MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. (May 6, 2013) -- At the beginning of the 2013 intramural basketball season, if anyone asked who was going to win it all, Marine Corps Embassy Security Group’s team, “the Go Gettas,” were unlikely to be the most talked about team.
Despite of their perfect 0 – 16 streak last year, the Go Gettas closed out the final game of the season, 56 – 38, becoming 2013 league champions.
The motley crew of young Marines and former Marines had a less-than-rock star appeal – often brash and sometimes borderline offensive – and boasted a standing record of 0 – 16 in 2012, which was still fresh in everyone’s minds.
“We were arguably the worst team in the league last year,” said Brandon Ruth, captain for the Go Gettas. “Our record spoke for itself, and we started this year nearly the exact same way.”
MSG began this season in a nosedive, quickly racking up five losses in a row. Then, out of necessity, something changed.
“We got together after that fifth loss, looked at one another and said: ‘That’s it. No more losing,’” Ruth said. “Then we got two new players, Ajawon Gadison and Loren Thomas, who have been a tremendous help.”
The Go Gettas hadn’t been on the same page, according to Ruth, but now they were running on all cylinders, and they were hungry for the title.
“We started playing smart ball by working our passing game, and getting our shooting locked on,” Ruth said. “That’s what got us here, tonight.”
From the first five minutes of the game down to the final five minutes, the Go Gettas put on a show with tricky no-look passes, fast breaks and intricate screen plays.
Seamless three-pointers sank into the net from Gadison anytime he could plant his feet, and Craig Holland, No. 10 for the Go Gettas, snatched the ball from any opponent unwary enough to get too close.
Thaddeus Tate, No. 23 for the Go Gettas and clearly the tallest player on the team, tipped the ball to his teammates at the start of the evening and maintained his intensity throughout the game, often contorting his body to make blind passes, sink shots and claim rebounds.
“They sped us up and made us play at their pace instead of us controlling the speed of the game,” said Jelani Nix, coach for Marine Corps Systems Command’s team, which played against the Go Gettas for the title. “They’re younger than us and played an all around good game.”
During the regular season MCSC, with an average age of 38, often showcased their ability to play very technical ball to match younger and faster teams like the Go Gettas. That dynamic play was absent tonight, which led to their loss, according to Nix.
“Another part of our loss is that we were missing Mike Spence tonight, our primary ball handler,” Nix said. “He had, by far, the youngest legs on the team and he helped us balance out the floor.”
MCSC solidified their spot as the second place team by beating out HMX-1 earlier in the evening.
“Who would have thought we’d make it this far?,” shouted Charles Jones, No. 7 for the Go Gettas, as he clutched the championship trophy. “We started from the bottom, and now we’re here!”
Correspondent: paris.capers@usmc.mil