Last week the Metroball DC 16u AAU team competed in one of it’s most challenging tournaments so far this year, The Rumble in The Bronx. Most of the games were held at Baruch College in Manhattan with so many great teams from all over the country. The first game was late Friday night against the LI Lightening. We got a late start on the road from DC because many of the players had finals to take. After being stuck on traffic for most of the way up there in the rain, we barely had time to stretch. It showed as we lost the first game by 1 point against a great shooting team.
After a good night’s rest, we were in for a full day of games. The first game was against Team Scan. Metroball’s Larry McCann (#3) helped our team to jump out to a 25 point lead with his sharp 3-point shooting. Team Scan made a strong run towards the end of the game but Metroball DC still went away with the win. The next game wasn’t until late in the afternoon, so it was time to take in the sights of the city. None of the players have been to NYC before so this was a true experience for them. We were able to fit in sights on the Bronx, Harlem, Mid Town, and Lower Manhattan.
The last game in our pool was against The Metro Flyers. Metroball DC Jumped out to a huge lead from the beginning and never looked back. With balanced scoring and great defense, Metroball DC pulled out a 31 point victory, won the pool, and secured their place in bracket play.
The first test in Bracket Play was against a great Rens team that won their pool by a long shot and blew out every team so far. This game was very late Saturday night (10pm) but both teams were ready for the challenge. The Rens jumped out to a small lead but Metroball DC came back and it was a battle all the way through. Back and forth with many lead changes until The Rens went on a huge run that left them up by 12 with 2 minutes left in the game. After a heated time out by Coach Tony Parry, the Metroball Dc team was rejuvenated and went on a 16-0 run to end the game with a 4 point win. Clearly the Rens were the favorite in this matchup but Metroball DC ‘s team shows heart and determination to pull out the victory.
The next game was in the quarter finals against the NJ Playaz , a strong EYBL team. From the beginning, they showed why they were an elite team. Their onslaught of 3 pointers was a little too much for the Metroball DC team to handle. All though this marked the end of their run in the Rumble in the Bronx, it showed that the Metroball DC 16u Team belonged and could play with the best of them. Out of 56 teams in their division, Metroball DC made it to the final 8. That was a huge statement for a team that was just assembled this year. Look out NYC, we will be back next year!!
Next up will be a big test in the DC Metroshowcase (Boyds, MD) this weekend June 28-29th, 2014. Both the 16u and 15u teams will be showcasing their talents in this tournament.
