Dreamers Dominate Wings, Keep Playoff Hopes Alive
MANASSAS, VA—On Military Appreciation Day at the DREAM CASTLE, the Park City DREAMERS delivered a statement win, overpowering the Goldsboro Wings 136-120 in a pivotal Northern Conference showdown. Both teams entered the matchup desperately vying for a postseason berth, but it was the Dreamers who asserted their dominance, keeping their ECBL playoff dreams alive with two games remaining.
The opening quarter was a back-and-forth battle, with both squads trading baskets in rapid succession. Park City edged ahead 28-26 behind a scorching start from JR Jenkins (31 pts, 10/15 FG), who drilled two deep-range three-pointers to set the tone. Rookies Antonio Carter (15 pts, 5 reb) and Jamal Washington (27 pts, 7 reb, 7 ast) chipped in six points each, while the Wings leaned on a strong inside presence from Kaden LeBray (28 pts, 17 reb) and MyQuan Gooding (29 pts, 7 reb), both posting 10 points in the first frame.
Goldsboro briefly seized momentum in the second quarter as LeBray’s aggressive drive to the basket knotted the score at 28. But Park City responded with a stifling defensive stretch, anchored by Washington’s on-ball pressure, which sparked a 7-0 Dreamers run. A clutch three-pointer from Carter on the right wing, followed by Washington’s transition layup, pushed the lead to 17. The Wings’ timeout did little to slow the Dreamers, as Kris Clark (35 pts, 8/14 3FG) knocked down a buzzer-beating three to send Park City into halftime with a commanding 64-50 lead.
The Dreamers wasted no time building on their advantage in the third quarter, opening the half with a 7-0 run to extend the lead to 21. The momentum snowballed as Park City dominated the next three minutes, ballooning the margin to 28 points before Clark momentarily halted the surge with a corner three. Goldsboro fought back with a 13-5 run, but a perfectly timed assist from veteran point guard Josh Peterson (16 pts, 16 ast) found Jenkins for his sixth three-pointer of the night, reasserting Park City's control. The quarter ended in dramatic fashion as Leroy Butts grabbed a defensive rebound, sprinted coast to coast, and banked in a buzzer-beater, sending the Dreamers into the final frame up 101-84.
The fourth quarter saw Jenkins continue his torrid shooting, draining two more threes before the media timeout. The sharpshooter finished with eight triples on the night, totaling 18 threes in his last two games—a testament to his status as one of the ECBL’s premier long-range marksmen. With six Dreamers reaching double figures, Park City sealed the victory at 136-120, keeping their playoff ambitions alive.
Next up, the Dreamers face a daunting test, closing out the regular season against the Northern Region’s top two teams—DC HEAT on May 31 and Petersburg CAVS on June 1. Two wins could propel them into the postseason, and after tonight’s statement performance, this team has no plans of backing down.
