Championship Game Preview

By Britton Bartholdi

Wednesday night marks the end of the 11/12 House basketball season with the championship showdown between the Lakers and the Suns. I have broken down both teams during the past couple of days, but now we will look at the teams head to head and make a final prediction for the big game.

Category	Suns	Lakers
Points Scored/Game	46.4	37.2
Points Allowed/Game	39	33.3
Most Points Scored/Game	60	45
Least Points Allowed/Game	19	20
Season Point Differential	+67	+27

Statistical Advantage: Suns

Size Advantage: Lakers

The Lakers height is absurd, with Arrix, Mackie and Graham all being a massive presence on both sides of the ball. The Suns lack height, but have plenty of big man in Stovall, Murray and Grant to compete with the Lakers. Overall though, the Lakers win this category due to the depth they possess.

Speed Advantage: Lakers

The Suns speed comes from guards Conor Davey and Danny O’Boyle, along with some help from Brendan Seiler and Charlie Burke, but outside of that, the team is lacking. For the Lakers, almost everyone on that team has great speed, allowing for them to run a high paced offense, giving them the advantage against a slower Suns team.

Outside Shooting Advantage: Suns

The Lakers rely on Timmy Graham and his three point game, along with some help from Mackie, while the Suns have solid options from both Danny O’Boyle and Conor Davey and some help of the bench from Seiler and Burke.

Inside Shooting Advantage: Suns

Though John Mackie has been a one man show when driving to the basket, but the strength that the Suns possess is dangerous when they have the ball in the paint. Murray and Grant provide that support, while a kid named Conor Davey can make easy work when driving to the basket.

Defensive Advantage: Lakers

The Lakers defense has been dominant all year, showing that they can back their offense up by not allowing anything on the other side of the court. You can credit that to the height of Arrix, Graham and Mackie blocking shots, while shutdown defense from Tyler Grant helps massively.

Regular Season Game: Lakers 41 Suns 34

So now, a prediction. The Lakers handed the Suns their one regular season loss, but since then, the Suns have scored 59 points in their two playoff games. The Lakers started the postseason strong as they beat up the Heat by almost 30, but only managed to beat the Mavericks by 1. You can also questions the Suns opponents, as they beat the Celtics, and beat the Nuggets by 6. However, in both games, the team let up more than 45 points. The Suns can score, but questions arise about their ability to defend, and with them going against one of the league's best defense can raise some concerns. The most intriguing storyline of the game will be Davey vs. Mackie, but unfortunately, Davey cannot cover both Mackie and Graham. The only person I can see maybe covering Graham is O’Boyle, but Graham’s size and touch on the ball will be too much.

Lakers 51 Suns 49 (OT)