15u Division

The LI Lightning – Dingle put an impressive tournament run together capped with a victory over a very solid CT Hoopstars team in the championship game at the HOF 55-46. The Lightning narrowly escaped the 1^st two rounds of the 15u division with a buzzer beating win over the Springfield Heat, as Myles Davis calmly sliced his way to the rim and beat the clock with a 10ft bank shot. After that buzzer beating win, they did the same vs. the Albany City Rocks, as Davis found a wide open Daniel Dingle, under the basket for a lay-up. In the championship game, the Lightning fought back after being down 5 at half to beat the CT Hoopstars. They were led by Nkereweum Okoro, who finished with 17 pts, Myles Davis – 12 pts and Daniel Dingle, who made some big plays on the glass and defensively. The CT Hoopstars, who defeated an extremely talented CBC team in the semi-finals, were led in the chip by Ryan Belote with 13pts, John Papale with 11.

14u Division

Another LI Lightning team took home a championship as they knocked off one of their only previous losses, Kips Bay (Bronx, NY). The Lightning jumped on them early and never let Kips Bay get closer than 8 in the 2^nd half, finishing with a convincing 58-36 win at the HOF. The Lightning used a very balanced attack, led by #32 Isaiah Watson Irving, who was extremely efficient running the team, slicing the defense and either finishing at the rim or finding an open teammate. Kostas Akoumianakis was big in the ‘chip knocking down four 3-point field goals, while Ryan Denicola (16 pts) and Paul Simpson (12 pts) did an outstanding job on the glass and finishing at the rim. The Kips Bay team had an impressive weekend finishing 3-2 as they beat a talented and athletic RI Breakers team in the Semi’s. Kips Bay was led all weekend by Andre and Nasheed.

13u Division

The Connecticut Basketball Club was head and shoulders above the division as they beat a scrappy 12u New Haven Blazers team. The Blazers, playing up a division to prepare for the nationals, was ready for the game, but an 18-2 CBC run in the 1^st half and an inch or two at each position made it extremely difficult to keep the game close. CBC was led by Tyron Williams with 14 pts, Dwayne Wynn with 13 pts and Brandon Marshall with 12.

11u Division

The Albany City Rocks, one of the more impressive 11u teams we’ve seen this year, played exceptional basketball all weekend defeating MABC, the Boston Warriors, BABC and the CT Rough Riders to go 4-0. In the Championship game, a fast-paced exciting game with MABC, the City Rocks scored the final 12 pts to win 41-33. Coach Harris said the play that turned the game around was a steal by Isaiah Dobere who made the lay-up and was fouled intentionally, hitting both FTs. Zack Radz was the leading City Rock scorer with 13 pts. Black Jorge and Dobere also played very well. MABC was led by Kevin Starlet, Juwan Gooding, and Sean Fontes.

10u Division

In a rematch of the earlier pool play game, MABC knocked off the CT Roughriders for the 2^nd time that weekend, 42-26. Earlier in the year, CT Roughriders had knocked off MABC so this is definitely a heated rivalry. Coach Fontaine’s MABC team took a 5 point halftime lead and started the 2^nd half on a big run to stretch the lead. The run was ignited by Glen Smith and Jaquan Mills at the point. Trevor Parker and Tyrell Greene dominated the boards for MABC while Donnell Berryman and Brandon Twitty both finished with 11pts. The CT Roughriders were led by Chris Jones and Milan, both with 8 points.