Published: May 09, 2008 10:40 pm      

LACROSSE: Bandits meet Titans in East Division final

Fresh off a first-round playoff win last Friday against the Philadelphia Wings, the Bandits are at it again. This time though, it’s for the East Division title.

The Bandits face the New York Titans tonight at 7:30 p.m. at HSBC Arena, in a game they’ve been to three times in the last four years. Though the game is nothing new to Buffalo, the team they will play is new to the neighborhood.

The New York Titans, in their sophomore season as a franchise, find themselves in their first ever East Divison final. This year too, marks the first time they’ve ever made the playoffs. Last year they went a woeful 4-12, but an amazing turnaround led them to a 10-6 record, tied for best in the league. They took down the second-seed Minnesota Swarm 11-8 last weekend at the Xcel Energy Center, as part of a five-game winning streak.

Casey Powell, who was traded to the Bandits in a blockbuster deal in 2001 but never played, led the Titan attack with a seven-point effort, leading the team with four goals and adding three assists in the win. The Bandits need to stifle his charge if they look to win, as he scored six goals and added six assists for 12 points in two games against the Bandits earlier this season.

The Bandits are coming off a 14-12 win over the Wings, in a game in which they started off slow, but scored five straight goals in the second quarter to bring themselves back into the game. Mike Accursi led all Bandits with four goals and three assists and they are looking to carry the momentum into tonights game. Both teams tasted victory and defeat against each other, and this third game will be the deciding rubber match.

Hopefully the Bandits home-field advantage will provide that little something extra in this rematch. They went 7-2 at home during the regular season, and won their home game against the Titans earlier in the season.

Buffalo took the first game of the series with a 17-13 victory on January 19 at HSBC Arena. On February 10, however, the Titans countered in their neck of the woods at Madison Square Garden with a 10-9 overtime win, as rookie Jordan Hall scored 2:30 into the extra frame. This matchup though has higher implications, as the loser goes packing and the winner moves on to the Champions Cup final.

The Bandits have been there twice in the last four years, but have experienced crushing defeat first against the Calgary Roughnecks in 2004, and second against the Colorado Mammoth in 2006. Is this the year they will finally pull it out? Or will Banditland witness another Buffalo championship collapse?

Hopefully for Bandits fans, it won’t be the latter.



GAME NIGHT

• WHO: New York Titans at Buffalo Bandits

• WHEN: Tonight, 7:30 p.m.

• WHERE: HSBC Arena

• NOTES: The teams split the season series 1-1 ... The Titans are on a five game winning streak. ... They are 9-2 since their overtime win against the Bandits on February 10. ... Buffalo finds itself in the division finals for the third time in three years.