Outlaws’ Late-Game Defense Leads To Upset National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament Win
The Texas Outlaws turned up the defensive heat late. And it put an end to the top-seeded Cleveland Wheelchair Cavaliers’ chance at coming back in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association Adult Division III national wheelchair basketball tournament.
Owen Horsley made two key steals inside the last 45 seconds and the No. 9-seeded Outlaws held on for a 59-54 Adult Division III quarterfinal victory over Cleveland on Friday afternoon at the Henrico Sports & Events Center in Glen Allen, Va.
That moved the Outlaws into Saturday’s semifinals and made them the first team to knock out a No. 1 Adult Division seed this weekend.
“It means a lot. We got a game tomorrow. We’re looking forward to this,” says the 16-year-old Horsley, who was born with spina bifida. “We’re not finished yet. Still got more.”
The Outlaws’ press caused all kinds of problems for the Cavaliers at first. Texas led by 18 points with 8 minutes and 40 seconds left in the third quarter before Cleveland trimmed the deficit down to just eight (43-35) by the end of the period.
Cleveland continued its run in the fourth, cutting the lead down to 47-45 with 5:46 left in the game. That’s as close as the Cavs got, though.
Trailing 57-54 with 51.9 seconds to go, they had another chance to cut the deficit after a Texas turnover. But after a timeout, Horsley picked up a steal off a deflected inbounds pass, and they moved the ball down to Mark Ramirez for a layup to put the Outlaws up 59-54 with 42.6 seconds remaining.
Cleveland’s Raymone Brown missed a 3-pointer with under 25 seconds remaining, and the Cavs couldn’t convert any more scoring chances at the end.
“Yeah, we definitely picked up our defense. We all. like, played together on the press at the end of the game,” says Horsley, whose team defeated the No. 8-seeded Cap City Cardinals, 38-28 in the first round. “It’s pretty good.”
Division III featured a handful of upsets, as the No. 11-seeded San Antonio ParaSport Spurs also reached the semifinals and will take on the No. 2-seeded Shepherd Stealers.
The Spurs knocked off the No. 14-seeded Rancho Halos, 45-38, in the quarterfinals and the No. 11-seeded Virginia Sun Wheelers, 55-49, in the first round, while Shepherd defeated the No. 10-seeded London Forest City Flyers, 62-45, in the quarterfinals and the No. 15-seeded LWSRA Hawks, 59-56, in the first round.
Inbounds Pass Helps Flyers
London City had an exciting opening win, though. Needing a basket to seal their first-round NWBA Adult Division III Tournament game, the London Forest City Flyers from Ontario, Canada, lucked out.
Inside the last 10 seconds, they scored one thanks to an unexpected opening on an inbounds play.
Inbounding from underneath the right side of the basket, Billy Langeveld waited a second and then threw a quick pass to a driving Christina Swett. She quickly wheeled down the lane and banked in an open layup with 7.2 seconds left to lift No. 10 seed London Forest City to a 57-53 win over the No. 7-seeded Brooklyn Nets.
Langeveld wanted to get the ball in quickly, Swett saw an opening, and the two nodded and then found each other soon after the referee gave Langeveld the ball.
“I was trying to rush the ref because I was like, ‘Give me the ball. I want to get that basket. Let’s go, I’m not waiting for it,’” Langeveld says.
Swett was surprised at how the inbounds play unfolded. Instead of holding the ball and getting fouled, she continued inside for a shot right underneath the basket and made it.
“I mean, I had a wide open lane. I saw the guy that was guarding me go out to the shooter, and I was like, ‘I’m not gonna say anything. Billy can see me,’” Swett says.
London Forest City hadn’t been to the NWBA Adult Division tournament since 2020 in Wichita, Kan., when the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic shortened it. The Flyers decided to fly home rather than stay and play in the Adult Division tournament that year.
With head coach Paul Bowes unable to attend this year’s tournament, the Flyers still powered ahead. The team video called him after the game to tell him the good news.
Bowes will be inducted into the NWBA Hall of Fame at the Doubletree by Hilton Richmond Airport hotel on Saturday and will be providing a prerecorded message for the induction ceremony.
“I mean, with Bozey not here, it makes it important to us, right? So, we want to get as far as we can in this. And we want to keep winning,” says Langeveld, a 40-year-old who sustained level T12 and L1 spinal cord injuries 25 years ago from a farm accident and who has played wheelchair basketball ever since.
Swett has femoral retroversion, or an instance where both her femurs or thigh bones twist backward, or outward, in relation to her knees. It developed over time, and by the time she hit adulthood, she couldn’t play stand-up sports anymore. Now, she uses a wheelchair to play basketball and has done so for the past seven years.
Although Brooklyn cut the lead to two points twice inside the final minute, Swett says it was teamwork that helped them hang on.
“We kind of read each other well and know each other’s strengths. And that was pretty classic,” she says.
Langeveld agrees.
“It’s recognition. It was just recognition. That’s all it was — recognizing. It was there. And the chips falling in place to make it happen,” he says. “I figured at best we get a basket, at worst we get a foul still.”
WWAR Generals Win First-Round Game in Program History
Paul Schulte let out a big sigh of relief.
It was a long drawn-out final minute filled with missed shots, lots of fouls and a handful of free throw attempts, but the Wounded Warriors Abilities Ranch (WWAR) Generals finally accomplished program history — advancing out of the NWBA Adult Division tournament’s first round.
The WWAR Generals hit just enough foul shots down the stretch and hung on for a 42-38 Adult Division I Tournament upset victory over the No. 4 seed Golden State Road Warriors on Friday morning.
The Generals’ press forced Golden State into plenty of turnovers and WWAR capitalized. Golden State rallied to tie the game at 38-38 with 2 minutes to go, but WWAR made 2-of-4 free throws inside the final 3 seconds to preserve the victory.
It marked the first time in the program’s four-year wheelchair basketball team history that the Warriors had won a NWBA Adult Division Tournament first-round game.
“We’re super excited. We know the history of their team and how dangerous they are. So, we decided we were going to throw a press at them and just try to weather the storm and play smart. And they weren’t quite able to counter. Well, they were able to counter. Right? They brought it right back to a tie game,” says the 46-year-old Schulte, a four-time U.S. Paralympic men’s wheelchair basketball team member. “But down the stretch, we got it. So, it feels great. Super proud of our guys.”
Tied at 38, Schulte, who sustained a level C7 spinal cord injury from a car accident when he was 10 years old, scored on a layup to give the Generals a 40-38 lead with 1 minute and 5 seconds left. Golden State missed a shot with 40 seconds remaining and then had to keep committing fouls, since it had fouls to give, before putting WWAR into the bonus at the free-throw line.
Finally, after four straight fouls, the Warriors sent the Generals’ Anthony McDaniel to the foul line with 3 seconds to go. He made 1-of-2 free throws to give WWAR a 41-38 lead. Golden State’s Brian Bell’s inbounds pass went too high, hit the ceiling and was called out of bounds, and the team turned the ball over. WWAR then inbounded the ball to Schulte, who was fouled, and he hit 1-of-2 free throws to close the game out.
“We didn’t hit all the ones we wanted to hit, but Anthony McDaniel getting that second one and then by the time I hit my second one, there wasn’t enough time left to do much,” Schulte says.
WWAR, though, didn’t advance out of the quarterfinals, as the No. 5-seeded Mary Free Bed Pacers just edged the Generals out, 57-55.
Mary Free Bed will take on the No. 1 seed Dallas Mavericks, which won both its games by 20-plus points — defeating the No. 16 seed Los Angeles Hot Wheels (71-29) and No. 9 seed New York Rolling Knicks (72-49).
The No. 2-seeded WASA Marquette Eagles will meet the No. 3-seeded Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets in today’s second semifinal. WASA Marquette defeated the No. 15-seeded Tucson Lobos (73-42) in the first round and No. 7-seeded Rancho Halos (67-58) in the quarterfinals, while Charlotte dropped the No. 14-seeded Utah Wheelin’ Jazz (67-41) in the first round and No. 6-seeded NRH Punishers (67-36) in the quarterfinals.
Tampa Bay Rolls In Division II
The Tampa Bay Strong Dogs rolled to reach the NWBA Adult Division II semifinals, winning both games by 30-plus points. The top seed defeated the No. 8-seeded CAST Iron Skillets, 66-26, in the quarterfinals after beating the No. 16-seeded Minnesota Rolling Timberwolves, 51-19, in the first round. Tampa Bay will take on the No. 4-seeded LWSRA Hawks, which defeated the No. 5-seeded Kansas City Kings, 63-53, in the quarterfinals after knocking off No. 13 seed ParaSport Spokane, 49-43, in the first round.
The other semifinal will pit the No. 3-seeded Cincinnati Dragons against the No. 2-seeded Arkansas Rollin’ Razorbacks.
Cincinnati squeaked past the No. 6-seeded Shepherd Stealers, 61-57, in the quarterfinals, after defeating the No. 14-seeded Magee Spokesmen, 58-30, in the first round. Arkansas beat the No. 10-seeded Bridge City Rolling Blazers, 58-41, in the quarterfinals and the No. 15-seeded Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Teal, 83-33, in the first round.
National Wheelchair Basketball Association Adult Tournament Day 1 April 11
At Henrico Sports & Events Center in Glen Allen, Va.
Division I
First Round
No. 1 Dallas Wheelchair Mavericks 71, No. 16 Los Angeles Hot Wheels 29
No. 9 New York Rolling Knicks 60, No. 8 Los Angeles Clippers Chairman 51
No. 13 Wounded Warriors Abilities Ranch Generals 42, No. 4 Golden State Road Warriors 38
No. 5 Mary Free Bed Pacers 64, No. 12 TIRR Memorial Rehabilitation Sharks 51
No. 6 MedStar NRH Punishers 65, No. 11 New Mexico 76ers 54
No. 3 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets 67, No. 14 Utah Wheelin’ Jazz 41
No. 7 Racho Halos 65, No. 10 Courage Kenny Rolling Timberwolves 44
No. 2 WASA Marquette Eagles 73, No. 15 Tucson Lobos 42
Consolation
No. 8 Los Angeles Clippers Chairmen 54, No. 16 Los Angeles Hot Wheels 53
No. 4 Golden State Road Warriors 67, No. 12 TIRR Memorial Rehabilitation Sharks 53
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Dallas Wheelchair Mavericks 72, No. 9 New York Rolling Knicks 49
No. 5 Mary Free Bed Pacers 57, No. 13 Wounded Warriors Abilities Ranch Generals 55
No. 3 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets 67, No. 6 MedStar NRH Punishers 36
No. 2 WASA Marquette Eagles 67, No. 7 Rancho Halos 58
Division II
First Round
No. 1 Tampa Bay Strong Dogs 51, No. 16 Minnesota Rolling Timberwolves 19
No. 8 CAST Iron Skillets 45, No. 9 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Purple 36
No. 4 LWSRA Hawks 49, No. 13 ParaSport Spokane 43
No. 5 Kansas City Kings 63, No. 12 Ability360 Wheelchair Suns 46
No. 6 Shepherd Stealers 52, No. 11 Lakeshore Storm 35
No. 3 Cincinnati Dragons 58, No. 14 Magee Spokesmen 30
No. 10 Bridge City Rolling Blazers 52, No. 7 TIRR Memorial Rehabilitation Sharks 47
No. 2 Arkansas Rollin’ Razorbacks 83, No. 15 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Teal 33
Consolation
No. 9 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Purple 54, No. 16 Minnesota Rolling Timberwolves 37
No. 13 ParaSport Spokane 59, No. 12 Ability360 Wheelchair Suns 51
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Tampa Bay Strong Dogs 66, No. 8 CAST Iron Skillets 26
No. 4 LWSRA Hawks 63, No. 5 Kansas City Kings 53
No. 3 Cincinnati Dragons 61, No. 6 Shepherd Stealers 57
No. 2 Arkansas Rollin’ Razorbacks 58, No. 10 Bridge City Rolling Blazers 41
Division III
First Round
No. 1 Cleveland Wheelchair Cavaliers 64, No. 16 Rochester Wheels 25
No. 9 Texas Outlaws 38, No. 8 Cap City Cardinals 28
No. 4 Brooks Ballers 52, No. 13 CSLUB Flying Wheels 48
No. 5 Detroit Wheelchair Pistons 56, No. 12 Tacoma Titans 48
No. 11 San Antonio ParaSport Spurs 55, No. 6 Virginia Sun Wheelers 49
No. 14 Rancho Halos 54, No. 3 Coastal Chairmen 48
No. 10 London Forest City Flyers 57, No. 7 Brooklyn Nets 53
No. 2 Shepherd Stealers 59, No. 15 LWSRA Hawks 56
Consolation
No. 8 Cap City Cardinals 50, No. 16 Rochester Wheels 34
No. 13 CSLUB Flying Wheels 51, No. 12 Tacoma Titans 48
Quarterfinals
No. 9 Texas Outlaws 59, No. 1 Cleveland Wheelchair Cavaliers 54
No. 4 Brooks Ballers 51, No. 5 Detroit Wheelchair Pistons 44
No. 11 San Antonio ParaSport Spurs 45, No. 14 Rancho Halos 38
No. 2 Shepherd Stealers 62, No. 10 London Forest City Flyers 45