Manhattan College…… The Rumble In The Bronx Tournament in New York is a grind! Going all over the Metropolitan area during the weekend trying to reach Manhattan College by Sunday! The Playaz 17 and 15 teams were ready for the challenge as their play concluded in championships for both squads! The 17’s fought off City Rocks 67-65 as the #4 ranked player in the country, Kyle Anderson again led the way for the Playaz! He and his teammates, Savon Goodman, Myles Davis, Chris Jones, Jerome Frink and Sekou Harris all had consistent strong weekends! Anderson who finished the game with 19 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists was named Rumble In The Bronx M.V.P.! The 15’s were even more impressive as they played the final 4 games without their go to player Rashard Figures! Every player picked up his game to compensate, particularly Jordan Forehand who was named M.V.P. as they went on to win 58-51 over the Westchester Hawks! Marques Townes, Alex Thomas, Nick Ruthsatz, Corey Brown, Juwaan Carter and Nadi Beciri all stepped up their games to compensate for the loss of Figures! Forehand had an outstanding weekend on the offensive and defensive end! The 16’s were not as fortunate, losing to Sports U 44-41 in the quarters! The 16’s were shorthanded but got strong play from Reggie Cameron, Kavon Stewart, Mike Young and DeAndre Noble!

NOTES:  Anderson,(pictured with Sr Kyle) who has his list of schools cut to 5 ( Florida, Georgetown, U.C.L.A., St. Johns, Seton Hall) is still not sure when he will make his decision, but has strong positives for each school! One of the fun things of the Tournament was the arrival of the #1 ranked player in the class of 2013, 5’6 Aquille Carr(left)! Playing for The Baltimore Stars team the kid is a show with exceptional athletic ability as witnessed by the off the charts dunk he had against a player almost twice his size!

Paterson, New Jersey…….. The Playaz sponsored Blow Up Tournament showcased the younger talent in the program, and by all accounts the cupboards are not bare as the 14u and 13u teams each reached the championship game of the tournament! The Playaz 14u pulled off the Chip, while the Playaz 13u lost in a close contest!

                            PLAYAZ 14u – 84            NEW HEIGHTS – 72

         The score was closer than the game as the Playaz 14u team put on a tremendous display in their win against New Heights 84 – 72! This up and coming unit has established itself as the team to watch in the program that still has strong 17u and 16u teams! The bottom line is the Playaz 14u team boasts two of the best players in the metropolitan area! Isaiah Briscoe and Nassir Barrino is as good of a 1-2 punch as there is and throughout the week they proved just that! Barrino led the assault scoring 28 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and dishing out 5 assists, while Briscoe who was a straight stud the entire weekend finished with 22 points and 7 boards! They in no means are just a two man team as the other players are key contributors! Big man Marquel Sheffield was a presence in the middle! He scored 7 points, but more importantly grabbed 12 rebounds and chased every shot as he finished with an impressive 8 blocks! Alphonso Gee, Javon Rawls and Derek McKnight all had moments to shine and were the key to the defensive pressure that was put on New Heights! New Heights main shining lights were T.J. Gibbs who scored 23 points and Willie Barnes who finished with 10! Sheffield, Gibbs and Barnes were named to the all tournament team, while Barrino(far right) was named M.V.P. of the championship game and Briscoe(2nd from left) was named M.V.P. of the tournament!

                              TEAM SCAN- 58            PLAYAZ 13u- 56

    The 13u team didn’t fair as well in the “chip” losing to a very good Team Scan team 58-56! The Scan team was led by Unique Mclean with 20 points! He demonstrated”out of this world athleticism” all weekend and will be a name that will be talked about in the future! He and teammate Korey Benson(right) were the catalyst for Scan the entire tournament! The Playaz team still has a lot to look forward to despite the loss as Nick Brooks(left) impressed all weekend and Quadir Brown had a strong weekend for the Playaz squad!

Englewood,New Jersey……..Reebok held it’s mini ABCD breakout tryout at City Sport in Englewood for local NewYork and New Jersey talent to see if they would move on to the regional camp in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! While it has not been decided on the players moving on, the area kids showed their worth! The usual locals did very well, such as Kavon Stewart, Reggie Cameron, Joel Hernandez, Chris Jones, Mike Young and Shaakir Lindsey! Also playing well was Raekwon Kelly, Jordan Forehand, Neville Fincher and Grant Ellis! Top soph Austin Colbert and New York’s Dashawn Suber and Plainfield’s Sekou Harris all made their case, playing well throughout the camp! The two that probably got off and opened eyes the most were Cavon Baker and local flavor Rashard Figures!