Mandatory AAU Basketball Spring 2023 Rant - Weekend #2

With a week off, then another one gone for Easter, it was finally tournament weekend for both Maja and Millie.

The teams have had a good run at the Zero Gravity Coaches Versus Cancer events at Spooky Nook.  Allegedly all the girls teams from 6th grade to Varsity (12u to 17u) got the top pools to play in.  I'm still unsure about the last part of the statement, but I'm certain the girls brough their A-game.

Millie:  The sixth grade girls' biggest weakness was the lack of a true big.  They managed to beat teams with multiple girls over 5'10", but week after week of that is going to cause some mental and physical wear and tear.   

Enter Giavanna.  

Gia is a 6'1" center who actually played against them in the last tournament.  The parents were so impressed with our program (and disillusioned with the other one), that they jumped ship and Gia got to play with the girls.   She's not a #1 draft pick yet, rather a consistent player, with a good skill set and a basketball IQ that keeps her out of trouble.  She came off the bench each game and relieved the undersized starters, and allowed a breather for all the girls.  

Despite being outsized in every game (save Gia), the team had wins of 44-8, 44-19, and 42-19.  The championship game was a rematch, and they hit the 20-point mercy rule in the first half and cruised, 35-11.

Millie took a lot more shots than this time last year, tussled with all the big girls, and initiated a bunch of drawn plays.  She also put a girl in an ankle lock during a jump ball scrum on the floor, and nearly made her submit.  

Maja:  Maja's team had a few drop-outs, plus a few younger additions.  With the disentrigration of the 7th grade team, 8th grade inherited their dominant 6'2" center, Odessa, plus Ashlyn, one of the girls from the ill-fated 7B team from last year.  Grabbing another girl, Mariah, from the dreaded Hazleton team, and Maja is relegated back to coming off the bench.  And given her play on Saturday, it was completely understandable.   

With her Freshmen coach as her AAU coach, Chuck does not like to run up scores, so after dominating each team, he subbed in all the girls on the bench, and ultimately then other came within six or eight, forcing the starters to come in again.  I could be worried, but being the stat-dad on the team, I referenced last years four games for the first tournament of 2022.  While her steals, rebounds, and blocks are down, her assists are through the roof, she went from shooting 8% to 67%.  

Although there was a chance for zero mercy against one team of troublemakers if they made it through the play-in games, the girls kept dominance, controlled the tempo, and went 4-0 on the weekend.

I'm currently awaiting the lunar/solar eclipse or end of the world, because both girls NEVER win championships together on the same weekend.