win for Heartfire and, with a fadeaway jumper to open the Elam Ending, overtook D.J. Kennedy to become TBT’s all-time scoring leader. After the win, Hall deflected the praise to his teammates.
“It’s kind of a team record,” said Hall, the University of Colorado product who will appear in his third TBT final. “You have to win games to play more games. These guys want me to make plays, and I take pride in doing so.”
Beyond its poor three-point shooting, Herd That was also done in by its free-throw shooting, making just 61% of its attempts from the line.
(2) Bleed Green 68, (2) Friday Beers 65
Jordan Stevens and Brandon Jefferson have played in pressure games. That experience had them prepared for the Elam Ending in Wednesday’s semi-final, as a double-digit lead had slipped away.
With the score tied at 65, Stevens hit a step-back three-pointer to hit the Target Score and send Bleed Green to its first-ever TBT final with a 68-65 victory over Friday Beers.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">NO WAY YOU JUST DID THAT JORDAN STEVENS!?!?!?!?!?<br><br>😱RIDICULOUS Elam Ender step-back-three DOUBLE TEAMED to send Bleed Green to TBT's CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!!!!<br><br>Bleed Green is one win away from $1,000,000 <a href="https://t.co/DH6NlXtNq4">pic.twitter.com/DH6NlXtNq4</a></p>— TBT (@thetournament) <a href="https://twitter.com/thetournament/status/1686935736623247361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>Stevens and Jefferson combined for 34 points in the win for the University of North Texas alumni squad, which made 12 of its 26 three-point attempts and improved to 7-1 all-time over two summers in TBT.
“We were going for the kill (three-pointer), for sure,” said Stevens, who finished with a team-high 18 points. {The Elam Ending] makes it real cutthroat.”
Kai Huntsberry contributed 13 points in the win for Bleed Green, which advanced despite being outrebounded, 34-20.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">BLEED GREEN WINS ONE OF THE BEST GAMES IN TBT HISTORY!!!!!!!<br><br>THE <a href="https://twitter.com/MeanGreenMBB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MeanGreenMBB</a> ALUMNI ARE ONE WIN AWAY FROM $1,000,000 <a href="https://t.co/ko2PO7bJEz">pic.twitter.com/ko2PO7bJEz</a></p>— TBT (@thetournament) <a href="https://twitter.com/thetournament/status/1686936019701022721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>“Everyone knows their role,” said Jefferson. “It’s a great win, but the job is not finished.”
Bleed Green, which had won each of its four previous games by double-digits, was at its best with the game on the line and committed just five turnovers in the victory.
“Our togetherness on and off the floor has been key,” said Bleed Green coach Andre Shaw. “On both ends of the floor, we’ve always been the toughest team.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🟢 ONE 🟢<br>🟢 WIN 🟢<br>🟢 AWAY 🟢<a href="https://twitter.com/BleedGreenTBT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BleedGreenTBT</a> will play for $1 MILLION tomorrow night on ESPN!!!! <a href="https://t.co/lxhcJxzjSU">pic.twitter.com/lxhcJxzjSU</a></p>— TBT (@thetournament) <a href="https://twitter.com/thetournament/status/1686940326500376576?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>Shaw praised his two-guard tandem of Stevens and Jefferson.
“I’ve got the best guards in the tournament,” said Shaw. “They’re hard to guard. Jordan hit a big-time shot. This is what they do. This is who they are.”
Julian Gamble tallied a game-high 20 points and 13 rebounds in the losing effort for Friday Beers.