tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75557124386287554962024-03-08T17:18:39.184-08:00Nothing but a Baller thing "Baby"Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-85156878797978528032014-10-12T18:13:00.000-07:002014-10-12T18:34:23.537-07:00Bay Area Ballers Top 10s<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u><span style="color: purple; font-size: large;">Bay Area Ballers Top 10s</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7;"> <u>All time players</u> </span> <u><span style="color: #674ea7;">Best 3pt Shooters</span></u><br />
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1. Senque Carey 1. John Parsons<br />
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2. Patrick Dennehy 2. Corey Blick<br />
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3. Tyler Johnson 3. Scotty Kenny<br />
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4. David Choitti 4. Gokul Nastem<br />
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5. Omar Samhan 5. Senque Carey<br />
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6. Ali Thomas 6. Chaz Thomas<br />
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7. Chase Lyman 7. John Casnocha<br />
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8. Lloyd Cook 8. Ryan Rocha<br />
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9. Joe Skiffer 9. Spencer Britscghi<br />
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10. Kyle Bailey 10. Jordan Couch<br />
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<span style="color: #674ea7;"><u>Most Athletic </u> </span> <span style="color: #674ea7;"> <u> Top PGs</u></span><br />
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1. Lloyd Cook 1. Senque Carey<br />
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2. Tyler Johnson 2. LyRyan Russell<br />
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3. Phil Jackman 3. Joe Skiffer<br />
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4. David Choitti 4. Kyle Bailey<br />
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5. Michael Blackmon..aka Bubba 5. Tyler Johnson<br />
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6. Kerry Wooldridge 6. Chaz Thomas<br />
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7. Jeff Parrish 7. Hakeen Gillard<br />
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8. Anthony Oliver 8. Justin Logan<br />
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9. Justin Legrand Logan 9. Terrence Worthy<br />
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10. LasJohn Johnson 10. Stephen Grosey<br />
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<span style="color: #674ea7;"><u>Most Versatile </u> </span> <span style="color: #674ea7;"> <u>Best Defenders</u></span><br />
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1. Phil Jackman 1. Phil Jackman<br />
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2. Reggie Cooks 2. Joe Skiffer<br />
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3. Patrick Galos 3. Brandon Gilbert<br />
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4. Demitruis Owen 4. Reggie Cooks<br />
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5. James Osorio 5. James Osorio<br />
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6. Chris Busch 6. Tyler Johnson<br />
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7. Mike Nash 7. David Choitti<br />
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8. Chase Lyman 8. Patrick Ekeruo<br />
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9. Jemel Gillard 9. Patrick Galos<br />
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10. Llyod Cook 10. Kyle Bailey<br />
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<span style="color: #674ea7;"><u>Best Rebounder </u> </span> <span style="color: #674ea7;"><u> Best Score</u></span><br />
<span style="color: #674ea7;"><u><br /></u></span>
1. Patrick Dennehy 1. Senque Carey<br />
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2. Omar Samhan 2. Tyler Johnson<br />
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3. Michael Blackmon..aka Bubba 3. Ali Thomas<br />
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4. Reggie Cooks 4. Gokul Nastem<br />
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5. David Choitti 5. Kyle Bailey<br />
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6. Kevin Neveu 6. Hakeem Gillard<br />
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7. Lloyd Cook 7. Chase Lyman<br />
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8. Josh Tueta 8. Scott Kenny<br />
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9. Phil Jackman 9. David Choitti<br />
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10. Demitruis Owen 10. Patrick DennehyBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-4245938897224741212014-06-22T20:45:00.000-07:002014-06-22T20:45:13.518-07:00Still I RaiseHello Everyone,<br />
I've been gone for awhile, but now I'm back. As much as I want to blog more, I've never been able to be better at staying on top of it and blogging more. I'm not going to make the same kind of declaration that I'm going to be better this time and blog more, because I have no idea if I will be able to. I here now and I'm just going to leave at that.<br />
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Well 2014 hasn't started off well and it has been kicking my ass from the beginning. I lost my close and dear friend Creighton Lane to stomach cancer in February. Creighton was an amazing person and I learned a lot from him over the years. We had some great times traveling all over the country with the Ballers. The kids we coached with the Ballers overall were great kids and we had minimal issues with kids while traveling. I constantly think of the fun times we had and the hilarous stuff that went on with the kids. I have so many funny stories from our times. The outfits Creighton would wear when we were in Las Vegas were legendary and besides coaching I spent most of my time trying to keep up with him with the outfits and I not ashamed to stay that I didn't come close to keeping up with him…lol<br />
I held my own with the shoes, but the outfits I didn't stand a chance. Between the shorts, shirts and the hats he would wear, he was styling for head to toe. The way Creighton would coach was a great site to see. He was demanding but he was fair and he would make the kids he coached better and they would play so hard for him. He's been missed by me and countless other people so much. I changed the name of my memorial weekend tournament. Its now the Patrick Dennehy/Creighton Lane memorial Rumble in the Bay basketball tournament.<br />
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Then in April I lost coach Ron Massey, my high school basketball coach. I called him pop's because he was more like my dad than anythiing else. I considered him my dad, so when he passed I lost my dad. He's passing was so unexpected. He was out with some of his friends and they had dinner and they watched the NCAA championship game. He came home and put on his LB Jordan t-shirt went to sleep and didn't wake up. When I got the news it rocked me to my core. I still haven't recovered and I'm not sure when or if I will. There are so many things Pops taught me. He is the reason why I'm alive and that I made it through high school and he was a huge part of my motivation when I went to college. I finished because I wanted to make sure he was proud of me. I lived for his approval on so many things. He taught how to be a man and to take responsiblity for my actions. Good or bad he told me to face things head on. I'm so glad that he was able to meet my kids because they are super important to me and he was a huge part of my life. I struggle with his passing daily and this year when I had my memorial weekend tournament it broke my heart that he wasn't there. I've been in a fogg since his passing and I'm trying to recover. I miss him so much. My goal is offer a scholarship in his name for the fall of 2015<br />
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Lets talk about this year's team. We have struggled and we have the potential to be good, but its hard to be good when you don't come to practice. We have yet had a practice with everyone there. It makes running plays during a game very difficult. It makes making the kids better difficult also. I've had the Ballers for 20 years and this is the 1st time I've had a group like this that doesn't have a high level of comment. Its my job to turn this group around and get them going in the right direction. We have some talent and the kids need to believe in themselves more and I'm hoping I can get them there. <br />
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We have our July tournaments coming up and we need to be ready. I've put so much sweat, blood, tears and money into the Ballers and we will get things going in the right direction. <br />
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I will have a young Ballers team next year, because my youngest Dallas has been bitten by the hoop bug and he's now playing. He just turned 8 on friday and he's nearly 5 feet tall and he's entering into the 2nd grade. He plays been playing against 5th graders and he's even played against 7th graders during my memorial weekend tournament. Thats what I love about him is that he will play against anyone. He's not scared and unfazed that he's only 8. He's the future of the Ballers and I'm already looking at high school he will attend. I'm hoping he keeps developing and he gets good enough so that he can play at Mater Dei for high school. I have kicked up his basketball training with 5mins a day ball handling and shooting. Its all about having correct form. I'm trying to build a good foundation for him.<br />
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We I've written a bunch and I'm hoping that 2014 gets better, because he has started off so shitty. There have been some pleasant surprises and some things that I'm truly grateful and blessed to have. I'm going to focus on those good things and hope that with time the 2 amazing people I've lost I'm able to recover. Please and love and thanks for reading my blog. Hopefully you didn't fall asleep. :-)<br />
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Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-17036079934743007112013-07-13T23:21:00.001-07:002013-07-13T23:21:24.351-07:00July tournamentsWhat up people. I hope you all are doing well. I know I know, I said I would blog more and I haven't, but let's look at it this way its only been 6 months between blogs..lol<br />
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The Ballers and I are at the Sweet 16 tournament. I brought both the Ballers 16s and Ballers 17s. So far it has been an up and down experience. The 16s have won 1 game and lost 2. Jonah Underwood got his 1st dunk in the game they won today so that was cool.<br />
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One of the biggest problem of the 16s is that they don't play hard enough all the time nor do they play with confidence our passion. They are a work in progress and they are getting there even if its slowly..lol<br />
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The 17s have lost all 3 games so far and we honestly should have won all three games. We were a better team, but we just didn't play that way. I hoping that they get a win tournament that will give us momentum going into our next tournament. Its a been a very frustrating weekend, because I want so badly for us to play better and to have more success. Only wish that the guys understood how badly I want this for them. Its late and I'm so tired. I will blog again once I get to the Bay. Thank you all who follow my blog and I will try hard to blog more constantly. I should right now especially, its Ramadan and its not like I'm eating all the time...lol May Allah grant you many blessings and may you have the visions to notice those blessing. I'm out..peace & love<br />
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Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-72356644485815912962013-01-22T21:49:00.001-08:002013-01-22T21:49:22.664-08:002013Hello All,<br />
I hope that 2013 has start well for you. As, for me 2013 has started off horribly. On New Year's day while working out I hurt my back. I spent the first 19 days of 2013 with a hurt back and not being able to stand up straight or walk without pain. I saw a doctor and I got an injection to help with the strain and ligament and muscle I pulled in my lower back and it made it worst..lol I spent my birthday laying on the floor with my feet up trying to ease the back pain. That didn't make for a very good birthday. My cousin also past away a few days ago. He had been on life support and my aunt had to pull the plug he wasn't going to get any better. January 21, 2013 I woke up and my back was so much better. I could actually stand up straight and walk around with very little pain, if any at all. I survived my back pain, which there were moments when I didn't think that I would. I was very close to call an ambulance and going to the hospital, but I didn't.<br />
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I'm so glad that my back is feeling so much better. I was actually able to do crunches during my morning workout today. My physical aches and pains are healing, but I'm still feeling down about so many things in my life. I'm in the process of changing those things, but sometimes changes isn't as quick as you would like. There are days when its so hard to move and I get so overwhelmed with life that I'm paralyzed by everything that I can't move, because I don't know where to begin.<br />
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Its been said that knowledge is power, which can be true. If, you don't have the means to take advantage of such knowledge than its more of a burden and it has less power than it should. Life can be so many things and sometimes it can be many things all at once. I'm a work in process and Allah isn't done with me yet, so I'm going to keep working hard on becoming better at everything in my life. Well I'm getting tired, so I'm going to end here. My goal is to blog more about everything, my life, the Lakers, tattoos, food and diet, exercising, education and pet pives.<br />
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Take Care,<br />
Big Nellie<br />
Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-35889599950516667862012-12-31T22:07:00.000-08:002012-12-31T22:07:09.643-08:002012 Re-capHello Everyone,<br />
I know that I have been lagging on my blog postings and I would like to say my bad and that I don't have any excuse for it. My goal for 2013 is to be much better at making sure that I blog more. <br />
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Here is my 2012 re-cap for anyone who is interested:<br />
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2012 started off amazing..I was in Australia and I brought New Year in down under. I was surrounded by amazing people so that helped. The rest of the month was cool as I turned 42 and I had my week long birthday celebration like I do every year. I celebrate my birthday every year, because were I grew up there were plenty of guys that didn't make it and I'm one of the lucky ones along with my boy Big D who made it. I don't remember exactly what I did during my week long birthday celebration..lol but I'm sure I had a blast :-)<br />
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During the spring time I was back in Australia during April. I had a blast once again. The Ballers also played in 2 tournaments. We didn't win as many games as I would like, but we grew as a team, which was very important to me. The rest of the spring was spent trying to get my Baller players ready for the big July tournaments. <br />
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The Summer came and I went to Australia again for my last basketball camp of 2012 and it went well, expect for my last day of camp at M'Dor.. that was very painful..lol. It rained the first 4 days of my June Australia trip. That wasn't fun at all. I almost came home early, but I decided to stay and keep my original flight. I also had shoulder surgery on June 1st and that made my travel to Australia and the whole month of June very painful, because I had my shoulder in a sling for the whole month. I also had this idiot, hit my shoulder at the girls dance recital. I would have given him a beat down, but I was in so much pain. I returned home on July 3rd, to get my boys ready for the July swing of tournaments. We played well and hard, but we had our ups and downs, but I was very happy with the effort we showed win or lost during our July tournament. The Ballers had 3 great kids come and play with us from Australia and it was such a joy to have James Griffin, Jules DeCourtnay and Ryley Warmer be apart of the Baller family and I hope that their time here with the Ballers was beneficial for them as much as it was for us.<br />
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I had some highs and lows during the year and if you're alive and breathing that is to be expected. My lows left me in a funk and depressed and I had no one to blame, but myself. I've struggled for years with a few different things and this past year those things hit me hard. I know being happy is up to me and me alone and the times I was happy, when I allowed myself to be that way. I learned a lot about myself in 2012 and those things were both good and bad. Looking within can be very hard, because you may not like what you find. There were more lows, but I won't bore you with all of them. My highs were my children. They are my world and I probably won't be on this earth, if they weren't here. I would have easily let life get the best of me, if it were not for them. I learned that its ok for me to be happy and that was a lesson that was hard to learn and I'm most truly a work in progress with that. I tried to make sure that I gave everything I had to my Baller players to make sure that they had the best chance of reaching their dreams, whatever the were. I also lost a dear friend to cancer this year, which is so very sad. She left behind 3 kids and 2 grandkids.<br />
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You may ask, why do a blog, why let the world know your thoughts and my answer to that would be..why to people write poetry or books and novels based on true facts. It serves as therapy for some and for the others...I couldn't begin to explain why the open themselves up to the world. I know I tend to be open just enough to the world, but I also keep them at arms length. There are only a select few that I could and would bare my soul to. I'm only a complete open book them. I can honestly say that at times my lows almost got the best of me and there were times that those lows got the best of me and left my paralyzed and thinking there wasn't any hope. So my goals and I only make goals and not resolutions for 2013 is to have a ton more highs than lows and to chase my dreams even harder. I won't Nike to pick up my Australian program, which is running camps and tournaments in Australia. I would back and forth, help kids from Australia come over and play high school and college basketball in U.S. I want to pursue a career in Sport Psychology and to be in a much better position financially, because I have way too much education not be making a lot more money. I won't to make more money to provide for myself and of course my kids more. I'm going to work even harder and get leaner, so I can get of this medication for type 2 diabetes. I'm going to get several tattoos, just because I need that for me and if you don't have any ink, than you couldn't possibly understand what I'm feeling and why I need some more ink. "Only a fool confuses fate with destiny, fate is what happens to us, destiny is what we make in spite of our fate" This quote may end up being a tattoo some day..lol I know I'm a good man with good intentions with a big heart and when I love you I love big, hard and deeply, but they say the road to hell is paved with good intentions..lol I'm a flawed man on my best day. I make mistakes daily and there are times when I make those mistakes twice in the same day. That makes me human and I learned a long time ago after going to counseling that perfection isn't good and you tend to make more mistakes when trying to be perfect. I no longer to be perfect, I just try to be me the best I can and sometimes that means I'm sweet and super nice and other times I'm a S.O.B. lol Some of you may read this and say he didn't say a damn thing and others will notice how much I opened up and truly understand what I'm saying. I truly don't like conflict and arguing is such a waste of time and my goal is to not let those things happen as much as they did in 2012. My 43rd birthday is 19 days away and I plan on having a kick ass week long birthday again this year and I will take notes this time so when I blog on 12.31.2013 I can give a better recap then I did this time :-) <br />
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Well I think I need to end this novel here and get ready to fall asleep before the New Year comes, because that is what I tend to do most years...lol In closing I would like to thank you for taking the time to ready my blog. I almost forgot, to mention that I have rediscovered my baking jones and I have been baking up a storm in 2012 and I plan on baking more in 2013, because I have sharpen my skills and my baking is becoming kick ass and I want it get my skills even better. I've finally gotten my frosting skills to my liking :-)<br />
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Take Care and may Allah bless you in 2013<br />
<br />
Big NellieBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-53985212516125631762012-12-31T21:00:00.000-08:002012-12-31T21:00:43.195-08:00Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-17438259065971856652011-07-28T08:09:00.000-07:002011-07-28T08:10:00.394-07:00LV fab 48 Day 3 & 4Day 3 of the tournament was the beginning of the playoffs. Both the Ballers 16s & 17s started the playoffs after finishing 2nd in their pools. That meant that both teams would face a 1st place finisher from another pool. The 16s started the playoffs against team Philly which had a lot of size up front. I truly believe that some of these kids playing in the 16u division aren't truly 16. I'm pretty sure I heard a little baby look at one of these so called 16u players & called him grandpa..lol. Despite being undersized the 16s were tied with team Philly at half. Team Philly's size wore down the 16s in the 2nd half and the 16s lost by 10. One of the best things about the 16s the compete every time they step on the court.<br />
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The 17s started the playoffs against Texas Cager & they were big & athletic and they just new the were going to give us a beat down, but as the saying goes never judge a book by it's cover and that is exactly what the Texas Cagers did against us. We started off the game on fire & continued that way the whole game. We played great defense and Texas Cagers didn't know what to do. Seth got his 1st dunk in a game in America...it was a pretty nice dunk. We beat the Cagers by 22 & it felt so good because they just knew it was going to be an easy game...which it was just not for them. Next up at 9:45pm that night (yes they play games that late..lol)was the Iowa barnstormers. I'm pretty sure the barnstormers shot about 70 percent in the 1st half..they had this one kid who just didn't miss. We were able to slow in down in the 2nd when Stephen stepped up & said Nel got him. We came out of normal match-up zone & played man. The 2nd half was great the lead went back & fort. It was tied with 20 second left in the game. We ran our normal offense but as the clock ran down Gokul called a clear from the top of the key & proceeded to go to work. He made a great move to create some space from myself & he buried a 3 with only .04 left on the clock to win the game. We all went crazy after the game because we won & that put us in the quarter finals & that also meant a rematch with the Houston Lynx the team that beat us in pool. We want to go James Brown on the Lynx (big payback)(google the song if you don't know it)<br />
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Day 4<br />
The big payback..the rematch game against the Houston Lynx and this time we were super ready with a chip on our shoulder & a newly found swagger. We beat the Lynx by 12 pick to advance to the semi-finals. Buddy was killing the Lynx with his baseline jumper & was again Gokul was on fire from 3. The Lynx also didn't have answer for Seth who basically shredded their defense getting to the basket the whole game. We meant up with Deron Williams Elite in the semi-finals & that game was really good. We held the lead most of the game but missed lay-ups & free throws helped them get back in the game. The game went to overtime & Gokul had a great look from 3 as time was running out to send it to double overtime but it fell a little short & that ended our great run in the tournament with that 3 point lost. I was & am so proud of all my boys. We played so well during the Vegas trip. Well I need to get some things done..the best of Summer tournament is coming up & I will have more to write about. <br />
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Take care<br />
Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-80575951263449467042011-07-25T12:53:00.000-07:002011-07-25T12:53:05.220-07:00Day 2 LV fab 48Day 2 worst that great for either team. Both teams lost by 4. Ballers 16 lost by 4 in double overtime. They had a couple of chances to win in regulation & the 1st overtime. The Ballers 17 lost in regulation after blowing a 9 point lead late the game. The 16s lost to Deron Williams Elite & the 17s lost to Houston Lynx. Both teams had a chance to win their pool but with the lost both teams finished 2nd in the pool with a 2 -1 record. Day 3 starts the play-offs. I will blog after the playoffs...I will give you a hint..it's exciting news.<br />
<br />
Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-43789992607266984442011-07-22T23:56:00.000-07:002011-07-22T23:56:22.914-07:00LV fab 48 1st dayThe 1st day went well for both teams. The 16s played at the same time as the 17s at a different location. All I know is that Brain has continued to be a beast on the boards and that they won both games today. The 17s won both games today as well. The morning game was very good. They played very well defensively. Gukol, buddy,Jarod & seth played well. The 2nd was ugly but we got the win. Both teams play to win their pools tomorrow @ 3:30. I will write more tomorrow.<br />
<br />
Go BallersBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-90898071056276277972011-07-16T22:13:00.000-07:002011-07-16T22:13:35.116-07:00Day 2 Cream of the CropDay 2 and the final day of the Cream of the Crop went well for both teams.<br />
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Ballers 16s<br />
Went 1 - 1 on Friday. They lost the 8:50am game and then came back and won the 11:10 game by 19pts after being down by 12pts at half time. Brian Kaestner was a beast on the boards all weekend. Creighton and I may get in trouble for child labor laws the way we had Brian working. Nick Wang was good all 4 games as well. Connor "Beige" Smith saw his first real action in a long while and he did well. Connor struggled with his wind at times but when he push through the fatigue he was fine.<br />
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Ballers 17<br />
Went 1 - 1 on Friday as well after going 2 - 0 on Thursday. They lost the 8:50am by 5pts because they didn't play hard or together for much of that game. They had a chance to cut the lead to 3 or 2 pts but missed shots and turn over hurt them in the morning game. The 12:20 game was a different story..the boys were awake and they got it rolling. Seth Turner who filled in the starting line up for Momir who badly bruised his heel in the very 1st game of the event. Seth played well on both ends of the floor. Ashonti and Jared were very solid on defense and offense. Both hit 3 3pters apiece, Stephen was very goo the 4 games as well and the biggest news about Stephen Grosey is that he can actually talk..for awhile we weren't sure about that. Buddy got it rolling in the 4th game with some jumpers a few post moves and a nice dunk. Gokul was up and down during the 4 games but he a some really good moments. Victor learned a lot and I'm sure he will be even more ready when we are in Las Vegas. I'm super proud of James..he is playing a new position and in a new role and he has embraced it and he played great. Well I need to get out of here. Take care and I will write more soon.<br />
<br />
Go Ballers<br />
Big NellieBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-53306380978227573732011-07-15T01:09:00.000-07:002011-07-15T01:09:10.632-07:00Day 1 Cream of the Crop 2011Bay Area Ballers 16s:<br />
had a pretty good 1st day at the Cream of Crop. They won their 1st at the buzzer by Brian who made a putback lay-up as time expired. The 2nd game was a lost to a very good team..but the boys played really hard.<br />
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Bay Area Ballers 17s:<br />
Won their 1st game by 5pts in overtime as well. The boys played really well against a Las Vegas team that has 1 of the best post players in the country. We did a very good job shutting him down, which resulted in a win. Game 2 resulted in a win against Team superstars. We won that game by 2pts..but we left big leads in both games get away from us. Stephen Grosey played well in both games. Ashonti Hunter has become a very good defensive player. Seth has played hard and has made some big baskets for the Ballers during each game. Momir Gataric hurt his ankle during the 1st game and we had to play the 2nd game without him and we did really well. We have to play 8:50 in the morning and I'm falling asleep while writing this so I'm going crash.<br />
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Peace & Love<br />
Big Nellie<br />
<br />
P.S.I need to add a few things about my 1st trip to Australia. I stayed with the Tueta family and they are all amazing. I love you allBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-34440582519056096302011-07-10T18:17:00.000-07:002011-07-10T18:17:23.194-07:00Don't call it a come back part 2<div>Like the title says "Don't call it a come back"... just say I'm back "Baby". I know it has been over 18 months since I lasted blogged and there have been a ton of things that have happened during that time, but we are going to focus on the most recent activities. June 24 - July 4th I was in Australia running basketball camps and it was amazing. I really enjoyed the people and my time there. I had a blast running my camps and working with the kids there. I just wish I had more time to work with them all. There were a few kids that stood out and the one who stood out the most was a 6'6 15 year old kid by the name of Eric Morgan. He has a chance to be a beast on the court with a little more time. He's hungry and he already has a little swagger to his game, which is what every ball player needs to have if they are going to be great. My friend Jodi Page has a 16 year old daughter who has Maya Moore type talent. Working really hard to get her over here to play high school then college ball here in the States. Eric is coming over to run with my Bay Area Ballers 16s squad..which will be great. I also have another Aussie playing for my Bay Area Ballers 17s team and his name is Seth Turner. Seth is a about 6'3 and he is a very good player and a great kid. Seth will make our team even better.</div><div></div><div>The Bay Area Ballers getting it rolling on Thursday(July 14-15) at the Cream of the Crop in Long Beach. We are looking to do big things and kick off our July season the right way. Well I have to roll. It feels good to be back and I promise to try and not be gone so long.</div><div></div><div>Later</div><div>Big Nellie</div>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-42105882588551350422011-07-10T18:14:00.000-07:002011-07-10T18:14:07.192-07:00Don't call it a come back<div><div>It has been a little over 18 monts since I lasted posted anything and what I did post took a lot out of me. Well like the title says "Don't call it a come back"...I'm just back "People". I'm writing you from the land down under..that's right Australia. I'm heading home in the AM, but the trip was a huge success. I was here doing camps in the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane area. The Brisbane camp didn't happen so I will have to come back and hook up with them on the next trip.</div><div></div><div>I ran camps on three separate days at M'Dore in the Sunshine Coast and can I just say I had a blast. Anytime I can be in the gym coaching I'm a happy person..well at lease most of the time..lol I met and worked with some pretty good young Aussie talent and I'm going to have a couple of them playing with the Bay Area Ballers this July. Shall I remind you how we gave people the business the last time I had Aussies on my team. If, you've forgotten check the Blog 2009 summer. That group was bad ass for real. Handing out beat downs left and right. Ok, back to the camp.. I was lucky to work with my friend Jodi Page's daughter Soraya who has a chance to be Maya Moore type good. I'm hoping to get her over for high school this year and that way I can work with a her ton. I also met Eric Morgan who is a 6'6 15yr old Soph. who has a chance to be a beast. As long as Soraya and Eric put the work in..there shouldn't be anyone or anything stopping them from acheiving big things in the States playing hoops.</div><div></div><div>The trip it self has been amazing..I have rediscovered why I love coaching so much. This trip has really recharged me..I get a little down at times with the everyday struggles with running the Ballers and this trip has showed me how worth it is and that I'm good at what I do. Well its kinda late here..but not really..its only 8:30pm sunday but I'm still on Cali and its 3:30am sunday AM according to my body...lol I will try not to have so much time between post.</div><div></div><div>later</div><div>Big Nellie</div></div>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-57025713226581733452009-12-31T23:08:00.000-08:002010-01-01T00:06:10.410-08:002000 -2009 RecapHappy New Year..everyone. As we enter into a new decade I would like to share with you..the last 10 years of my life and what I hope to accomplish in the next decade.<br /><br />Lets see..where do I start...so many things have happened during this period.<br /><br />Ok, lets start with the lows...that way we can end with the highs.<br /><br />I lost a player (Patrick Dennehy) who was murder in 2003. Patrick was like a son to me and I took his death very hard. Its been almost 7yrs since he was killed and I miss him so much. Pat drove me crazy at times...but I loved him like my own. I've tried to keep his memory alive by hosting the Patrick Dennehy memorial Rumble in the Bay basketball tournament. The event has grown over the years and has become the premier spring tournament in the west.<br /><br />I had some personal things that I had to overcome also. I spent the most of the early part of the decade of fighting the temptation of committing suicide because of all the things I was going through. I was able to get past that and I haven't had those feelings in years and I'm in a much better place mentally, so I won't be having those feelings again.<br /><br />I also discovered that I had some fake ass friends who never really were my friend at all. Its amazing how you can be there for someone in their time of need and be a support for them and their family and then have them..have them stab you in the back and then not talk to you..like you did something wrong to them..that shit is really hilarious to me. I guess those kind of people usually expose themselves sooner or later and then you should just walk away because cussing them out doesn't really solve anything even if it feels good at the time.<br /><br />Ok, enough of the lows..let here about the HIGH'S<br /><br />My kids were born and I love them with everything I have. The are the main reason why I work so hard. I have 3 tattoos that I have of them "D3P" one of my tatts says "the best of me"..because I hope and pray that they are the best of me. <br /><br />I've meet some friends that have really inspired me to go after all my dreams and to not stop until I make them happen and that is what I'm working on.<br /><br />The Ballers had a great decade...we were strong the early part of the decade and then we dipped and had to rebuild during the middle part of the decade..but we finished the decade off very strong.<br /><br />I had the great pleasure of coaching 24 boys that played their ass off this spring and summer. I wouldn't any of them for any other player. They were a very special group for me to coach.<br /><br />My adopted Aussie sons Josh and Scotty had been a blessing to my team and to my life. They are two great kids and its been a pure joy to coach them and to have them apart of my family.<br /><br />My other guys I also love like they were my own kids..I could write a novel about all of them.<br /><br />My goals are not just for 2010 but for the whole decade and there are:<br /><ul><li>Become a college coach at the Division I level.</li><li>Finish my 300 hours and become a certified sports psychologist</li><li>Get more tattoos about my kids and where I'm from (Long Beach...Baby)</li><li>Keep the Ballers playing at a top level.</li><li>Love my kids more each day</li><li>Make sure people don't take my kindness as a weakness</li><li>Put people in their place more often</li><li>Stop being so damn politically correct.</li><li>Stop dealing with fake ass people who pretend to be your friend</li><li>Workout more than I do now</li><li>Keep eating healthy</li></ul><p>That is about it right...but I may add more later.</p><p>Thank you for reading my blog and have a very Happy New Year</p><p>Peace & Love</p><p>Big Nellie</p>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-75415708605616743662009-10-05T11:08:00.000-07:002009-10-05T11:36:25.226-07:00Its been too longHello People,<br />Its has been way too long...since I lasted blogged and I'm sorry about that. Sometimes life just gets in the way. As u know from my last blog a few months ago the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span> had a really good summer. Here is an update on some of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ballers</span>.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Demitruis</span> Owens: Is a freshmen at Cal State East Bay and he has a very good chance at starting as a freshmen. He was hoping to walk-on at CS <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Northridge</span> but things didn't workout. He is very happy to be at East Bay U.<br /><br />Josh <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Tueta</span> & <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Scotty</span> Kenny (the Aussies): They are both at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Blinn</span> Community College in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Brenham</span>, TX...just outside of Houston. Everyone is very happy that they are both back here in the States and playing basketball. Both have a good chance of starting and making a huge impact on the team.<br /><br />James <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Osorio</span>: Will attend Seattle University next year as a non-scholarship freshmen on the basketball. All that means he is on the team and that he will have a chance to earn a scholarship later.<br /><br />Tyler Johnson: He accepted a scholarship offer from Fresno St. University. He actually had 6 offers total from Sac. St., Northern Colorado, St. Mary's College, Hawaii University, Utah St. and of course Fresno St. who he picked.<br /><br />Spencer <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Britsgchi</span>: Has some very good opportunities also and is currently trying to figure out what is going to be the best situation for him. I will keep you posted on him and the other kids in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Baller</span> family once more information becomes available.<br /><br />We also have 5 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Ballers</span> playing in the Super 100 camp in Richmond next weekend..which is a camp for the top 100 players in Northern California. Drew Dickey, Sean <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Dawkins</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Zayn</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Kirkendroll</span>, Ivan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Maragetric</span> and Zach Thomas are the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Ballers</span> attending the camp.<br /><br />That is the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">lastest</span> with some of the boys and as for me I'm very excited about their opportunities and I've been busy with all their stuff...I did manage to get a new <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">tatt</span> recently which I'm very excited about. Well I gotta run...thank you all for your support and remember GO <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">BAllers</span>!Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-44983192337942713632009-08-01T08:45:00.000-07:002009-08-01T09:04:21.778-07:00Day 4 Best of SummerDay 4<br />The last day of the tournament and we are all tired...but we have 1 more game...the championship game of the Gold Division. We arrive at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">LMU</span> at 11am for our 11:30am and the boys seem ready. I'm a mess already crying...because its the last time I will get a chance to coach this group as the Bay Area <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ballers</span>. All the kids on the purple squad will be moving on to college either in the fall or after their senior year...coming up. Some how I manage to pull myself together long enough to coach :) We start off slow...but like always our defense which has been great all summer kicks in and we start rolling. Every single player contributed to our 16pt win over NW Houston. The purple squad was on a mission all summer and I'm so proud to say that they completed that mission by how hard they played all summer long. July 14 is we started our summer tournament and we played 20 basketball games during that time and our record was 18-2...not bad at all...I was very impressed. I would like to say Thank you to: Tyler Johnson, Spencer <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Britsghchi</span>, James <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Osorio</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Suhail</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Mohammadi</span>, Tyler <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Atwater</span>, Josh <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Tueta</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Scotty</span> Kenny, Matt Johnson, Robbie Vaughan, Alex Stephenson, and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Demitruis</span> Owens for given me the opportunity to coach you all...it has been my pleasure and I feel bless to have had that opportunity...I love and will miss coaching you all...please remember that I'm always here if you need me for anything.<br /><p> </p><p>My Ballers-Grey squad thank you for working hard you all improved throughout the summer: Tim Wang, Ryan Tana, Jordan Rubin, JR Olson, John Pellarin, Jason Riland, Zayn Kirkendoll, CJ, Sean Dawkins, Jalil Eppenger, Nick Reddy and Sam Kelley...for all the returning players...lets have a great run again next year.</p><p> </p><p>Take Care</p><p>Big Nellie</p><p>Go Ballers!</p>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-60727420153011243162009-07-30T17:43:00.000-07:002009-07-30T18:20:46.697-07:00Day 3 Best of SummerDay 3<br />Had both teams playing two games.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Grey had a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">moring</span> game at 11:30 and they played really well. Which turned into a 20pt win. The boys really moved the ball around well. The second game wasn't as good as the first game. They didn't play as well...which in turn resulted in a loss for them and the end of the tournament for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ballers</span>-Grey...My grey team had a very good summer and we have a lot of really good players returning for next spring.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Ballers</span>-Purple didn't play until 5:45pm and that meant win or go home. The purple squad started the game off slow...by giving their opponent an early 7-0 lead. They got it going behind <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">TJ</span>, Josh & D and a very tough defense. They won the game by 18<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">pts</span>. The second game of the night was at 8:15pm and the purple squad hasn't always played their best when they have multiple games during a day and with a short amount of time between games. The purple squad played Mass River...from <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Massachusetts</span> and they were big....but that didn't matter because <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Scotty</span> came ready to play...he hit 7- 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">pters</span> and finished the game with 28<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">pts</span>...Big <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Tueta</span> was huge in the middle as he scored from the inside and rebounded like crazy as well as blocking shots. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Scotty</span> & Josh's play helped the team fight through being tired and sparked a 24pt win...which put the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Ballers</span>-Purple in the semi-finals tonight at 8:15. The winner of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">tonight's</span> game plays for the Gold division championship tomorrow morning at 11:30. I'm hoping to have some good news for everyone later tonight.<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Ballers</span>!!!!Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-27727465982520118682009-07-29T09:32:00.000-07:002009-07-29T09:51:07.190-07:00Day 2 Best of SummerDay 2 at the Best Summer was a little tough on both teams.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Grey played hard in the 2 games they had yesterday going 1-1 on the day. That put them in 3rd place in their pool and will now be in the bronze division for the playoffs. If, they continue to play hard they will have a great chance to go deep into the playoff.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ballers</span>-Purple played hard as well in their 2 games yesterday but finished 1-1 on the day. Which dropped them to second place in the pool. They will enter the playoffs in the Silver division...the purple squad is more than able to make a deep run...if they get back to playing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Baller</span> basketball...which wasn't the case in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">last night's</span> lost. The purple team is pretty hard to beat when they play <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Baller</span> basketball...but like any team...sometimes there are days when those things don't happen. You live and you learn...today is a new day for both teams...and the boys will be ready. Gotta Run<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Ballers</span>!<br />Big NellieBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-26318255745185934772009-07-27T23:00:00.000-07:002009-07-27T23:39:40.977-07:00Day 5 Main Event and Day 1 of Best of SummerDay 5 of the Main Event was very exciting...we started off with a 9:05AM game against a team from Colorado. They had some very good guards but the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-purple guards were a lot better. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">TJ</span>, Spencer, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Scotty</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Oso</span> (James <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Osorio</span>) were too much for them and big Josh was a beast in the middle with rebounding and timely inside scoring. Robbie Vaughan took an elbow to the head and wasn't able to continue playing in the game. The purple squad won the game and that put them into the finals. <br /><br />The championship game pitted the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Ballers</span> against Nike Team Florida...the game was back and forth early...until <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">TJ</span> got hurt with a knee injury...the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">ballers</span> was only able to cut the lead to within 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">pts</span> after being down 8. It was the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Ballers</span> first lost after having <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Scotty</span> and Josh join the team. They had won 11 straight games prior to the championship lost on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">sunday</span>. The lost hurt a lot...but I was so proud of how hard we played and to have a ton of people watching us was great. The crowd was truly pulling for the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Ballers</span>. There were several people who came up to me and said we would have won had <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">TJ</span> hadn't gotten hurt. It was great making the finals...but I wanted to win so bad for my boys...because they played and worked so hard to get to the finals. We got a second place trophy...which is kinda cool I guess. Making it to the finals came at a price...we didn't have any airline tickets home...so myself and 7 players were suck in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Las</span> Vegas until <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">monday</span> morning. <br /><br />Day 1 Best of Summer<br />We got suck in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Las</span> Vegas and had to fly out <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">monday</span> morning to San Jose and then turn right around and fly out to Long Beach for the Best of Summer tournament...which started today.<br /><br />The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Ballers</span> Grey and Purple both played at the same time today...so I wasn't able to help coach them.. They weren't able to come out with a victory...they had a couple of chances to cut the lead..but not for a lack of effort.<br /><br />The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Ballers</span> - Purple squad won...but it wasn't anything to write home about...talk about playing ugly...but getting a win. It wasn't a good game for the group. I'm chalking it up to just finishing up another tournament and traveling all day and being suck in Vegas until today. I'm tired<br /><br />Peace<br />Big Nellie<br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Ballers</span>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-59286145683700789662009-07-25T23:06:00.000-07:002009-07-25T23:31:30.921-07:00Day 4 Main Event<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Grey...started off Day 4 with a 6pts victory in the 1st round of the playoffs. In the 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">nd</span> round of the playoffs the grey squad fell...but had a winning record of 4-2 in the Main Event tournament. The Grey squad played really hard and should be able to carry their good play into the next tournament in LA at the Best of Summer. Good job fellows...lets keep it going in LA.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ballers</span>-Purple started off Day 4 with a 16pt victory over <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Fieldhouse</span> Indiana Elite...that victory put the purple squad into the field of top 16 teams. The purple squad then beat Grant Slate from New <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Hamphire</span> by 17<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">pts</span> to advance to the final 8. The final 8 game was a hard fought battle which the purple squad won without <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">TJ</span> who was suffering from a severe <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">migraine</span>. Final 4 tomorrow at 9AM...and I hope the boys are ready. The are having a great run and the championship is within reach. One game at a time has been the slogan for the team...take care of right now and not worry about other stuff. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">TJ</span> is feeling better and he will be ready to play in the morning. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Suhail</span> really stepped up in TJ"s place and played great. Spencer hit a few 3's from Utah. The boys have really come together and are working super hard as a team...Well its late..I need to get some rest so I'm ready for tomorrow.<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Ballers</span>!<br />Big Nellie<br /><br />P.S. Hard work beats talent...when talent doesn't work hardBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-60335871715986972172009-07-24T23:55:00.000-07:002009-07-25T00:14:45.206-07:00Day 3 continue main event<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-purple was the only team playing tonight. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ballers</span>-Grey doesn't start the playoffs until tomorrow. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ballers</span>-purple played St. Louis <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Majestic</span> and they had a very good team. The purple squad held the lead for the entire game. Josh was the man in the middle with two huge blocks..<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Scotty</span> struggled on the defensive side of the game tonight...but he was able to hit some key 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">pters</span> at key moments. Spencer had his mid-range shot going most of the night. Tyler was huge on the offensive glass tonight and he as well had his mid-range game working. The purple squad won by 12pts. Both teams are playing at 10:10am...but at different locations. Both teams have a great chance to make a deep run in the playoffs. Gotta Go<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Ballers</span>!<br />Big NellieBay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-75252845866753314592009-07-24T13:48:00.000-07:002009-07-24T14:08:41.767-07:00Day 2 & 3 The Main EventDay 2<br />The main event<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Grey had an exhibition game at 11:10 because the team from <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Illinois</span> wasn't able to make the event. The Grey squad played well...with a 33pt victory. The Grey squad had their 3rd pool play game at 9pm last night....they played hard...but came away with a 8pt lost. The Grey squad finished 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">nd</span> in the Pool and will start the playoffs tomorrow(<span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Saturday</span>) in the Gold bracket...which will consist of all the other 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">nd</span> place teams from the other pools.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Ballers</span>-Purple only had 1 game yesterday and they played well. The purple squad finished with a 29pt win and some amazing plays. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">TJ</span> had 2 pretty <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">spectacular</span> dunks off of lob plays. The first lob play he reverse dunked the ball and never looked at the basket...it was pretty sweet. <br /><br />Day 3<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Ballers</span>-Grey has today off and will not start the playoffs until 10:10am tomorrow.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Ballers</span>-Purple had their last pool play game at 8am this morning(cuss word) that was early. The purple squad started off slow and that translated into a tied game at halftime. The 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">nd</span> half was a different story...as the defense picked up and the purple squad was able to pull away to a 17pt victory. The purple squad will start the playoffs tonight against a team from St. Louis. I haven't seen that team play...I plan on scouting them before <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">tonight's</span> game..because they play their last pool play game at 3:30. Gotta Go<br /><br />Take Care<br />Big Nellie<br />GO <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">BALLERS</span>!Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-22833245029659730012009-07-22T23:45:00.000-07:002009-07-23T00:00:57.468-07:00Day 1 the Main Event 7/22Whats up people...we just finished the 1st day of the Main Event tournament and both teams walked away with victories.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Grey squad lead the whole game and finished with a 10pt win. Tim, Ryan, Ziggy, Sean, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">CJ</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Jalil</span> all played <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">really well</span>. Sam, John, JR, Jordan, & Nick all contribute valuable minutes off the bench. The Grey squad put themselves in a great position with an opening win tonight. Tomorrow's contest will also be a good test and if they play together like they did tonight we should come out with another victory.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Ballers</span>-Purple started off a little slow tonight before getting it going to a 29pt victory. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Demitruis</span> played really well with 2 very impressive dunks with one of those 2 dunks over this kid. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">TJ</span>, Spencer and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Atwater</span> were hitting 3's like they were lay-ups. Each guy had at lease 3...3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">pters</span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">TJ</span> had an amazing dunk off a lob play early in the 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">nd</span> half. Defensively the team was really strong...but the purple squad will need to be even better tomorrow if they are going win tomorrow.<br /><br />Well its late and I'm so tired and I need to get some rest and be ready for tomorrow's games.<br /><br />Later<br />Big Nellie<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Ballers</span>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-35251548159102136742009-07-16T08:53:00.000-07:002009-07-16T09:54:46.902-07:00Day 2 Cream of the CropDay 2 of the Cream of the Crop wasn't as exciting as the 1st day for both squads. <br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span>-Purple had an 8:30AM game after a double overtime game that didn't get over with until close to 10pm...so by the time everyone got food and showered its was about midnight once the players got to sleep. The players had to be up and ready to go by 7:45AM. We didn't leave until 8AM which put me in a real shitty mood...because we were suppose to leave 15 minutes earlier. When we got to the gym 15 minutes late we had to rush to get warm and be ready for the game. We won...but we didn't come close to playing as well as we did the night before. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ballers</span>-Purple second we so damn ugly. We only played as a team about 12 minutes of the 32 minute game. We managed to pull in out in the end with a 1pt win..but the team had a good look to win it from about 12 feet...we got the rebound and game was over.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ballers</span>-Purple went 4-0 over the 2 days..but we need to be more consistent with our efforts and need to remember to play together at all times.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Ballers</span>-Grey...1st game we struggle that game to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">sub stain</span> any real rhythm. I had to leave at half time...to get the purple squad to their second game because it was at a different location. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Galos</span> told me that the second game was much better and that the kids played hard and played well...but just couldn't get any shots to fall...which resulted in a 6pt lost.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Ballers</span>-Grey finished the 2 day event 2-2 which is pretty good because they weren't at full strength...because of the players didn't make that trip<br /><br />The Cream of the Crop event should have us ready to do well in Vegas.<br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Ballers</span>Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555712438628755496.post-68819944538348567352009-07-15T06:46:00.000-07:002009-07-15T07:29:17.742-07:00Day 1 Cream of the Crop ShootoutThe Bay Area <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ballers</span> started their <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">july</span> play at the Cream of the Crop shootout in Long Beach...my home town. I'm so happy that we have finally gotten back to playing basketball and to kick things off in Long Beach...is extra special for me.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ballers</span>-Grey started things off for us and it was clear that we hadn't had a game in awhile as we struggled both on offense and defense. We were able to get some good looks...but we didn't have many shots fall for us. Even with the slow start we were able to come away with a 3pt win.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Ballers</span>-Purple had their 1st game at 4:40pm yesterday and they got off to a good start on the defensive end..but struggled slightly on the offensive end. The defense held the other team to 39<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">pts</span> which turned into a 26pt win. Tyler <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Atwater</span>, Matt & Robbie were very good defensively off the bench..<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Atwater</span> had several steals by making some very smart reads on lazy passes against a very good team.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Ballers</span>-Grey game 2..was a different story...the shots were falling like rain..<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Zayn</span>, Sean,<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Jalil</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">CJ</span> shot the ball much better. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Zayn</span>, Sean & <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Jalil</span> each made at lease 2 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">pters</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">CJ</span> was a monster on the boards. We also got a lot of help from Ryan Rocha...a veteran <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Baller</span>. We were able to come away with a 6pt win.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Ballers</span>-Purple game 2...was crazy...we got great play from Tyler, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Scotty</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Demitruis</span> and Robbie. We had a 16pt lead at one point in the 1st half but lost it and went into halftime with a 1pt lead. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Scotty</span> got it rolling with his jumper after struggling a little in the 1st half with 3 quick 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">pters</span> in the 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">nd</span> half..which helped us push our lead back up to 12<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">pts</span>. Spencer hit4...3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">pters</span> throughout the game to help us. We got a little tired down the stretch and made some bad plays and lost the lead. We were down 5 late in the game when James...hit a huge 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">pter</span> to cut the lead to 2...we cause a turnover to get the ball back with 12 seconds left. We ran a play and got Josh the ball and he was foul and he stepped to the line and knocked down 2 huge free throws sending the game into overtime. Overtime was crazy..we blew a couple of opportunities to take control and then found ourselves down 4 with 30 seconds left to play. We scored and then cause a turnover and got the ball back with 4 seconds left to play and we needed to go the length of the floor to score to either tie or win the game. Tyler was able to get open for a long pass but missed the lay up, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Demitruis</span> was right there to have his back and finished the play...to send the game into double overtime. Double OT...more craziness...again we blow opportunities to take control of the game and found ourselves down 4 again late in the game. We scored and cause another turnover. We didn't have any timeouts and we are all tired...so the plan was to go for 3..to either win or lose. James gets the ball and droves but was fouled..we took the ball out with 12 seconds left in the game. Tyler droves to the basket and then was able to kick it out to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Scotty</span> who <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">launches</span> a 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">pter</span> with a defender in his face and hits nothing but the bottom of the net...to win the game. We rush the court pumped...it was an awesome game. <br /><br />That was day 1 and we are getting ready for Day 2. <br /><br />Go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Ballers</span>!!Bay Area Ballershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10806065800059235313noreply@blogger.com0