Raptors Uprising drop heartbreaker to Gen.G Tigers, fall to 1-9 in Season 4

TORONTO, Canada—Reigning MVP Kenny Got Work scored a combined 62 points, while ReeceMode chipped in with 25 in Game 2, but it wasn’t enough as Raptors Uprising GC dropped a pair of games to Gen.G Tigers to close out Week 3 NBA 2K League action Saturday night.

With both teams heading into this matchup having struggled out of the gate this season, it would be Gen.G (2-4) coming out firing in Game 1. Their backcourt duo of JMoney and Bsmoove united for 25 points in the first half, helping the Tigers jump out to an early 10-point lead, which they would maintain heading into the break.

In the second half, unfortunately for Raptors Uprising (1-9), they had no answer for a well-rounded Gen.G offence, as four out of five Tigers players would finish in double-digit scoring, including a combined 46 points from point guard Jmoney and centre Feast, helping the visitors pull away in the fourth quarter to take Game 1 in convincing fashion.

“Slow starts kill us,” said third-year pro All Hail Trey after the game. “We haven’t gotten off to a good start this season. I feel like once we get off to a good start, we’re just going to go ahead and take that win.”

Game 2 was a much closer matchup throughout, and probably a game that Raptors Uprising wish they could have back.

Showing a lot more fight and heart, partly thanks to solid performances from their backcourt—ReeceMode and Kenny Got Work—Raptors Uprising would carry a five-point lead into the final minute after multiple fourth-quarter lead changes. However, much like the team from the North the night prior, it’d be Gen.G pulling of a miraculous last-minute comeback, tying the game with five seconds left on the clock to force overtime.

In the overtime period, it would actually be Raptors Uprising maintaining a lead for the majority of the extra frame, but a clutch three from BSmoove gave Gen.G the one-possession lead with 11.5 seconds left on the clock. Trailing by two with one last chance to tie the game up, Gen.G would force a backbreaking turnover with just seconds remaining, as Toronto would drop a heartbreaker in Game 2.

“We’re looking better every game, we just have to put a full game together to finally get two wins in a day,” said All Hail Trey. “What I can takeaway from today is we’re looking good on both sides of the floor, but like I said, we just have to execute our game plan and keep working every day.”

“We’re finding our identity on both sides of the floor. I mean, our record doesn’t show, but we’re going in the right direction for sure.”
With just over a third of the season in the books, it’s been a surprising start from Raptors Uprising, who have picked up just one win in their first 10 games. But as All Hail Trey points out, with the talented roster that they possess, there’s still plenty of belief within the Bell Fibe House.

“I know all of the guys are frustrated that we lost, but we’ll be hungry and eager to come back tomorrow and practice, practice, practice. We’ve got two matchups next week, so we just need to get our wins back up,” said All Hail Trey. “We have 18 games left. I expect the guys to come back down into the lab, lock back in, and try to make a run for it. We’ve got nine losses, so the margin for error is really low, but we’ve still got hope over here.”

Raptors Uprising are back in action mid-week as they’ll take on a familiar face in Sick One and his Mavs Gaming side on Wednesday night before squaring off with the defending NBA 2K League champions Wizards District Gaming in a rematch from Week 1Thursday evening.