Going into the summer's final weekend of Drew League action, plenty in the gym figured they knew how things would end. But in basketball, as in life, nothing is given and everything must be earned. Hometown Favorites and Black Pearl Elite reminded their opponents of that in Saturday's semifinals matchups. While Nationwide Souljas and Public Enemy were already mentally preparing to meet each other in Sunday's championship game, Hometown and BPE came looking to play the games in front of them, shocking the presumptive favorites in a pair of hard fought matchups that saw them both run away with double digit victories. On Sunday, the former underdogs both came out with some final game jitters. The Favorites, led by De'Anthony Melton, were the first to recover, putting BPE into an 18-point hole at halftime. However Vince Camper and BPE weren't about to just roll over for their opponents. They went on multiple runs to bring themselves within single digits, even getting within two possessions at one point. But in the fourth quarter, Favorites guard Marcel Burton lost his mind from three-point range, burying BPE under a barrage of long-range bombs. He ended the game a perfect 5 of 5 from beyond the arc while Melton led all scorers with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5(!) steals, carrying Hometown Favorites to a 69-55 win and their first-ever Drew League Championship in three tries. So, congratulations to Reggie, both Chrises, Kevin, De'Anthony, Delon, Marcel, Jerry, Kader, Elijah, Leland, and Terrell, the 2022 Drew League Champions and the true Hometown Favorites... they earned it! 📝 @aaronsmarter 🎥 @hustle_2k 📸 @creativenlb5