The Chautauqua Hurricane made quick, efficient work of the DuBois Dream, with a 109-64 trouncing in the first round of the NABL playoffs.

The Hurricane got out to a very early lead, putting up 25 points in the first quarter, while holding the Dream to just seven.

“It’s very encouraging to see our team band together and respond well to our first challenge,” said Blanks, who finished with just five points on the evening.

The biggest advantages the Hurricane had in this game were depth and teamwork. Chautauqua dressed 10 players for Saturday’s playoff game, allowing them to roll with two squads of five, while the Dream had only six players active. The advantage of fresh legs, combined with the preparation and sense of unity the team displayed, allowed the Hurricane to roll.

Marcus Feagin slams home a dunk in Saturday’s NABL playoff game against the DuBois Dream.

Prior to the game, Blanks talked about how the team has great individual pieces, and when they come together they can achieve great things. Those words would prove to be prophetic.

“Today just goes to show how talented we are individually. When we put it all together, good things happen, and today was an example of that,” said Blanks.

Chautauqua Hurricane head coach Jerome Moss also knew his team needed to play together, and thought they achieved their goal.

“We were able to come out and hit them quick, and the team was rolling well,” said Coach Moss.

The two-squad rotation worked like a dream Saturday night, but Coach Moss said that’s something that varies on a game by game basis, though he knew it gave the Hurricane their best chance at victory against the Dream.

Moss said the short bench on the side of DuBois was beneficial to Chautauqua, as the Hurricane could keep the storm of fresh legs coming.

Moss acknowledges that the Hurricane have a goal, and that goal is the Championship game in Kentucky, and Moss said today was the first step in achieving that goal.

“I know it’s a nice sun-shiney day for the fans, but the guys came to play. They put everything else behind them and they played basketball, and I appreciate that,” said Moss.

Ralph Williams led the way for the Hurricane, scoring 20 points, including four three-pointers, as well as adding six assists, and six rebounds. Daniel Mulamba was a dominant force in the post as well, putting up 14 points on 7-9 shooting, adding 16 rebounds as well. Alex Crossan was the big spark plug off the bench, contributing 10 points and six rebounds, and a couple emphatic blocked shots as well. Reuel Moore led the way for the Dream, scoring 24 points, with seven boards, and five assists.

The Hurricane advance to play next Saturday, where they will take on either the Buffalo 716ers or the Lancaster Thunder. The Hurricane though, don’t care who their opponent is. Whoever they play, they assure you they’ll be ready.