THE DEVILS FINISHED THE JOB.
New Jersey beat Newark 66-62 in PO-034, completed a 4-0 semifinal sweep and punched its ticket to the BDA Finals against the Newport 100s.
The clincher was anything but routine. New Jersey built a 23-point lead, then watched the Riots erase it and take the lead in the fourth quarter. With the series suddenly tightening, Jalen Brunson created the possession that changed the night again, hitting an isolation step-back over Jaylen Brown to put the Devils back in front.
Brunson finished with 31 points. New Jersey also dominated the bench battle 47-15, enough support to survive Newark’s late push and finish the series without giving away a game.
Newark finally got all the way back. Brunson made sure it still was not enough.
The sweep was also played under one of the strangest competitive arrangements the BDA has ever used.
Both the Devils and Riots are Ron-owned franchises. To keep the semifinal human-played, the league used its temporary postseason controller exception: Ron controlled Newark, while Oliver temporarily controlled New Jersey for gameplay only. Franchise ownership, roster rights and team control never transferred.
For four games, Oliver was therefore trying to eliminate one of Ron’s teams while using another one of Ron’s teams. The arrangement solved the immediate competition problem without pretending the franchises had changed hands, and New Jersey went 4-0 under it.
Now the bracket has produced another same-owner matchup. The Finals are officially Newport 100s vs New Jersey Devils, with Newport holding home court. Ron will control Newport, while Oliver’s temporary gameplay assignment moves forward with the Devils for the championship series.
PO-034 game awards and the SF2 Series MVP had not been designated at publication time, so those honors remain open.