With a dozen consecutive wins to the start this season, the Mob are inching closer to a 16-0 regular season. On Saturday, the Gryphons and Buzzsaw were no match for the Mob, who outscored those two squads, 143-56. Mob stopper Gage Smith (Elizabeth, Colo.) padded his MVP resume by notching SlamBall’s first triple-double in the Main Event, and ending the session with 22 points, 21 stops and 23 loose ball rebounds in the two wins.
Game 1 – Buzzsaw 54, Slashers 37
The Buzzsaw had little trouble with the Slashers in the third meeting between the teams, rolling to a 54-37 victory in the opening game of Saturday’s session. Ralph Bellamy (St. Louis, Mo.) was a one-man wrecking crew early, scoring 15 of his game-high 21 points in the first half as the Buzzsaw took a 22-16 advantage into the intermission. Malik Abdul-Haqq (Seattle, Wash.) helped finished off the Slashers in the second half, racking up 19 points in the win. Tyquan Scott (Long Beach, N.Y.) shut down the Slashers all game, making eight stops with 11 loose ball recoveries. He also scored his first three points of the season on a fourth-quarter slam. The Slashers got 19 points from Tony Crosby II (Long Beach, Calif.) and 14 from Alonzo Scott Jr. (Petersburg, Va.)
Game 2 – Mob 66, Gryphons 33
The undefeated Mob were installed as 16.5-point favorites by Circa Sports for Saturday’s game against the Gryphons, and it was evident early they would easily make that number. The Mob doubled up the Gryphons for a 66-33 victory, their 11th to start the season. The Mob sprinted out of the gate, building a 26-9 halftime lead, and then toyed with the Gryphons the rest of the contest. It was a no-fly zone around Gage Smith, who made 10 stops and was the primary reason KyShawn Jones (19.1 PPG entering the game) finished with just four points. Smith also got involved on offense, throwing down four dunks for 12 points. Four other Mob players scored in double figures, including Darius Clark (Blue Springs, Mo.), who had a game-high 15 points. The Mob were a stellar 21-of-28 on rim attacks while the Gryphons were just 10-of-24.
Main Event – Mob 57, Buzzsaw 23
The Mob’s 12th win of the season looked a lot like the first 11: total annihilation. In another mismatch in the Main Event, the Mob throttled the Buzzsaw, 57-23, behind an otherworldly performance by Gage Smith, who scored 10 points, made 11 stops and came up with 16 loose ball recoveries for the first triple-double in SlamBall history. Smith hit double digits in points in dramatic fashion by executing a fourth-quarter “McNasty” (360-degree, between-the-legs dunk) on a Face Off. Darius Clark dropped in a game-most 19 points for the Mob while Cam Hollins (Avon, Ind.) added 14. It was the third time the Mob have defeated the Buzzsaw this season, all by at least 19 points. The Mob put this one to bed early, using an awe-inspiring array of dunks to cruise to a 33-5 halftime lead. The Buzzsaw (7-4) remain in second place in the SlamBall standings but are 4.5 games behind the Mob.
Mob coach Brendan Kirsch raved about Smith after the game. “I think when the season is done, Gage will be considered one of the greatest SlamBall players of all time,” Kirsch said. “When he pulled the McNasty tonight, it was something he had never practiced a single time. He came out of the game and I said, ‘Where did you learn that? I’ve never seen you do that in practice. I’ve never seen you try it.’ And he just said, ‘I just thought I could do it. I believed I could do it.’” It is easy to believe that Smith and Mob can do just about anything this season.
SlamBall is back Sunday, Aug. 6 at 4:00 p.m. PT/7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+.