6th Grade-Week 4

On Saturday the comp team won the first game by one point. 

They did so in dramatic fashion by coming from behind.

Aided by the efforts of Jeremy Niefert's scoring & rebounding. Also, the ballhandling and penetrating of Darren Baker played a big role. The fine play of C.J. Russell was also on display.

 

The second game with the Tournament team, was also down to the wire.

We lost by 3 points to the E.D.H, Trojans. A team we had beaten the weekend prior. Austin Rosenberg had a good game. The contributors were Logan Begley with fine point guard play. Taylor Ittner with strong rebounding. And the all around strong play of J Kim Porras and Matthew Ortiz.

 

In the third game of the day the tournament team pulled away early in the first half to win by at least 15 points.

It was a great defensive team effort that allowed us to secure the win.

Standouts J Kim Porras, Austin Rosenberg, steady play of Jacob Renard.

Grant Skrownski also played well.

 

Sunday Competative Team Game

 

This game was a challenge.  The boys got to practice there plays, work together and identify where they need additional help in practice.  Over all they had a great time.

4th Grade-Week 4

As we finished yet another positive week, I can say that the boys are being more and more challenged, and that won’t change for tonight’s Monday trainings either!  We will have a tough training session tonight and a very focused Wednesday practice as well.  We will focus on new wrinkles in the offense, defensive rotation, shooting, passing and rebounding drills.  There will also be a real focus on intensity this week!

This weekend featured two games against older, bigger and stronger AAU teams.  The first game was against EDH gold.  We started the game cold and could not buy a bucket.  Twice we were able to pull ahead with 10 point leads, but could not keep the other teams at bay.  Finally, thanks to Spencer’s defensive intensity and Julian’s aggressive drives to the hoop, we were lead to a victory.  Our intensity level was high at times, but we could not sustain it.  We did not live up to our motto of 100% effort 100% of the time. This is definitely something that we will continue to focus on.

Our late afternoon Sunday game was against the Delta Runnin Rebels.  This team consisted primarily of 5^th and 6^th graders.  The team obviously had a size advantage on us and we only had 5 players….no subs!  Opening the game, we were thoroughly outworked in the first half.  Our boys looked like they were worn out and not interested in the game.  We walked the ball up the floor, did not get into our offense, played without intensity and failed to find the kind of defense we were capable of putting out; the score reflected that.  At the half we were down 33-12.

Most of our halftime was spent talking to the boys about pride.  They all had solemn looks on their faces.  By the time we finished our chat about pride I challenged the team to win the second half.  I wrote the score down on my clipboard and told the kids we were starting over.  Finally, I saw the fire ignite in their eyes.  They boys came out and played like I knew they could.  They all played an intense, physical style of ball.  With 36 seconds left we called a time out with the second half tied at 17 all.  I drew up a play that would distract the Rebels and leave Josh open in the right corner.  The boys ran the play to perfection leaving Josh wide open to knock down his 5^th three pointer of the game and gave us the lead.  The boys held on to win the second half 20-17!

I have to say, these boys could have packed it in early in the first half and nobody would have thought less of them.  They were playing a very skilled, larger and older team that was doing what they were supposed to do.  To my delight and pride, THEY DID NOT GIVE UP!!!  These kids were gassed, but they somehow reached down and played with pride, intensity and most of all, for each other, in the second half.  I am very proud of how these 5 kids reacted to this challenge.  Way to go Julian, Sava , Josh, Noah and Zeki!  Please take a moment this week to sit down and speak to your boys about this.  They all learned a valuable lesson that can be carried on in all of their future endeavors on and off the court.  If these boys remember this lesson I have no doubt that they will succeed is whatever they choose to do. Way to go; keep up the hard work and dedication to our team and to yourselves!

Coach Bob Mack

3rd Grade-Week 4

3rd grade comp vs. Delta Running Rebels

The team had their first test of a "real" competitive game against the team from Stockton. Applying the defensive theories they have learned, they got off to an early lead.  The team led by 10+ points for three quarters, but the Delta Rebels wouldn't quit.

Midway through the fourth quarter, the lead was cut to 1 point, and the YBA-XTREME team held strong and kept the lead for a 1 point win.

Team leaders for this game were Brian Lambey (tough shots made, and an elbow taken to the mouth), Parker Stone and Tyler DeRaps (Great guard play and tough defense), Derek Schwarze played great help defense and showed great hustle.

As a team, they played together, passed the ball well and showed tremendous improvement!  Great job!!

3rd Grade Tourney Team vs Delta Runnin' Rebels

The key to this game was defense and smart basketball.  The YBA-XTREME team beat the team from Stockton by 13 points, not only because they made more baskets, but because they played great defense!

Help defense was the key, and the YBA-X Club had it!  LJ Braner played a great inside game, and grabbed a ton of rebounds, while the rest of the team showed they can slow it down a little and play a great zone defense.

Alex Portello(aka AP) was tough on both ends, and made some tough layups.  Jaedon Pughsley(aka JP), Christian Paras (aka C) and Malik Jackson all contributed to the great guard play!  Handling the pressure by passing, and looking up court for the open man was HUGE!  Lots of great, SMART passes made by these players!

JP played great defense and hustled on both ends. He must've gotten 4-5 steals in the last minute to keep the other team on their toes.

Riley Burrows showed some great moves, and played a great all around game.  And Jayden Ohara, Alex Lin and Matt Limon all contributed on the hustle, help defense and teamwork.

Overall, the team is making great strides to becoming a true tournament team.  They are developing their individual skills (Monday Training) and they are raising the basketball IQ.  Both are needed for success!