EVENT UPDATES

AAU REGIONAL TOURNAMENT CHICAGO, IL 4/26-27/2008

The 10U-5th Grade Girls Predators won the AAU Trinity Regional Tournament finishing with a record of 2-0 and will be playing as the #1 Seed in the State Finals Memorial Day Weekend.

In the first game against the Chicago Hoops Express, the team started out very slow and at halftime only held a slim lead, however, with a stingy defense that did not allow a point in the 3rd quarter the game was soon put out of reach.

The second game against the River Forrest Raiders was much the same. The team could not get going offensively until the second half when the defense took over and controlled the game. A close one point game a haft turned into a twenty point win at the end of the game.

The team played excellent defense throughout the tournament and had very balanced scoring. The offense was sluggish at times but the third quarter of the first game could have been the best overall quarter of the year for the team.

CONGRATULATIONS GIRLS AND GOOD LUCK IN THE STATE FINALS!!!!!!!

USSSA GLASFORD, IL 5/3-4/2008

Looking for a tune-up before the AAU State Finals the team entered the USSSA Shootout and participated in the 6-7th Grade Division in hopes of playing tough competition and getting them ready for the finals.

The competition was exactly what the team was looking for; the teams were stronger, quicker and especially taller. These challenges forced the team to do all the little things necessary to compete. The girls finished with a record of 2-2, with one loss by two points and the other loss was in overtime.

In the first game against the River City Rush the team got down by as many as thirteen points in the first half but battled back to tie the game late in the final period only to lose by two points. Had the team competed harder in the first half, it could have made a difference in the outcome; however, they learned a valuable lesson in this game.

In the second game the girls came out with more intensity and ended up winning by seven points over the 7th Grade Plains team. On offense the shots were falling and this really helped since this team was so tall that the girls could only get shots from the outside.

On Sunday the team played the 7th grade team from Kewanee and after winning that game went against the same 7th Grade Plains team they played and beat on Saturday. Again, getting shots was tough do to their height and the fact that they played a zone 1-3-1 defense. Passing around and over the zone proved to be too much for the team, however, at the end of regulation it was tied at 19 all, a tribute to the good man-to-man defense they girls played. The Plains team persevered in the end by scoring five unanswered points in overtime. This could have been the best team defense played in a single game this year.

Going home with two wins and two losses against this competition is something to be proud of, however, we know these girls expected more and that’s what makes them a tough team.

AAU STATE FINALS RIVER FORREST, IL 5/24-26/2008

The 10U Girls team went 3-0 to win the AAU State Tournament. This is the first AAU State Championship won by any of our Predator Girls teams.

On Saturday, the team started strong in the first game against Illinois Basketball Academy (IBA). All of the girls played hard and even though they were outsized at every position, their quickness and hustle more than made up for the size difference.

In the team’s second game on Sunday against Chicago Hoops Express, the team wasn’t as sharp on defense, giving up 31 points in the game, which is high for the team. The Express came out in the third quarter in a half court trap and it caused some turnovers and created some problems. Once the team figured out the zone, it settled down and played well in the fourth quarter. The game was closer than the final score of 48-31 showed.

Monday’s championship game was a rematch of Sunday’s game. The Express made it through the consolation bracket, giving the coaches cause for concern. However, unlike Saturday the team defense was excellent, only yielding five points in the first half and eighteen for the entire game, winning by a score of 43-18. The team was ready for the half court trap and handled the pressure extremely well.

The site manager awarded the team their first place medals and had some very encouraging words for the Predator players. In his words, “Girls I’ve been running tournaments for AAU for fifteen years and I’ve coached five different teams that won the AAU State Tournament and this is the best 10U team I’ve seen.”

CONTGATULATIONS, AAU STATE CHAMPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AYBT SPRINGFIELD, IL 6/14-15/2008

The team played two years up in the 7th grade division of this event and went 4-1 for the weekend. In the first game against the Hoop Gals, the team came out flat; both the offense and defense were very sluggish. The Hoop Gals took advantage of a team not ready to play and handed the Predators a sound defeat by 25 points.

It was interesting to see how the team would bounce back the next four games against the Eagles, Peoria Comets, Mt. Zion Fusion, and CU Elite. They accepted the challenge and showed a lot more enthusiasm and confidence; they came ready to play and left it on the court. Three of the four games were competitive, and the Predators had to execute well to get victories in these games.

It was a good weekend to learn a lesson, one I’m sure the team did.

AYBT MONMOUTH, IL 6/28-29/2008

In preparation for Nationals, the Predators started the weekend playing a Friday night game at home against a 5th grade team, the Cyclones of Collinsville, IL. The team came out with tons of energy and aggressiveness; winning the game easily, with stingy defense and great hustle.

In Monmouth, the team again played up two years in competition against 7th grade teams and finished with a record of 5-0. Almost every game was competitive and the team had to show resilience to win. The team was outsized in every game and had to execute on the board to even be in the games.

In the first game against PGSL, the game came down to the wire and the team executed well for a close victory. A key steal and late bucket, helped seal the victory.

The game against the Burlington, IA team was also very close. There were several key defensive plays towards the end of the game and a very important three point shot that put the team ahead to stay with fifty seconds remaining in the game. The Burlington team had the ball with seven seconds left, down by three and the referee did not hear the time out being called for; the time expired before they could get a shot off.

The games against Streaks of Fire, Future Lady Knights, and Washington Wildfire all followed the same pattern. The games were close at half time, but the Predator pressure and defense proved to be too much in the end. The weekend was a good test and helped the team prepare for nationals.

GOOD LUCK IN FLORIDA!!!!

USSSA NATIONAL TOURNAMENT TAMPA, FL 7/5-8/2008

The Predators finished second at USSSA Nationals in Tampa, Florida going 5-1, losing the Championship game in overtime to the LADY GYM RATS from Ft. Wayne, IN.

On Saturday, in pool play the team started strong easily beating the Riviera Beach Express team from Riviera, Fl. All of the players scored in this game, it was a good start to the tournament.

In the second pool game against the LADY GYM RATS (the eventual National Champions), a stingy defense and good shooting led to a 43-29 victory. The scoring was balanced and everyone saw considerable action. It was the 3rd game of the day for the Gym Rats, so we knew if we saw them the last day we'd be in for a battle.

On Sunday morning the 3rd pool game against the Indiana State Champions, the Terre Haute Wolves, the team again applied full court pressure and won easily 31-13. The team speed and aggressive play was impressive.

The 4th pool game against the Florida Vision, the team again pressured the guards and was able to create havoc on the court. The team finished well and ended up winning 47-18.

In the Semi-Finals of the Championship Bracket, the team again had to play Florida Vision, who played their way back to the semis. The game was close throughout with the Vision playing good defense; they were also able to handle the Predators pressure much better than the previous game. The Predators ended up winning by a twenty point margin; however, the game was much closer that the final score.

In the championship game against the Lady Gym Rats, the team played excellent defense again. The game was very close throughout with the Predators leading almost the entire game; however, the team did not finish very well offensively. With the Predators ahead with two minutes to go in the game, the Gym Rats had to foul and unfortunately the Predators could not knock down their free throws and were zero for nine at the end of the game on free throws. The game went into overtime tied 29-29 and the Gym Rats had the momentum. The Predators did not score in overtime and eventually lost 34-29.

Kierra Weir won the USSSA Hustle Award for the tournament; however, the entire team could have won it. The players played as hard as possible and left everything on the court.

CONGRATULATIONS ON THE SECOND PLACE FINISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AYBT NATIONAL TOURNAMENT BLOOMINTON, IL 7/20-23/2008

The 5th Grade Predators ended the summer season by winning the AYBT National Tournament in Bloomington, IL. They finished 6-1 in pool play with their only loss coming against CU Elite 6th and went undefeated in tournament play.

The team played an aggressive full court man to man defense the entire tournament, and that set the tone for most of the games. In their only loss, CU Elite played a zone defense and it proved too difficult to shoot over the taller more physical team.

In the Championship bracket, the stingy defense proved too much for the opposition and the games were well in hand early in the second half. Both games were won by a large margin and the Predators brought home the hardware.

CONTGRATULATION, AYBT NATIONAL CHAMPS!!!!!!