After all the ranting about AAU ball for the past eight months, we are back to winter ball.... and the drama is real.
Local Rec League: Between people not wanting my help, or wanting to take on all my prior responsibilities, plus all my current personal issues, I've effectively stayed away from everything, save some scoreboard operation in the 3rd/4th and 5th/6th Girls leagues.
Maja: Maja made just the Freshmen team this year, not the 8th grade as well, so an extra 15 games at the local vo-tech league will not be a reality (more on that later). Still, almost everyone's healthy, moving quickly, and showing up the actual Freshmen on the team. The energy is on high for their first game of the week, against a lowly team they beat 47-1 last year. The worst part? To make up for a number of teams on the schedule without Freshmen programs, They'll be playing that team twice in the next two weeks.
Millie: After an entire winter where beating the "hated" Wolfpack was finally achieved in league play, and in tourney play, the top players on that team joined Millie's AAU team, and after eight months, everyone is best of friends. So much so, that Millie was invited to join the actual Wolfpack, for not only their winter tournament circuit (non-AAU), but as a bench player in the Sunday night league. Only problem? That's the league her school team participates in. Initially, there was no issue with Millie getting playing time on both teams, so long as she picked one team for head-to-head match-ups and the entire playoff run. Then Millie's local coach threw a fit, and there is more drama that anyone cares for. The funny thing is, Millie is heavily leaning to playing with the Wolfpack full-time rather than dealing with the drama with her own coach.
Tryouts for proper 7th grade school ball are in 11 months. I honestly can't wait.
Meanwhile, the Wolfpack is part of a huge 10-team double elimination tournament with all the 6th grade teams in the I-81 corridor between I-80 and I-78. So far, the run has been a clinic in high tempo play and genereal badassery, winning three games with a combined from of 126-31. They play the team they only beat by 25 for the championship tomorrow without Millie and another player, as my wife is taking three girls to Syracuse for a Breanna Stewart clinic that I personally fear will be a large, general two-hour clinic on the basics, when there's five total hours of driving involved.
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| Millie lettin' it fly! |
7th/8th grade: Maja's out of the picture, and Millie will be in the league next year, but I still have a significant investment with these girls. In the 7th grade game, of the 13 girls who suited up, I coached four of them, three more were from the "Bullspur" practice sharing teams, and another one played with Millie last year. Given that two Millie's teammates racked up all 17 points in the 21-17 loss, does given me some paternal pride (especially since the center had a double double - 10 points, 13 rebounds).
The 8th graders who didn't make the transition to Freshmen were not prepared to withstand the wrath of a team the 7th grade full collective beat by 25 last year. Even with some 7th graders from the Freshmen team coming down to help the 8th, it was a royal mess, and ironically, every single girl from 7th and 8th got more playing time in a 53-9 loss (My former players from 7th grade responsible for 4 of the 9 points in 8th grade.)
This morning is the weakest Jr High team in the area, so here's hoping they find some winning ways
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