After six weeks the youngsters playing Thunderball Basketball are beginning to look like ballers!
The passing is crisper, the defence has more helpside. More players are getting after rebounds. Shooting is better refined. And they all are starting to look like they know what they are doing. "Even coach Tobacca is not pulling any hair out any more ... the mini league is thriving," said league spokesperson Larry Street. May 13 results:
Grade 4/5 Boys and Girls
Pirates vs. Stingers
Coach Danelle Campbell is super happy about the Stingers this week. Layups were consistently going in, all the players were communicating with each other, and the passing was crisp. All team members played with great determination and really 'pushed it'!
Leaders were Jake Dimery, Thomas Demeo, Isaac Klahm and Vincent Jodain who all stayed with their checks the entire game, and were amazing together. For the Pirates, coach Bobbi Thomas was very impressed with her entire team that were able to be there. They showed a lot of heart.
Knights vs. Rebels
Coach Pham vs. Coach Derycke. Not just a match-up of basketball minds, but of two vastly improving teams. Matter of fact, neither team could make up their minds about wInning or losing, so the match ended in a tie.
Nick Bartemucci scored excellent lay-ups and showed a very positive attitude, while his teammates showed off all those practice skills that they have been working on, especially Evan McTavish.
For the Knights, Graeme Trask and the Lloyd brothers were solid and showed great sportsmanship. Knights' coach Pham was very impressed with how much better the Rebels were shooting.
Royalty vs. All Stars
Coach Tracy Tran really liked how Eric Jung and Pierre Oliver were shooting and finishing their layups. Eric was a very good point guard as he made some very nice passes. This ended up a big boost for the All Stars since in the end they won the game. For the Royalty, coach Tobacca really liked how Matt Rutten played, and even though they were low in numbers, the team played hard for the entire game.
Grade 6/7 Girls
Sky Angels vs. Lightning Quick
Liza Temple did her best to keep composure for her Quick team, but to no avail. Her hustle couldn't trump Page Kochanuk's Angels squad who were close in talent with the Quicks, but in the end made difficult passes look easy for layups.
Fast Cats vs. Supersonics
Coach Sewell's Cats were too much for the Sonics at the end of the game. A close game due to Sonics' Natasha Hopes' tenacity and advanced skill level but not enough as Brianna Patterson hit too many shots for the Cats. Great job, Brianna.
Grade 6/7 Boys
Balance vs. Rage
The Balance showed a solid team effort and coaches Cam Hughes and Jake Stewart had trouble describing how well the team played. It was a 40-point win coming from everyone's great hustle and good solid defence. Cody Doberstein had many steals, Coen Leopkey-Johnson scored lots of points, everyone else had an awesome attitude.
Meanwhile, the Rage suffered their first loss of the season, and Carson Jamieson as well as Bardia Failinejad just couldn't catch the Balance team. Their defence was great, but not enough of a scoring effort by the team.
Fury vs. Swarm
Coaches Edwards and Theriault of the Fury were very happy by the results today. BIG Cole, Liam Vandervoort and Kamryn McMillan all contributed to a solid win and rebounding was a big factor. It started the fast break, as well as finished the offence numerous times.
Down by 10 most of the game, some quick baskets by Cole, Owen and Liam closed the gap. With 30 seconds left Cole shot a big three to win the game by two points. For the Swarm, Aidan Hitchmough rebounded very well, and the rest of the team played a very solid game. Unfortunately, the Fury team got hot at the end. Marco Tancon was great on the fast break and Sam Dyer was a monster on the boards.
The last week of games is on Sunday, May 27 at Vanier and Lake Trail and organizers hope hope all team members and coaches can make the season finale.
– Thunderball Basketball