WEEK 4 RECAP - STILL GOING STRONG!!
Weekly Recaps - Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7

More Photos are available in the PHOTO ALBUM:

The games today proved to be some very fining games as teams started to separate themselves from the rest off the pack in each division.  Each division still has some top teams that are very even, so there still isn’t any clear cut standout.  Only one game today featured the two top teams in a particular division.  And here it is…

13-UNDER DIVISION
MD Suns vs Tylerhouse, ROUND 2!!  DING DING!!  This is more like a heavyweight fight as these teams are almost mirror images of each other, in terms of talent level.  It is so compelling to watch these two play each other because you never know what is going to happen.  Well all throughout the game, the score was going back and forth so many times that you couldn’t keep track of the amount of lead changes.  This went all the way down to the last millisecond of the game as Tylerhouse was down by three with 8 seconds left in the game.  On a broken play, they came down the court and just threw up a desperation 3pt shot.  It went in right at the buzzer!!  WOW!!  This team was so excited, they all ran onto the court as if they won achampionship, but this one was far from over.  In the 3 minute overtime, it was clear that the only way to win this game was to not make any mistakes.  The first team to do that would give the other team the edge.  Well it happened at the final second of overtime as one of the Suns players committed a foul at the buzzer to avoid a layup.  The foul was so clear that the refs had to call it, but it was unfortunate because this game should have been decided in game play.  So Tyler house had 2 free throws to make for the win with no time on the clock and no players on the court.  The forst shot bounced around and bounced out.  The second shot went up bounced off the back of the rim, and with a luck bounce, went through the hoop.  This gave Tylerhouse the one pont win 39-38 and agenged their first week 2 pt loss to the Suns.  So now these teams are even.  The tie breaker will be coming up soon, most likely in the finals, as there are only two weeks left in the regular season.

One note to make on this game.  This was a competitive game and some of the Suns coaches felt that the Tylerhouse team was talking a little too much smack and taunting during and after the game.   This caused a little friction, but it was quickly cooled as the coach of the young Tylerhouse team kept his cool and really showed maturity after the game.  The two coaches talked this one out and all was good.  Let it be known that the coach of the Tylerhouse team is actually a player on the Tylerhouse 16 & Under team.  This is remarkable because it shows that he has enough maturity at that age to coach a very good game against a strong opponent.  This is truly community development at work because it is always encouraging when the older players are involved with the development of younger players.  It is our goal as an organization to develop a sense of community and to have neighborhood participants show pride in what they have.  This is what this coach/player represented today.  He learned a few things and took criticism very well.  He truly has grown as a coach.
Now back to the games.  The new team Pro City was put against a short handed and small handed DC Ballerz Team.  Pro City easily handled this team as they won in a complete blowout 30-4.  The only thing that I can say about this one is that the DC Ballerz never gave up hope.  Even when they knew the game was out of reach, they still competed hard.  They had a lot of good defensive stops and some very good plays, but for some reason, they could not get the ball in the hole. 

The new UpTop team had two games today.  The first one was against one of the division leaders, Tylerhouse.  Uptop was not ready for this matchup as they were pounded by Tylerhouse by 15 points (40-25).  Their second game proved to be a better one, as they played Pro City.  This game was actually a good one as both teams competed at their best.  Pro City fell to UpTop by 4 points (30-26).

16-UNDER DIVISION  
Finally, the Hollywood team showed up.  They are really a revamped Stars team, so the colors of the Jerseys never changed.  We start this review on a sad note as one of their former players (Darren)was tragically shot and killed on Thursday 7/24.  We give the tournament as an alternative to violent behavior and while the players are there, we try to show them that we how to handle conflicts peacefully.  Unfortunately, we know that most of our participants face daily challenges that test their patience.  We are not sure of the circumstances that led to this senseless killing, but we know that in the large scheme of things, it doesn’t matter.  Another youth is dead for no reason!  THIS IS TRULY UNACCEPTABLE!!  I hope that one day we will all get the message and realize that a life is worth something. You never know what this person could have accomplished in life had he been given a chance to get out of his environment.  Life is hard, but it’s even harder when you are STUPID!!  Sometimes conflicts are unavoidable. You must be smart and think about how to handle those conflicts or they can be your demise, either by incarceration or death.  Pick your battles and really think about what’s important (family, life, & health) before getting involved in a senseless conflict that can ruin your life.  We all know the codes of the street and not to let anyone disrespect you, but truly ask yourself… IS IT REALLY WORTH SOMEONE’S LIFE???   NO!!!

Back to the game.  Hollywood was put against the 1st & O team.    Hollywood proved to live up to their past years performances as they won this one 45-40.  It will be interesting to see how they handle the rest of the season as they try to regain their prior year’s form.
The next game featured Colors against Kenilworth.  Colors continues to roll over the competition in this division as they demolished Kenilworth 55-43.  The final game of this division featured Tylerhouse against the Suns.  After a pre-game talk to keep players and coaches calm during this game, the game went relatively smooth.  It was a very good game but the Suns were a little too much for Tylerhouse to handle as the won by 5 (35-30).

19 & UNDER DIVISION
Because of a few prior engagements, several teams could not make it this week.  So we only had two games in this division.  The first one put the powerhouse BallaHolics against the struggling Street Kings.  This game was interesting because either the small Street Kings played very good or the Ballaholics played very bad.  Well we think is was a little of both because BallaHolics should have easily won this game by a blowout.  In fact, the time was reduced in this game because Street Kings were so much smaller and short handed.  Well Street Kings actually made a game of this one but they still came up short 37-32.

The next game put Tylerhouse against strong Southside Ballerz team.  TylerHouse is starting to come into form as they blew out Southside Ballerz by 20 points (52-32).  Although Ballaholics is the favorite in this division, Tylerhouse has a lot of momentum and will definitely be there in the end.  Look for these two in the Playoffs and possibly in the finals.

UNLIMITED DIVISION
There were three games today.  We received a new team called NEW MOB.  They are a mixed bunch of past year players, so they are no strangers.  Their first game was against the undefeated We R One team.  Well let’s just say that We R one is still undefeated.  They handled New Mob 45-33.  The second game for New Mob proved to be a good one for them as they went up against a Nelly team that has been struggling.  New Mob easily won this game 52-39 and started their season 1-1.

The final game of the day featured Madness against a short handed Green Light Team.  Green Light is usually a powerhouse, but being shorthanded and without coach Q, proved to be too much to overcome.  Fort Stanton ran away with this game and won by 10 (60-50).